quiet place that serves beer?

[hermionesviolin.livejournal.com]

Some folks and I are going to have a small meeting one Wednesday evening (~7:30pm) and would ideally have it somewhere that doesn't have the loud-ness of Mike's but that also serves beer (so Blue Shirt, for example, is out). Any recommendations?

Comments

[thespian.livejournal.com]

Want to wander a little? I find Rudys in Teele is good for that sort of thing.

[smammy]

I find Rudy's is usually quite loud.

[42itous.livejournal.com]

I suggest the Burren, but I haven't actually paid attention to how quiet it is. Their back room, if there isn't a concert?

[benign-cremator.livejournal.com]

It isn't. The pride themselves on their noise, which is to say, their live music every night. You can not really hear yourself thing there.

[thespian.livejournal.com]

also if you ever are broke but want to see the band they have playing, you can just go shopping at Family Dollar really slowly.

[dougo.livejournal.com]

If you're not boycotting it, I would think a table in the back of Foundry (away from the bar) would be quiet enough. Possibly Redbones upstairs too, but it might be too crowded at 7:30pm.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

May I ask why one would be boycotting Foundry?

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

Apparently they don't like to seat single diners at multi-person tables, which someone earlier this week felt was discriminatory against people who don't have any friends, or something.

[closetalker11.livejournal.com]

Just read up -- oh man! I miss all the fun stuff ;-).

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

Note that the OP has not followed up at all on that post.

Complaining about a place is one thing, but calling for a boycott without even talking to the manager is kind of nutty.

[unferth.livejournal.com]

If you're willing to include food, Namaskar has some bottled beer available and is usually quiet.

Sometimes Foundry is OK for this kind of thing, depending on where you sit. But not always.

[dougo.livejournal.com]

Oh, yeah, what I said above was assuming you'd want dinner. Probably won't be able to get a table at dinnertime otherwise.

[hermionesviolin.livejournal.com]

We won't have had dinner yet, so ordering food is fine (we always do when we meet at Blue Shirt, for example) -- just low-key, not very expensive food.

[thespian.livejournal.com]

the diva lounge is also usually pretty dead on wednesdays.

[dougo.livejournal.com]

I just had dinner with a small group at Martsa on Elm (Tibetan restaurant). It was quiet and there was beer. The food was a little pricy, though ($14 for lamb curry, not including rice).

[upsidown.livejournal.com]

I second this. Namaskar is always really quiet. And somehow still good and in existence.

[thismightbejess.livejournal.com]

I love this question! I am constantly searching for quiet-ish places for conversation and beer. Sadly, Sagra used to be my go-to place for that sort of thing.

None of my new options are in Davis-proper, but here they are:

Joe Sent Me on Mass Ave - They do have TVs and a juke box, but it seems to be decently chill on a weeknight. Especially if you sit in the corner by the window.

Newtowne Grille in Porter Square (aka "Socrates'") - A townie bar that is gaining popularity with the hipster crowd. Also has TVs and a juke box, but the noise is usually manageable (it is probably the loudest of the three). Bonus: free WiFi!

SoundBites in Ball Square - I actually had a drink there last night and the place was Emp. Ty.

[enveri.livejournal.com]

I -really- like Newtowne Grille. The food is inexpensive, and we've only been there once when it was crowded. The beer is supposed to be good!

[thismightbejess.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, they really are a townie bar in the sense that their beer selection is not great: Sam, Sam Seasonal, and Longtrail are about it for microbrews. I don't even think they have Harpoon. But! It comes in pitchers. And their pizza is mighty tasty.

[moria923.livejournal.com]

Pitchers? Cool! How's the food these days? Back in the 1990s I went there a few times and wasn't impressed.

[secretlyironic.livejournal.com]

It's not a culinary destination but they do have an advanced understanding of the fryolator arts.

Thursday nights are trivia nights and it gets packed early. The game starts at eight but you'll be hard pressed to find a table after 7:15.

[ron_newman]

maybe Alfresco restaurant at Highland and Cutter? That's assuming you will want dinner and not just a beer.

[smammy]

I second Alfresco. Great staff, good food, usually pretty empty.

[josé-luis olivares (from livejournal.com)]

great question! I'm curious what others say, as well. In general, I'm curious where folks like to get beers in Davis Square that isn't too douchey!
Christophers in Porter Square is pretty huge and you can usually have nice conversations there.

Red Bones will probably be craz-ay crowded!

[ron_newman]

definitely NOT Redbones. Way too noisy.

[emannths.livejournal.com]

Seconding Christophers. The main downstairs level shouldn't be noisy, but if you need it quieter, you can go to the upstairs level. Good selection of beers at good prices too.

I also like Newtowne. The beer selection is...not great, but I've seen Longtrail and Lagunitas taps there. The good news is that the price is right--I think pints are $4 still, and if you order a pitcher with a pizza, you get $5 off the pizza I think. Most of the time there's plenty of room for a big group.

[gruene.livejournal.com]

One problem with Christopher's is that sometimes they refuse to seat you if you are not ordering dinner. This seems selectively enforced and the decision to enforce it is not in anyway related to how crowded they are.

[mals13.livejournal.com]

Up highland ave towards Teele Sq is PJ Ryan's. Smallish bar with really good food. Noise usually only comes from the fellow bar-goers and background music, which isn't terribly loud. Good meeting spot.

[laryu.livejournal.com]

I guess it's too late for you, but the basement bar at Elephant Walk is usually empty and has comfortable couches.

[ron_newman]

Now that it's Thursday, can you tell us where you went and whether it turned out well?

[hermionesviolin.livejournal.com]

I was actually planning ahead for a couple Wednesdays from now (sorry I didn't make that clearer in my post). I'm gonna pass on the suggestions from this post to the other people I'm planning the meeting with, and I can definitely report back for the good of the community after we've met.

[ron_newman]

Thanks -- and please do report back.

[daviscubed.livejournal.com]

Wednesday, 7:30pm, I think Sligo's would work. Worst you'd have to deal with is a juke box.

[ron_newman]

There won't be any Celtics game this year, but do they show Bruins games on the TVs there?

Also, the OP and her friends may want at least a little food, and I don't think Sligo has any.

[antimony.livejournal.com]

Kaya in Porter Square is always quiet, has beer, but the food is only OK. But if quiet + beer + a plate of edamame or something sounds good, it'd work.