Favorite Bar in town?

Can be exclusively a bar or part of a restaurant.

Some areas to be considered:

1. Atmosphere
2. Crowd (or people watching for some)
3. Decor
4. Comfort
5. Drink selection
6. Quality of staff
7. Other ones I missed (price, location, etc.)

I will throw my vote down for the Sea Hag, part of the Village Anchor. Great drinks, friendly and competent staff, access to food upstairs and surprisingly diverse crowd for East End, out of the way.

Interested in other's thoughts as might lead to venturing out elsewhere.

sports bar: Hoops, Roosters, Rooties

gastropub: Cumberland Brews, Four Pegs, NABC Bank Street

My favorite "bars" are Cahoots and Air Devils Inn, for nostalgic reasons.

Can't pick just one. Depends on mood/situation.

In no particular order:

Cumberland
Holy Grale
Back Door
BBC
Seelbach Bar
ATG
Flanagan's (except weekend nights. Too young for me then).

I will throw my vote down for the Sea Hag, part of the Village Anchor. Great drinks, friendly and competent staff, access to food upstairs and surprisingly diverse crowd for East End, out of the way.

Also my favorite. Cape Cod in Kentucky!

When it's not over crowded Nachbar is my jam.

There are many I like, but I can't think of one that stands above all else as a favorite. Louisville's bar scene is definitely quantity over quality. There are some really, really good ones, but none tower above others.

That said, if the Barrett Bar lowered their beer prices slightly, it would definitely be in the running as my favorite.

I do like the actual bar areas at BBC St. Matthews and BBC Downtown. Good prices too.

Tough call among the bars at Baxter Station, Irish Rover and Varanese. I'll say Baxter by a nose, when either Brad or Lacie is bartending.

If it's permissible to extend the "in town" criteria to the north side of the river then......

No particular order.

Bank St (best surroundings and beer)
NAX (best menu and TVs for sports)
Richo's (best beer selection by far)
Comeback Inn (best Italian/salmon entrees)
Fireside Bar and Grill (best prices, best bar tender, my best mates)

My new favorite? MEAT!

For Beer

Cafe Lou Lou--Douglass Loop
BoomBozz--Highlands
Holy Grale

...based on quality of selection and frequency of rotation

my criteria would be;
1. they know your name,
2. they know your drink,
3. they know their business - meaning they product is always top-notch, i.e. clean lines & proper temps for the taps, proper pours for the whiskies, etc.

having said (and being ridiculously biased ), I'm going with The Irish Rover & Molly's/Baxter in a dead heat!

If you're strictly talking about beer, it's Sergio's hands down. No one has a better selection.

If you're strictly talking about beer, it's Sergio's hands down. No one has a better selection.

The real shame is that it could be so much more. Sergio's has an impressive selection of beer, tasty food, and it has Sergio. It also has ridiculously bad service and housekeeping. I've been a dozen times since it opened and this one is not getting better IMO.

The KFC Yum! Center. It's the only bar in town with live sports.

If you're strictly talking about beer, it's Sergio's hands down. No one has a better selection.

The real shame is that it could be so much more. Sergio's has an impressive selection of beer, tasty food, and it has Sergio. It also has ridiculously bad service and housekeeping. I've been a dozen times since it opened and this one is not getting better IMO.

I won't argue with any of that, but it is still hands down my favorite bar in Louisville. I won't really recommend it to friends because of what you said, which again, is true. People either love it or they don't, and nobody is right or wrong.