Pubs and Bars of the Ir-Cities By Brady Ehler, Coquitlam Rep. Last week, I wrote about my least favorite bar in the Tri- cities. While the article was no doubt helpful as personal catharsis, I realize now that it may have been small help to those of you reading who are looking for a good place to drink, party, or just munch on some tasty deep-fried bar food. It is in this light that I present to you my personal short list of the Pubs and Bars in the Tri-Cities area that are worth your time. Hopefully, after reading this list you will be able to make a more informed decision on where to spend your hard-earned moola, and destroy your liver. The Gillnetter Pub The Gillnetter Pub, aka the Gilly, is a Port Coquitlam bar that is known for its great food and pleasant atmos- phere. The Gillnetter is a ship/ocean-themed pub that sits on the shore of The Pitt River where it intersects the Fraser. They have a patio in the back, which boasts a splen- did view of the river. Some people actually come to this bar by boat, how cool is that? The Gillnetter specializes in seafood, which is a nice alternative to standard pub fare. The Gillnetter actually brings in more money from food sales. than from alcohol and as a result, it feels almost more like a restaurant than a pub. The service here is really good, too. This is a great place to go for lunch on a sunny day. There is usually a line-up for patio seats, but it’s worth the wait. The only downside to the Gillnetter is that because of its restaurant-like atmosphere, it gets quiet quite early for a bar and there are no pool tables. On the bright side, how- ever, there is Retro Rock Trivia on Wednesdays. This is a lot of fun, and there are free prizes, including booze! The Golden Spike Pub & Bistro The Golden Spike may be the best known bar.in Port Moody. It is located near St. John’s and Ioco Road. It is a pretty good all around bar, though it has some serious flaws; in general, the waitresses are very slow and have bad work ethic. The food is good, but nothing special; it’s rumored that the kitchen manager only’ has- his job because! 7 T ‘Be Gare he is the manager’s best friend’s husband. If you decide fo... eat here avoid the hamburgers, but try the chicken wings. The Spike isn’t exactly a big party spot (though it can get swinging when someone books a birthday party), but there is a small dance floor and a live DJ on the weekends. The DJ is actually a lot of fun; he does all sorts of con- tests for really crappy prizes. The point isn’t really about winning Canucks’ T-shirts and Golden Spike hats though; the contests usually involve drinking large quantities of alcohol extremely quickly. Other points in favor of the Spike are an extensive wine list and free pool on Sundays! Roo’s Pub and Grill Roo’s Pub (“too” is short for kangaroo) is my favorite bar in Coquitlam. It being a five-minute walk from my house, but it has other virtues as well. The staff is great, all the waitresses are really nice, and you never have to wait long for your food or drinks. The atmosphere is really cool; the bar is Australia-themed, which gives it a unique look. Perhaps Roo’s greatest attributes is its indoor smoking room, which is something of a rarity theses days. The smoking room is the social epicenter of the bar; there is a pool table, chairs lining the walls and a large circular table that can seat eight or more people. From my experience, people who frequent Roo’s are friendly and social. This is a great place to go for a chill time. There is no dance floor, but there is a DJ on the weekend, and get this; he plays good music! I mean,-sure he plays the odd pop radio song, but last time I went he played a diverse set of electronic music, from dance-pop to ambient. Generally, ’m not the biggest fan of electronic music, but I really enjoyed what this guy was playing. Boston Pizza Okay, so this isn’t technically a bar per se, but I had to put it on the list because Boston Pizza has one fantastic virtue: it is open until midnight on weekdays and 2am on weekends! BP is a great place to go if you’re out drinking __ on a Sunday and aren’t ready to call it quits at 12. It’s also good to go to on the weekends after Rds $*éldses. The food here is good and available late, ‘but ite, quite pricey. that you don’t make too big* _self hete and make stire you have a fost very >| * because the BP is the biggest police hangout in Coquitlam since Tim Horton’s. ‘ass pf youre: > Jake’s Crossing Apparently this place is haunted! Before Jakes Crossit there was a cabaret hotel in the same place and a caretake named Slim lived in the cellar. The cabaret burnt down, and was replaced with Jake’s, but staff claim that the cell: is haunted by the ghost of Slim. Jake’s is a pretty good party spot in Port Moody. This a very big bar; there is a poolroom, a large smoking area, huge dance floor, and a patio. Jake’s is a good place to adjourn to on any day of the week if you're chilling at th Spike and it gets too quiet, but is especially swinging on Fridays and Saturdays. This is a good place to pick up ladies, but be careful; there are sometimes a lot of really aggressive dudes and bikers here who like to start fights, ‘if you get wasted, just be careful the girl you’re trying to pick up isn’t the girlfriend of some 250-pound dude who covered in tattoos and calls himself “Skull Crusher.” Boon County Ok, this isn’t exactly my favorite bar, as I do not live | Maple Ridge or Alberta, nor do I own a horse, cow, or cowboy hat. However, I imagine if you are one of those types, or if you just really love country music or line dan ing, you might enjoy this bar a lot. There is a big dance floor and they actually get in sor really good bar bands, if you are into that type of music. The people on the dance floor really seem to know what they are doing too. Even if you don’t like country music, ot any of the things associated with it, this is a good bar check out for the ambiance; it’s like walking into the 193( (if you pretend the televisions aren’t there, anyway) and 2 the bartenders look like genuine cowboys. If you are a gu with long hair or come in with one, you will get some weird looks. The patrons there seem pretty chill, but I al: get the feeling some of them strained themselves not to call my longhaired friend a “faggot.” Then again, maybe some of them are only there and dressed like cowboys because they have a fetish, after all, it does seem awfully weird that so many “cowboys” would congregate near th border of New Westminster and Coquitlam. The Cat and Fiddle Look, I know I bashed this bar a little in my last artic but when it comes right down to it, if you want to get completely fucked up, get lost in an endless sea of peopl and gyrate your body to repetitive thumping bass lines al night, it is either the Cat and Fiddle or the Soggy Spew. Given the choice, I’ll take the Fiddle any day. The Fiddle similar to The Foggy Dew in a lot of ways, but it’s scalec down. The Fiddle isn’t quite as over-hyped as the Foggy Dew, it is far easier to get in, and it is generally less crow ed than The Dew. People at The Fiddle are also more pe sonable. Conversely, like Jake’s, people at the Fiddle som times get aggressive—including the bouncers. Then agai. it is a popular bar in Port Coquitlam, so what else can yc expect?