September 19, 2011
My friend Kate from One More Folded Sunset has told me about a bar in her neighborhood in Park Slope called Hank’s Saloon, which is a legendary dive bar that’s been on the block for over 100 years. We’ve talked about meeting in there and having a drink or three and today is the day we’ve chosen to do this. Goggla and Ed who you may remember from our Chillmaster outings are also coming along and so are you if you continue to follow this post. It’s right below and here we go.
I was going to meet Goggla and Ed at Coal Yard and then we were going to take the subway to Brooklyn and meet Kate at Hank's.
But Ed got stuck at work, so Goggla and I had a drink at Coal Yard and ventured off to Hank's.
And through the miracle of the internet, here we are at Hank's Saloon in Park Slope, Brooklyn. It looks like a great bar.
Great mural on the side of the bar.
"Tonight...Hank's." I couldn't have summed it up better. It 's almost like Cliff's Notes haiku.
And here's Ed reunited with Goggla. Kate's here too, but she was camera shy so there will be no photos of her. But I thank her for suggesting this outing.
Jeannie is the lovely and friendly bartender on duty. She was part of a photo shoot earlier for a Californai biker magazine, so she was used to posing for photos and happily agreed to have this one taken. She wanted me to inform everyone that there's been rumors of Hank's closing and that they are just that, rumors. Hank's is alive and well, stop in and have a drink or three.
Here's a shot of the bar in all it's glory. It's been on the block for over 100 years and it's named for Hank Williams. The original name of the bar was Do Ray, and the subtitle was, "Where Good Friends Meet." Still true today.
Gumby's all settled in and as always has a mescaline-like smile coloring his green face.
Christmas lights hang over the bar, giving a festive feeling to the place.
The draft beers are illuminated by more Christmas lights.
There's a well-worn pool table in the back of the bar.
And there's a stage for live music in the very back, opposite the pool table.
They have a great jukebox with selections ranging from The Talking Heads to Nina Simone to Frank Sinatra and of course there's Hank Williams tunes as well.
There's a collage on the wall of photos from the bar and I know every one of these pictures tells a story.
A long shot of the classic wooden bar in Hank's.
Speaking of classic, check out this vintage Pabst sign.
Okay, night has fallen and Sabrina has taken over bartending duties from Jeannie.
But before Jeannie leaves, we're reminded from the back of her shirt that Hank's is one sweet ass bar! And it truly is!
And one last look out the window and it's back on the subway to Manhattan. Thanks to Goggla and Ed for hanging out and to Kate for suggesting this fine bar and for meeting us there, a great time was had by all! Goodnight everybody and see you tomorrow after dark.
Hank’s Saloon
46 3rd Ave (@Atlantic Ave.)
Brooklyn, NY
Further reading: Park Slope Patch, tumblr and Black Book.
You Might Also Like: John, Cougar and Melon Camp.
When I pass by, all the people say,
“Just another guy on the lost highway.”
27 Comments
Reader Comments (27)
I've been out in this neighborhood before -- but never went to Hank's :( ... have to return to Brooklyn ! ... there's a few spots down on 4th Ave there that I like also ..... good beer drinking neighborhood !
Oh man, how I love Hank's!! Looks like you guys had a great time!!! Don't think I've ever seen Goggla's hair down, it is soooo beautiful!!! One sweet ass bar, indeed!!
Glad you enjoyed it! It really is a fine bar. I'm so glad Gumby didn't get assaulted (it was close)...
@GENE: You definitely should check out Hank's on the next BBC Bar Crawl.
@Lindsay: Sorry you couldn't make it, it was a lot of fun, hope to see you at the next Chillmaster Dance Party!
@onemorefoldedsunset: Hank's was all you said it was and more, a great bar with a great history. Thanks for meeting us there and sorry we were late!
I have also been to this area of Brooklyn, went to O'Connors bar, another great old dive. Never been to Hank's, look's like the real deal. I also have been to Brooklyn Inn and Montero's,,,all old bars worth checking out when in the area. Love the Hank Williams song, not too many Hank song I don't like.
Yes - Hank's is one sweet ass bar! Thanks for letting me tag along.
@Lindsay - summer is over, so it's time to unleash the hair! :)
Love that photo collage and the Christmas lights. And the tin ceiling, of course. Hank's looks like a great ol' bar and I'm already looking forward to kicking ass on that pool table (or losing miserably) on my next trip to town. Glad you had a good night with pals. TO HANK'S!
Hank's looks like it ought to have a clique of goodfella wannabes planning their next caper at the far end of the bar, or about 20 or so choppers lined up in the street on a hot summer evening just outside...
