Drunk Animals Need Not Apply

And so many of them are so bland and generic. I mean, is there really a difference between The Aquarium and Darwin's, besides the fact that one has fish, and the other has slightly more advanced fish? And is there a difference between Chuggin' Monkey and Dizzy Rooster? We say a drunk animal is a drunk animal.

The Austinist likes to have a nice drink once in while at a bar that is a bit off the beaten path. We like a bar with a more mature vibe, a bar with a bartender who wears a grimace and a smock instead of a I WILL SERVE YOU CHEAP SHOTS face. We like a bar where there are couches made of wood and leather, and where the bar is thick and tall and also made of wood. And leather.

If there is a stuffed woodchuck, all the better.

The Longbranch Inn, on East 11th (just a few blocks east of I35) is this sort of bar. It is small, and dark, and there is a pool table. The bartenders, like the only just slighly gentrified neighborhood they reside in, have character. There is even small stage, where they have a weekly singer/songwriter night.

It is, amazingly, a nice neighborhood bar. It is not a metroplex of 29 dancefloor shotsplosion. It's a neighborhood bar where you can go with your friends and have a drink and sit and talk and have a nice time. They serve beer, wine, and liquor. They sell packs of cigarettes. There are tables and chairs and comfortable couches.

They do not have any drunken animals, or fish, or laser lights, or girls dancing on the bar. The Real World will not be hanging out there. They will not give you $1 shots to get you through the door. But they'll serve you a good drink, quick, and then leave you to your business.

Thank you, Longbranch. It's about time we had a bar like you.