With the onset of World Book Day, it’s important to remember the lost art of simply reading books. Its might sound silly, but with the rise of social media and technology in general, reading physical books has become a bit passé for younger generations who are more inclined to pick up a tablet or scan a quick blurb. But let’s also remember that a well-crafted drink goes hand-in-hand with the printed page; bring them together, and you’re in for a masterpiece.
Yes, not many stand-alone bars can match the sophistication and class found in a library bar; crafted cocktails, homey decor, and classic literature are enjoyed by well-rounded ladies and gents in this dim lit environment. And though afternoons are often reserved for quiet, elegant drinking, the nights can give way to an electric, Martini-swilling crowd. So here are some of our favorite library bars, from sultry Buenos Aires to sunny L.A.
The Library Lounge - Buenos Aires
The Faena Hotel is an impossibly stylish, luxurious hotel that has certainly earned every one of its five stars. Non-guests are welcome to visit the bars, restaurants, and theater but it’s highly exclusive, and you’ll need a reservation (and lots of cash) to gain entry. The Library Lounge, seductively lit by crystal chandeliers and comfortably furnished with red velvet sofas and stuffed antelope heads, is popular with champagne-quaffing hotel guests, wealthy businessmen and their glamorous female companions, plus the occasional celebrity or politician. DJs or live acts provide entertainment from big band to the busy Thursday night rock show. While very impressive, just make sure someone else is buying the Moet.
The Library Lounge is located @ Martha Salotti 445, Buenos Aires, Argentina
The Bookstore Bar - Seattle
Located on the ground floor of downtown’s Alexis Hotel, this neighborhood bar attracts a bevy of regular customers and out-of-towners drawn in by the wealth of spirits, both distilled and literary. Six rotating taps highlight local craft breweries, including Maritime Pacific, Hale’s and Schooner Exact. However, whiskey is crown king here with more than 125 varieties – 70 of them single malts. There are literally hundreds of books shelved in both the bar and adjoining Library Bistro (running the gamut from presidential biographies to Jackie Collins novels) which are free to read, or a mere $5 to purchase.
The Bookstore Bar is located @ 92 Madison St., Seattle, Washington
The Brown Room – New Jersey
This hub of Cape May’s Congress Hall Resort is a de facto gathering spot for both locals and tourists alike, who meet here for a Yuengling or stop in after a day at the beach, just mere steps away. Guests have the pleasure of sipping from craft bottles like Yards Jefferson’s Tavern Ale, Flying Fish Hopfish and Congress Hall’s very own Blue Pig Tavern Ale. Magazines, novels, and beach reads fill a large bookshelf along one of the bar’s chocolate-colored walls. Please note, an open fireplace and plush couch offer repose for both boozehounds and bookworms during brisk winter months. To keep partying into the wee hours, hit up the resort’s Basement Boiler Room.
The Brown Room is located @ 251 Beach Ave., Cape May, New Jersey
The Wellesbourne – L.A.
Dark-wood floors, leather furnishings and a game room with vintage foosball are the type of furnishings you’d expect to find in the English countryside, not West L.A. When not sipping pints of Delirium Tremens or Strongbow Cider, patrons go for classic pre-Prohibition cocktails, like the refreshingly light Pimm’s Cup, to pair with small snacks. Approximately 800 19th- and early-20th-century tomes line the walls waiting to be read, including an original edition of “The Count of Monte Cristo” and a 1930s “New Book of Etiquette.” On weekend nights, The Wellesbourne forgoes its usual jazz-filled demeanor for a livelier atmosphere, including spins by some of the area’s best DJs.
The Wellesbourne is located @ 10929 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles
The Library at the Nomad – New York
Imagine Beast’s library in Beauty & the Beast. Now, add in a full bar serving up the best booze and snacks, and then subtract that obnoxious candlestick. Hidden off the lobby of the swank NoMad Hotel, this glowy, real-book-lined drinking den offers seasonal drinks from Eleven Madison Park’s acclaimed Leo Robitschek. You don’t have to be a bibliophile to appreciate the NoMad Hotel’s spectacular library bar, as two levels of bookshelves stacked with good reads line the bar from floor-to-ceiling, while leather chairs, small tables, plush couches, Persian carpets and spiraling staircases get the library look down to a T. The menu is divided into “light-spirited” and “dark-spirited”, while the bar also offers a wide variety of wines, beers, snacks and cocktails curated by Death & Company alum Jessica Gonzalez; try the Matchlock ($15), a hefty combination of rye, bourbon, absinthe, vanilla, ginger, lemon, grapefruit and Angostura bitters, or the spicy Petticoat ($15) made with Sichuan peppercorn-infused Plymouth gin, apricot liquer, lemon and velvet falernum.
The Library @ The NoMad Hotel is located at 1170 Broadway (at 28th St), New York, NY
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