I lived in Park Slope till I got priced out. Not only did I never go Hank's, I don't even recall seeing it. (To be fair, I don't think that neighborhood is considered the real estate Park Slope, More like that fuzzy Atlantic Ave area between Ft. Greene and the Slope) You did succeed in making me miss Brooklyn. FML.
@Goggla- woohoo!! Love the fall weather!! Hope it lasts for a while!
@Marty- Wish I could have. Family called in Lawn Guyland. hahaha! What is the status of Hanks'? I know it's in trouble, glad to see it's still there. All of the good bars seem to be disappearing lately. Booooo!!
@Al: We actually ended up at Montero's, another great bar. I didn't take pictures there, because I want to go back and have another MAD outing there.
@Goggla: It was a great time and I'm glad you came along!
@Biff: TO HANK'S!
@Jaws: The bar definitely has both of those vibes going on in a good kind of way.
@csp: UFB!
@Lindsay: "Lawn Guyland" Ha ha ha! That's hilarious! Jeannie said that the rumors of Hank's closing is just that: a rumor. Hopefully she's right! Would hate to see this place close.
"Hank's is one sweet ass bar!" Yep! It sure sound and looks that way!
csp is right - this isn't Park Slope! It's Boerum Hill, at the edge of Gowanus. Agree with Al, O'Connors is great, though haven't been there since it was expanded earlier this year. Will have to go back & take a look.
@Meleah: The T-shirt does not lie!
@onemorefoldedsunset: Thanks, I'm horrible with directions and neighborhoods outside of Manhattan! I'm very directionally challenged!
I like the suprise link,my daughter used to live in Surprise AZ.
Oh, that is so good to hear!!! Yay for false rumors!!
damn what a great stop on the MAD/Gumby carousel...great to see Goggla and Ed along the ride...sad to hear that Kate was camera shy on this stop—thanks for gettin' MAD out and about... can't wait for the stop at Montero's...
“If a song can't be written in 20 minutes, it ain't worth writing.”
~ Hank Williams
rr
@tehennessey: Surprise! (Remember your surprise party? Ha ha ha!)
@Lindsay: Let's pray it is a false rumor.
@rr: Kate's been sick, so I appreciate her being a trooper and meeting with us last night, plus it was her idea, so cheers to Kate! Great Hank quote, never heard that one!
Great that you got to Brooklyn again. I remember going to Hank's back in the 70's when it was the Doray (I never knew it was Do-Ray until now). At that time it was a total dive bar, i.e. no hipsters, no artistes, bascially nobody except old men without teeth and twenty-something me and my pals. Truth be told, what I remember most is that the place smelled like urine, not necessarily a bad thing when it comes to old bars. Not many places like that around any more. Damn Department of Health.....
@Ken K. in NJ: You may be right about the spelling. I was drinking when I took my notes. Loved your perspective on the urine smell...ha ha ha!
I'm really going for an annoying number of comments tonight, it seems. Oh well! The Doray was a Mohawk ironworker bar back when there was a Mohawk community living right around here. Joseph Mitchell wrote about the neighborhood in "The Mohawks in High Steel". There's a video featuring Jeannie & more info here.
http://www.onemorefoldedsunset.com/2011/08/i-was-thinking-about-temporary-reprieve.html
A real mix of clientele today, from hipster to decidely not so. Apparently there are also one or two elderly Mohawks still around.
Oh & here's the Doray in the 70's!
http://brooklynhistory.pastperfect-online.com/35872cgi/mweb.exe?request=record&id=7A2F42CB-BD54-4C4B-A87D-360895749770&type=102
I'll shut up now.
@onemorefoldedsunset: Thanks for the links, that last one with the photo is amazing!
@onemorefoldedsunset
Thanks for those links. That 70's picture is from about the time we were going there, I'll bet I had a drunken conversation with at least one of those guys in the picture! I was going to mention the Mohawks in my comment above, but I wasn't sure if it was the Doray that they used to go to. Another book that goes into a lot of detail about the Mohawks in Brooklyn is The Bridge by Gay Talese, written in the 60's about the building of the Verrazano Bridge. It's on Amazon as a digital download.
I do remember that my friends and I used to go just about anywhere in Brooklyn in search of old bars, but one bar we were afraid to go in was the Mohawk bar the Wigwam (mentioed on your link). One area that had a lot of old bars was 3rd Avenue under the Gowanus Expressway. In the 70's there were several old bars left over from the days when the docks were active, patronized by lots of drunken Scandinavian seamen who lived in nearby Sunset Park.
In 1977, I used to walk by the Doray bar. I would often be holding a can of paint and my hair would be perfect. They didn't have dancing, so I never went in.
@Tony Manero: I can dig it, but then you knew I could.
Nice old timey feel to this bar. Looks like you all had fun!!The name of the game.
@Melanie: That truly is the name of the game!