The official reviews are in, but it bears repeating: The Get Down (701 S. Bond St., Fells Point) is a great club, and it’s most likely here to stay. With a large amount of floor space to work with, an affordable drink list, and a decidedly mixed crowd in attendance, it carries the perfect vibe and approachability for Baltimore’s more discerning “anti-a-taste-of-Miami/DC/New York” set.

I spent a good long while at The Get Down for their grand opening this past Saturday and for the better part of two hours stared at their myriad of murals, light shows and hand-blown light bulbs (what?), featured in “The Edison Room.” If for no other reason in this world, you absolutely must hit up The Get Down and stare at their two story LED wall for a while. It’s mind boggling (see below for a lil’ taste).

Obviously myself and many of us in the city miss Fletcher’s, one of the few remaining tried and true rock bars left in Baltimore, but you know what Dylan says… the area surrounding The Get Down, with its luxury condos and Whole Foods mentality is better suited to support a club than a rock bar. Time will tell, but expect The Get Down to be around for a long, long time.

So last week I was in Key West, FL doing a little vacationing and visiting. I spent much of my time there with locals who work/own/operate businesses in the area, and was fortunate to get a taste of the non-cruise ship atmospheres and locations around town. And I’m going to tell you about them. Enjoy!

If you’re in Key West and say, over the age of 25, and you’re looking for a supreme place to hang out where the locals do – from business owners to rich people to prominent judges and their dogs – head to Grand Vin (1107 Duvall St.). Vin boasts a serious selection of wines/imported beers and an atmosphere akin to Idle Hour (201 E. Fort Avenue, Riverside) here in Baltimore, but with 100% less techno music. It also has a sweet wraparound porch which faces Duvall St. directly, making for some excellent people watching. There’s even a sweet old-style scale in the terlet. Here are some pictures!

One on of our trips to Grand Vin, the bartender began speaking to me about astrology – at length. Once I told him my sign (Gemini) he was very quick to remark “Ah yeah, you’ve got Gemini eyes.” Welp, can’t argue with that logic.

He also was very insistent on knowing what time I was born, what I did for a living and what my favorite boy band was. Alright maybe not that last one but once I told him the rest of the stuff the majority of his responses were “FIGURES!” or “I KNEW IT!” Damn this guy had me figured out even before I did! After that he essentially went back to his bartending duties and grilling other patrons about their celestial leanings, possibly trying to score a threesome with some Scottish lady in all-denim and her boyfriend. Good times.

In our last episode, we covered the ins and outs of the SBNA meeting last Tuesday during which a committee member broached the idea of requiring permits in order to have a pub crawl in the city of Baltimore. And I’m sure, oh I am sure that there are some of us out there who think this is a fantastic idea; a way to ensure that the organizers are responsible, well to do groups of people who would nor will ever be the harbingers of stabtrocities in our fair city.
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As I eluded to about two weeks ago, November is quickly approaching and the time is nearly here to begin the fund raising bonanza for my charity of choice, Movember. In preparation for this monumental month of man, a group of us have truly stepped it up a notch (at least, from last year) and put together a bar crawl and a website (as well as the usual social media services) to serve as a portal for accepting donations. The website isn’t “active” until later this week, but in the meantime feel free to have a look-see at our Facebook group and Twitter page:

Facebook – Movember Baltimore
Twitter – @movemberbmore
Website – movemberbaltimore.com

Go right ahead and join up, please!

And without further ado, the flier for said bar crawl:

Registration for the bar crawl will begin on Wednesday, and the big campaign for soliciting donations (aka emails to my mom) will begin November 1st. In the meantime, I will be fluffing my moustache in anticipation.

HEY CHECK OUT THESE SWEET PIX I SHAWT YESTERDAY AT THIS TOTALLY WICKED AWESOME BIKER BAR DOWN IN ELKRIDGE THE ARBUTUS VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS DOIN’ IT UP AMERICA STYLE!!!!!