With the news that Matterhorn has been purchased by a non-Wellingtonian group, my heart sort of broke. To be honest, I've never been the biggest fan of Matterhorn. I'm often too broke to afford it and I'm sort of on a bit of a black list there. But, I digress. There are still a lot of great bars around Wellington that deserve a mention here (as well as fantastic bartenders).
1) San Francisco Bathhouse. My god they have come out swinging in terms of gigs this year haven't they? Almost every week I part with money and don't eat proper meals just so I can attend a gig. The regular parties like Atomic and 24 Hour Party People indulge my secret love of 80's fashion. A buzz note - the gig posters that they sometimes have out are the best ever. I can't be the only person who wants to steal them right out of their frames right??
If you click on it, you should go to the Flicker page to which this photo belongs.
2) Tokyo Tea House. Sometimes, the urge to venture down Courtenay Place becomes too strong to resist. When it does, you have a few options. Hooch (I'm broke, remember?), Hawthorne (I fell over drunk there once and have been too embarrassed to show my face again), and now this gem which has recently opened. It's the perfect place to sit outside and people watch the girls wearing no clothes walking down the street and make you feel classy-ish.
3) Watusi. I'm all about the leopard print booths. And I have a massive crush on the bartender with the long blonde hair. And they are wonderful when it comes to odd food requirements (burger without no gluten and no dairy? EASY). I was a happy camper. And coming up here super soon is the ROLLER DERBY FUNDRAISER QUIZ. How exciting is that going to be? If you want more details, flick me a message/comment.
4) Alice. The cocktails in a teapot give me joy. Because they're in a teacup and because they are usually pretty generous with the booze. We split these between three of us and whilst we're all lightweights, it still works out cost wise. AND there are so many beautiful people here you can just sit at the bar and stare for a little while.
5) Havana Bar. MOJITO MOJITO MOJITO. SANGRIA SANGRIA SANGRIA. Does anything more really need to be said? All right, all right. They are awesome. If you're nice to them they give you free donuts (well, I got one - it may have been my fantastic chatting up techniques... or the guy felt so sorry for my awful chatting up techniques that he gave me a donut out of pity). But in any case, go buy the sangria. It's $25 and is the best in Wellington I reckon. Split it between a few friends, or be the alcholic you always wanted to be.
6) Southern Cross. The Cross has its good points and its bad points. All is forgiven for the Garden Bar out the back and their new lounge area. Don't you wish you had that carpet in your house? Ooo and Kate (the girl in the lounge area with the dreads) is simply the sweetest.
7) The Fringe Bar. We're not going to refer to it as it's old name (it's that place on the corner of Vivian and Cuba) but this place certainly brings out the surprises sometimes. Flight of the Conchords last weekend anyone??? The comedy at this place is usually good and most importantly, it is cheap as chips. Monday night's are $5 to get in and pro-comedy on a Friday is $12. Really, who can complain about that? And of course there's the magic of karaoke... AND the bearded gentleman that used to work at BATS makes a swoon-worthy margarita.
8) Mighty Mighty. I don't have anything more to say about Mighty Mighty except that every time I go here I want to hang velvet pink curtains in my room. It's an institution for a reason.
