Bar (establishment)

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Image:A cross roads store, bar, juke joint, and gas station in Melrose, Louisiana, 1944.jpg Image:Bar-P1030319.jpg A bar is a business that sells alcoholic beverages for immediate on-premises consumption. (By contrast, a liquor store sells alcohol for off-premises consumption.) Some bars serve food or may be parts of restaurants. Bars that are part of hotels may be known in some areas as long bars. Alternatively, "bar" can refer to the specialized counter on which the drinks are served, and it is from this term that the establishment itself as a whole gets its name. The "back bar" or "gantry" is a (sometimes ornate) set of shelves of glasses and bottles behind that counter. Frequently when food is served elsewhere in the establishment, it may also be ordered and consumed at the bar.

1 Kinds of bars
2 Bar-related trivia
3 Fictional Bars
4 Sources
5 See also

[edit] Kinds of bars

A topless bar is a bar, where, as an attraction, personnel (usually female) are topless. A biker bar is a bar marketed to and frequented by bikers, often sharing the "outlaw" reputation. A sports bar is where sports fans go to watch sports games and possibly meet other sports fans. A gay bar is where gay men and lesbians go to meet other gay men and lesbians. A cop bar is a bar known for being frequented by off-duty law enforcement agents.

[edit] United States

In the United States, legal distinctions often exist between restaurants, bars, and even types of bars. These distinctions vary from state to state, and even among municipalities. Beer bars (sometimes called taverns or pubs) may be legally restricted to only selling beer or possibly wine, cider and other low-proof beverages. Liquor bars sell everything from beer to hard liquor.

Bars are sometimes exempt from smoking bans that restaurants are subject to, even if those restaurants have liquor licenses. The distinction between a restaurant that serves liquor and a bar is usually made by the percentage of revenue earned from selling liquor, although increasingly, smoking bans include bars too.

In most places, bars are prohibited from selling alcoholic beverages to go. There are few exceptions. Usually brewpubs and wineries can serve alcohol to go, but under the rules applied to a liquor store. In some areas, such as New Orleans and parts of Las Vegas, alcohol may be prepared to go. This kind of restriction is usually dependent on open container law.

Historically, the western United States featured saloons. Many saloons survive in the western United States, though their services and features have changed with the times. Newer establishments have been built in the saloon style to duplicate the feeling of the older establishments.

Since the late 1970s, many Irish or British themed "pubs" have opened in the U.S.

[edit] United Kingdom

In the UK bars are either areas that serve alcoholic drinks within establishments such as hotels, restaurants, universities, or are a particular type of establishment which serves alcoholic drinks such as wine bars, "style bars", private membership only bars. However the main type of establishment selling alcohol for consumption on the premises is the public house or pub. Some bars are similar to nightclubs in that they feature loud music, subdued lighting, or operate a dress code and admissions policy and have bouncers at the entrance.

[edit] Australia

In Australia, traditionally the 'public bar' was where only men drank, while the 'lounge bar' or 'saloon bar' was where women or men could drink (ie mixed drinking). This distinction is not seen now as anti-discrimination legislation and women's rights activism has broken down the concept of a public drinking area accessible to only one sex. Where two bars still exist in the one establishment, one (that derived from the 'public bar') will be more downmarket while the other (deriving from the 'lounge bar') will be more upmarket. Over time, with the introduction of pokies into hotels, many 'lounge bars' have or are being converted into gaming rooms.

[edit] Italy

In Italy, a 'bar' is a place more similar to a Café, where people go during the morning or the afternoon, usually to take a coffee, a cappuccino, a hot chocolate and eat some kind of snack like pastries and sandwiches (panini or tramezzini). However, any kind of alcoholic beverages are served. Opening hours vary: some establishments are open since very early in the morning and close relatively early in the evening; others, especially if next to a theatre or a cinema, may be open until late at night. In larger cities like Milan, Rome, Turin or Genoa, many larger bars are also restaurants and disco clubs. Many Italian bars have introduced a 'so called' "aperitivo" time in the evening: everyone who purchases an alcoholic drink then has free access to an usually abundant buffet of cold dishes like pasta salads, vegetables and various types of appetizers.

[edit] Spain

Bars in Spain are very common and form an important part in Spanish culture. In Spain it is common for towns to have multiple bars and it is not uncommon to see two or more of them in the same street. Spanish bars are also known for freely serving snacks called "tapas". Due to a recent law being introduced, some bars ban smoking thought their number is comparatively small with the bars that allow it. Bigger bars must have always a smoke-free zone. Spain is the country with the highest ratio of bars/population and it alone has double the number of bars than the oldest 15-members of the European Union¹.

[edit] Elsewhere

In most major cities of the world there is at least one Irish pub. Some capitals such as Brussels and Dublin have more than twenty.

Bars range from down-and-dirty "dives" which are little more than a dark room with a counter and some bottles of liquor, to elegant places of entertainment for the elite.

Many bars set a happy hour to encourage off-peak patronage. Contrastingly, bars that fill to capacity typically implement a cover charge, often similar in price to one or two cocktails, during their peak hours. Such bars often feature entertainment, which may be a live band , a popular D.J., or a variety (female impersonation) show.