The Liquid Muse

My New Favorite Hang Out!

Bar Keeper in Silverlake

I've been hearing about it for a while. And, man, do I kick myself for not going by sooner. Bar Keeper rocks!

Joe Keeper, owner and "community leader" provides an oasis for enthusiasts, experts, once-in-a-whilers and the cocktail-curious, alike. He and his wife, Ana, value living in a village, and wanted to build a place of comfort and freedom to relax into enjoyment.

He recalls, "When I was a kid, there were these things called records. You'd pull one out and listen to it with a friend. It was a shared experience. Now, I have a whole generation of customers who weren't around before walkmans or ipods."

Bar Keeper is not even two years old and has already been written up in LA Weekly, LA.com, and Lucky Magazine... and, it didn't even have a website until yesterday!!

Cocktail books, shirts, antique glasses and moveable bars, Absinthe spoons (pictured on left) and a wide variety of other cocktail-related goodies fill the store.

In addition, there are cocktail classes (I will be teaching some later this summer - yay!) and he keeps beer on-hand for people who want to meander by on a Saturday afternoon and hang out on the back patio.

"I don't mind providing some free drinks. It's the best advertising I could ask for. I have loyal customers who come back."

So, dear Sipsters (especially those of you who are in LA) get thee to Bar Keeper. And, pop open a cold one for me. I'll be along in a minute...

Photos courtesy of Bar Keeper Website and LA Weekly Review.