Those who are paid to cover the city's nightlife, to be honest, are probably not at the same level as you and I. Not saying they're any better or worse; just in a different mindset. While we're content with drinking at bars that have been around for years, they're constantly in search for the latest and hippest bar. Where people want to be seen. Where people want to be the first to get to know the bartenders. Those gems that have yet to be unearthed? Yeah, they're on the lookout for those, too. The ensuing explosion in popularity kills any charm or quirkiness they had before that separated them from the rest as they start to cater to an entirely new demographic.
Not apt to reading the snooty (and possibly unfairly biased) thoughts of a select group of journalists? There are sites like Yelp and alikelist where the plebian masses can voice their opinions.
The problem with review sites is that the ratings are quantified with a simple number; those who write reviews are required to give the establishment a traditional 1-5 rating. While looking up reviews for a particular bar, instead of reading the 300-odd reviews, it's much easier to simply glance at the stars. Imagine those 300 people packed into a room, all speaking over each other, all trying to tell you why you should or shouldn't go somewhere. Any one voice in particular that you might take into account and the actual purpose of the site itself gets lost to all but those with enough free time on their hands to actually read the reviews. It's just easier to quickly glance at the star rating.
In addition to the flawed review and rating system, you have no idea what the background of the reviewers are. If Johnny Skinnyjeanshipster was forced to go to a booty-shaking Top 40 club in SoMa and as a result made to feel entirely uncomfortable - and then feels like sharing his opinion - of course he's going to rate the bar lower than, say, Brittney Bridgeandtunnel. And Whitney Winesnob at a Haight Street dive bar? Forget about it.
Which is where this blog comes in. I like to think of it as the common man's (and women's) drinking blog. I like to drink. My friends like to drink. I hate to call what I'm going to write here "reviews" as you and I know them. "Opinion" isn't the right word, but it's the first that comes to mind. Maybe a story here and there, if warranted. Content aside, it's my hope that people find all of the bullshit presented here by myself (and hopefully others) entertaining and informative.
Ideally, there'll be at least a couple opinions of each of the places covered here (borne out of growing up reading EGM with their Review Crew and 3-man reviews) - since I try to not make a habit of frequenting bars alone, the only problem with this is convincing my friends to also write a few words about where we drink. I'm going to assume that until that ball gets rolling, I'll be writing about places solo-style and repurposing old reviews I've posted on Yelp.
Cheers. Now bottoms up, bitches.
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