03/14/08

Longbranch Saloon added to PM Card

Quick update for everybody, the PM Card now gets you benefits at Longbranch Saloon. Check it out in our PM Card section

01/28/08

Solas coming to Glenwood

If you've been Barhopping on Glenwood South lately. You've probably noticed the large construction project right next to Helios Coffee. What you may not have known is that the building, the Solas is being built by Hibernia Entertainment, the owners of both Hibernian Pubs.

The Solas will be a 3 story building with a restaurant on the ground floor, a club on the second and a patio lounge on the third. Here is a recent picture of the construction and a picture of the architects rendering.

For more info on the Solas and other construction projects in downtown glenwood check out DTRaleigh.com

01/23/08

The Premier Membership Card!

Starting today you can now buy your own Premier Membership (PM) Card right here at Raleigh Barhopper. The PM Card is basically the free pass and discount card for Raleigh. With this card you can skip lines and not pay cover at a lot of great places, get VIP treatment, and save a whole lot of money on a bunch of stuff from dinner to a gym membership! Even better yet, only here at Raleigh Barhopper are PM Cards being sold at an extra discounted price. You'll see on the side of the page that we've got a new section where you can get all the details on the PM Card and buy your very own.

01/22/08

Underground has closed, Old Bar has returned

Underground, the bar/restaurant under Goodnight's Comedy Club; which some of us remember as a low key place to drink late night and others remember as a classy tapas restaurant during the early evening, has closed. Brad and Shannon Reeder, the owners of Goodnight's have taken over the space. On Jan. 12, they reopened the Old Bar, which some of you veteran barhoppers may recall occupied the space before it was Underground.

While Underground was a contemporary tapas restaurant during the day, Old bar is a much more casual place which will serve an assortment of the usual bar food, including burgers, ribs, sandwiches and salads. The new Old Bar will not revive the Mexican theme of the original, however. Instead, it will be, as Brad Reeder puts it, "a restaurant, bar and garage sale in one." Translation: Everything, including the chair you're sitting on, will be for sale.

We'll have drink specials and more info on Old Bar soon, so stay posted, in the meantime for more info on Old Bar and The Grille at Charlie Goodnight's check out the original News & Observer story

12/11/07

Hops Shortage May Cause Beer Prices to Rise

We are seeing the beginnings of a serious global hops shortage. The economics of the situation are simple, high demand and low supply is driving up the price of hops for microbreweries. The global hops supply has almost always been plentiful. Unfortunately, that kept prices so low that some hops farmers either sold their farms or converted their land for different crops. As we reported earlier farmers are seeing more profit in the production of other crops; such as corn for ethanol because of the growing demand for biofuels. In addition, bad weather in Europe has led to an unusually poor harvest and the hops supply is taking a tumble. This is affecting smaller breweries more, because the large breweries have contracts with farmers that extend well into the future, and the remaining supply available to microbreweries is restricted. In the end you may be seeing local brewers raise their prices at the bar and in the grocery store.

If you want to read more about the hops shortage check out these articles: STLtoday.com, NPR