Comments on: Basement Bar Design #1: Where, What, and Why.

By: sam

sam — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 21:23:57 +0000

The best man-cave site I have come across has to be The Mantuary. Do check it out sometime.

By: Doug

Doug — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:28:41 +0000

I think you are probably leaning in the right direction. When I get to bar layout (to come after I get back from DisneyWorld) I’ll talk about layouts. Sounds like you could go with what I think of as a serve your guests and/or each other setup. Put one counter against the wall for storage and things like the Giant Coffee-Thingy Of Doom, then put another counter and/or bar-top in front to serve over. sounds expensive, but you can do the guts with metal shelving units, then clad them in either wall paneling or even nice fabric, depending on whether miter boxes or sewing machines are more in your wheelhouse.
This kind of setup does essentially dominate a room, though. Since you both are into it, it would probably not only work but be appropriate!

By: tipsytexan

tipsytexan — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 17:14:17 +0000

Tipsy is, thankfully, no kind of broad. I have never understood why some men prefer the company of he-broads to that of actual men or women.
We have the same philosophy about mixing (i.e., the more the better) so one space is adequate. I am excited by how all of the liquor bottles look consolidated onto one bar.
Regarding the one-car garage, there are no cars parked in it. It was built in 1962 and I have no idea what vehicle of that vintage could actually fit in it; perhaps they were anticipating ‘peak oil’, or a garage-man cave conversion craze that never came. I think that this would be suitable space for a graduate level bar, but right now we need something we could outfit more quickly and affordably
Taking all of this into consideration, I have realized that perhaps what we need is not a separate mantuary, but rather to make the living room more mantuary-like. We can start by removing all items unbecoming a mantuary (mail, clothes drying rack). We can build a bar along the stone Brady Bunch wall in place of the shelves that are overcrowded with liquor. It would dominate the room, but mixing drinks is our predominant interest so I think this could work. It would also allow us to feature the espresso machine in a place not too far from the dining table (the machine, a commercial model, is too big for the kitchen and is therefore set up in the garage). I think the espresso machine will fit in well at the bar, since they have similar requirements of space, refrigeration, and manly gadget-obsession in general.

By: Doug

Doug — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 12:40:50 +0000

Sounds to me like you’ve got two issues: space and need. First, as to need: Assuming I’m writing to Tex, how much of a Broad is Tipsy? Is he going to mix as often as you? Does he want his own space, as much as you? Or is he Chicky enough to want to be with you all the time? (Not, as Seinfeld would say, that there is anything wrong with that!) Believe it or not, I actually considered this issue when I was writing this post to begin with. I didn’t go into it to save space, and also because for the few committed gay couples I’ve known, the dynamic was more similar to hetero couples than most people, straight or gay, are willing to admit.
Are you still planning on keeping a car in the garage? The odor of motor oil makes everything taste like it was made with Absolut, and brake dust throws off the color of my Pegus. If you park your car outside anyway, then a garage is just a big space. Do with it what you will!
In my notebook on this series, I have a page of notes about the “closet bar”. I had an Uncle who had an excellent one, as he was in California and had no basement, and his out buildings were devoted to two horses, which also throw off the taste of a good Manhattan. You’ve given me some good thoughts, I’ll have to get to the closet bar post sooner, rather than later!

By: tipsytexan

tipsytexan — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 03:39:27 +0000

Living in Texas I lack a basement; living paycheck to paycheck, I lack a Cabana or outbuilding. I still long, though, for a mantuary. Is a garage conversion too tacky? I think that it could work as long I relocate the litter box.
Looking at it another way, is a mantuary even necessary if both residents of the house are cocktail-swilling men? Perhaps this could be one of the unadvertised benefits of same sex relationships…