#187: Second Bar + Kitchen

The Bar

Second Bar + Kitchen. 1108 E 6th St, Austin, TX 78702

Visited 4/6/2023 @ 8pm.

The Drink

Passion fruit paloma. Tromba blanco tequila, grapefruit soda, passion fruit, lime. $18.

I love a good paloma, as I have been fortunate enough to have never had one of the infamous "tequila nights" that so many people seem to have had back in college, and no bar has forced me to consume an absurd quantity of it the way that Unbarlievable pushed 96 oz of Moscow Mule on me. Tromba is a brand I had not heard of before, but they are evidently the top-selling independent brand in Canada, which is an interesting factoid. This paloma was quite nice (though I have never had a bad one and can't honestly picture what that would be like), but $18 is too expensive for what it is. Inflation I get; the cost of doing business I understand (although this bar is owned by the hotel - see below); but I just can't be happy about the value proposition here. At $10 this would have been a great deal, and even $13, which is what The Upside charged for their pisco sour, would have been fine, but this is the way of the world now I suppose, and to be fair rooftop patio views of downtown like this bar has aren't cheap.

The Crew

Cristy, Aaron, James, Kathryn, Neil, April.

Notes

I had actually never visited any of the various incarnations of Second Bar until we noticed while leaving Uptown Sports Club that the East Austin Hotel had a new sign on its second floor where The Upside used to be. As it turns out, the bar and hotel are owned by the same group, which decided to economize by replacing the 3 different bars with a single Second Bar after some strategic location consolidation earlier in the year as they recovered from the pandemic. One the one hand, I was disappointed: I enjoyed the very different vibes of Sixth & Waller, Pool Bar, and The Upside. On the other hand, I completely understand the business pressures of the post-covid era, and if I had to pick one bar vibe to keep out of the 3, the upscale Upside would be the one - Sixth & Waller had more of a diner atmosphere, while Pool Bar was only visible if you were already inside the hotel, and Second Bar fits right into the same "nice cocktails to relax to" market niche. And speaking of relaxing, they've kept The Upside's rooftop patio, and I have to say that that amenity alone is worth at least some of the premium on their cocktails. There's something about the upper vantage point on Sixth Street that puts you in a pondering mood, and as we continued to discuss Kathryn and Neil's upcoming move to NYC, the view of the downtown skyline against the setting sun put the future and the past into clear view; you can't ask for much more out of a bar than perspective.

#186: Uptown Sports Club

The Bar

Uptown Sports Club. 1200 E 6th St., Austin, TX 78702

Visited 4/6/2023 @ 7:30pm.

The Drink

El Jardinero. Blanco tequila, aperol, blood orange, lime, jalapeño, Tajín. $14.

My friends and I were laughing in anticipation of what I would be recommended when I gave my "what drink best represents the bar?" routine, since when I was perusing the drinks menu before this visit I noticed that Uptown Sports Club offers the second-worst deal on Pinthouse's excellent Electric Jellyfish IPA in the city - $15 for a pour from a tallboy, coming in just below the $18 (!!!) they charge at Q2 Stadium for the same privilege. Thankfully our bartender did not try to inflict that kind of pain on us, instead offering us this twist on a cantarito, with Aperol in place of grapefruit soda. Aperol is often regarded as a sort of cheat code for tequila-based cocktails, as something about its herbal bitterness pairs really well with the otherwise powerful tequila flavor, with the fruit flavors continuing to be supplied by the blood orange and lime, and some spice from the jalapeño and Tajín. I first encountered the cantarito at Bull & Bowl, and the version here was just as good. Overall this was pretty much what you expect from a $14 cocktail these days, which is unquestionably not nearly as bad of a deal as a $15 Electric Jellyfish.

The Crew

Kathryn, Cristy, Aaron, April, James, Neil.

Notes

We came here to celebrate/mourn Kathryn and Neil's upcoming move to New York City. Speaking of, if you thought it was easy to have conflicted emotions about all of the MML properties I've been posting about lately, you haven't seen anything yet! Uptown Sports Club is the much-heralded latest venture from much-lauded barbecue impresario Aaron Franklin, of Franklin BBQ and Loro fame. In theory, the combination of one of the nation's best barbecue chefs with a historic yet derelict property - whose main claims to fame ever since closing 20 years ago were briefly hosting the similarly-lauded La Barbecue trailer and then pretending to be a Chili's - should be a slam dunk, especially given its focus on New Orleans cuisine, which I personally believe has the highest average meal quality of any city in America if not the world (I am eating a sandwich with some of Central Grocery's olive salad that they put on their incredible muffulettas as I type this). 

Everyone has their own personal line to draw between what you're paying for a place and whether it's sufficiently fancy, and for me, the line was drawn here. It's great that Franklin has such enthusiasm for New Orleans cuisine, the history of Austin's east side, and so on, but I have been to New Orleans many times, and while the architecture is totally on point - the exterior would fit right in next to Verti Marte and the garden patio could have been tucked in beside Commander's Palace - this place makes me feel more like a tourist in my own city than just about any other place I've visited. If there's one thing I've tried to make clear as I've visited all these bars, I have no problem at all with high-dollar joints, especially home-grown ones - there is absolutely a place for a premium experience at a premium price. But while there's plenty of New Orleans here, it doesn't feel like there's any of Austin. I wish Aaron Franklin nothing but the best, and I hope his culinary empire continues to expand, it's just that  even for the "nice date night"-type occasions that I can see a lot of these more upscale places being perfect for, I can't imagine ending up here, especially with the other solid New Orleans-style places nearby.

One final note: it was quite busy for a Thursday night and we weren't really feeling the experience, so we didn't actually eat here (I know, I know), with the single exception of the potato salad, which a reviewer calling themselves the "Michelangelo of Google reviews" gave what is unquestionably the most rapturous potato salad review I've ever read. We tried it:

The verdict: it was fine, easily worth the $4.