Those who visit this site directly will note the new page in the top bar [sorry for the pun....not really]. I have started taking photos of the outside of EC bars and posting them to Flickr.

This first batch is those bars generally north of the Eau Claire River and east of the Chippewa River along with the bars which are north of Madison/Cameron Streets. Water Street will be a separate project, as will those on Hastings and in the south part of town.

I may or maynot add out of town bar photos, depending on how the spirit moves me.

I have posted about the Wigwam Tavern before. They were on the original list, had a brief reference on St. Patrick’s Day, and the first photo. I did talk about their “branch for the summer,” the Sports Depot, in a summer time review. They are the nameless bar which was referred to with a good bartender and great fried onion rings in the post about what makes a good bar. However, I have not written about the bar itself.

From the photo, you can probably guess that it is a downtown bar. It is a free standing building, and Dave, the owner, lives upstairs. About the only drawback is that it is not smoke-free. Behind the bar is a great art-deco styled bar with mirrors and hand painted scenes of wigwams. It has a cove ceiling in true art deco style. The bar itself is curved and the linoleum top is worn in spots from years of service. Most of the bar stools have backs (a huge plus). There is a pool table, and game machines (darts among them), and there are booths.

Our favorite bartender (Todd) works every other Sunday, but lucky for us has been there the past two Sundays for our visits. He makes a killer LIIT, and is great to talk to. When we don’t understand some aspect of bar life, he can always explain it to us (like Shake-A-Day).

They have a great food menu, and the daily specials (bottom of the first page) are great. In good weather, there is a sandwich board out front on the sidewalk to remind you of today’s special. There are people who go there for the food…and don’t even have an alcoholic drink! (Guy next to me yesterday had two large glasses of milk with his meal!!!) Not shown on the menu is the Sunday morning special “Wamlet.” That is a three egg omelet with your choice of meat (bacon, sausage, ham), vegetables (mushrooms, onions, tomatoes — we even got olives once), and cheese. It is served with hashbrowns and toast. Great choice for breakfast.

The Wigwam is a favorite!

[Oh, and they have other good bartenders, too! It is just that Todd is our fav!]

No, I did not go back. What I have found is a graphic of the coaster (pasted here), and a link to an article about The Joynt and Water Street.

My one complaint about the site is that from the Fish Fry page, you can only find Eau Claire in the southern portion. Now, I may be new, but even I know that Eau Claire belongs in the Northern section!

Here are the first two photos:

The Wigwam

And:

The Last Chance Bar

(Ironically, it is my last chance to visit a bar when I drive home from work….although if I go past the driveway, I could visit some others!)