@Men&Women it’s platonic love obviously, but walking into the bar as a stranger and walking out feeling in some ways a part of the same team feels nice. I heard this song on shuffle while I was thinking of a thematic concept last Friday and thought it fit. I for sure make the bartender know that I’m a no-name writer just trying to start my own publication, so don’t get the wrong impression about the famous line, but you do have to walk with confidence in NYC or it’ll knock you down. I still credit a huge part of this being how my first Guinness Review with how Steve at Texas Arizona went. I really had no idea how that was going to go or what to expect. He easily could have been like, “Week to Week Notes, huh, never heard of it?” and who knows if I even would have even been doing the #GuinnessChallengeSeason so shout out to him.
Prior to this, Week to Week Notes was completely online, and even in the year ‘23 there is still something to be said about going door to door and meeting real people face to face. I used to walk around the city with my head down listening to music and trying to figure out the subway system on Google Maps. Now I’m a Litzsomaniac with his head up and shoulders straight. If I’m unsure about something I’ll kindly ask a stranger for directions. If you put yourself out there a bit, changes in your life can happen in an instant.
To all the bartenders and people sitting next to me that participate, you have no idea how helpful you all are with what I’m trying to do. Believe it or not, my one rule with writing used to be, “I don’t talk about it unless someone else brings it up to me first, then all bets are off and I’ll be asking you questions/opinions for the next 6 hours.” Now I can almost explain my vision in less than 5 minutes and I don’t have to question everything.
By thoughtfully taking the time to talk, you’ve indirectly instilled the confidence I’ve always had in my heart. I can finally be myself without having to worry about constantly overthinking little things. Can’t thank you all enough!
@YouTheReader there are certain lyrics in this song that may come across as petty, but I just want to promise you that I’ll never get over all of you who take the time out of your day to read. Alright, let’s do this…
Guinness Challenge Season #1
@Kids don’t try this at home. Not just because you’re underage and will have plenty of pints to drink if that ends up being your thing when you’re older but also because Guinness is actually best served in a pint glass from a tap. A pint of Guinness varies depending on the drinking establishment. If the keg it sits in is rarely poured, it can lead to some underwhelming taste. Rather than stealing gimmicks, I’d like to start taking Notes while drinking Guinness. My grandfather from Connemara, who I never got the chance to meet, Thomas Davis, used to drink pints and by all accounts was a self-taught thinker. The one rule I’ve imposed on myself is that I will only have 1 pint per sitting from each establishment I review, so @AnyoneWorrying, don’t worry about my drinking habits. The Guinness Challenge is to “cut the G” on your first sip (more like a gulp and a half). If this is your first time hearing about it, I didn’t come up with the fun challenge @YouTheReader can try the next time you have a Guinness. I’m planning on this to just be a SEASONal thing for me because I don’t know about you, but I prefer a pint in the cold weather months until the end of March. The 0.0 to 10.0 scale will be extremely nuanced but as a reference point, the only perfect 10.0 I plan to ever give out is at the Guinness Factory in Dublin one day.
Last left off at stirring the pot with Kevin the bartender at The Cauldron…
Beckett’s Bar & Grill 1/8 ‘23
Service & Staff: A+
Guinness: 9.2
Guinness Challenge: N/A Beak
Notes if you can’t read my sloppy scribble: Eimear is from Meath, Ireland - came to the US in June to stay with family. She is a midfielder or center-back in Gaelic Football, which she is hoping to start playing in the next 2 weeks. Breege is from Longford, Ireland, and has lived in the US for 8 years. She is a Patriots fan and a true one at that because she stayed with the Pats when Brady left. Loves college football, but has no favorite team yet. “The energy of the city keeps you going. The drive keeps us young.” Katherine is from Long Island out east, Stony Brook. She is a Giants fan, but Chad Pennington was her favorite player, “He was cute.” Tennis player. Went to UAlbany, class of ‘16, and lived on State (Quad), Dutch (Quad), and Empire (nice on-campus apartments.
Eimer was eager to get back on the Gaelic field. **Cough, cough, does Rockland need a center-back or midfielder? Cough, cough** She seemed to really like NY, which is when Breege stated her excellent quote about the energy of the city. NYC can get a bad rap sometimes from the outside, but you have to admit once you’re in it - you end up moving at a 1.5x pace than anywhere else. Katherine was an econ major, graduated a year before me, and used to go to Dollar Beers at WT’s (Washington’s Tavern) so that is another one of those cool random happenstances that the #GuinnessChallengeSeason has brought forth. @YouTheReader we now have another goal for Week to Week Notes: get Chad Pennington to Beckett’s for a pint so that Katherine could meet her childhood crush from her cross-town football rival. I’m looking forward to checking out Beckett’s Bar & Grill again soon!
Stone Street Tavern 1/8 ‘23
Service & Staff: A+
Guinness: 9.0
Guinness Challenge: Failed
Notes if you can’t read my sloppy scribble: Brian is the bartender. Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, and Messi are his top 3 favorite soccer players of all time. Thinks the way Manchester United treated Ronaldo was unfair and he was just speaking his mind. Raised in Queens. People only come to the city unless they have something to do here. Started bartending 7 years ago on a party boat. Never gets old looking at the Statue of Liberty. Born in LA. Moved to Mexico City. Mexico City's biggest difference is people are much more laid back.
Brian knows his soccer. It was awesome to learn a bit about his perspective on Ronaldo’s situation with Manchester United. He thinks Messi may have elevated himself to the greatest of all time, but we’ll have to give him a few years because Ronaldo is a couple of years older than Messi. I thought his point made sense, Ronaldo has in a way fallen off from his peak but we need to see if Messi can keep up his own pace at 37. It was very cool to hear about how Brian has lived on both coasts and in Mexico. I asked him if he has any favorite spots in Manhattan to hang out and that is when he mentioned people go to Manhattan when they have to. Although he took countless trips around the Hudson River bartending, he still felt the Statue of Liberty was a sight to behold every chance he could get a view. I’m looking forward to checking out Stone Street Tavern again soon!
Underdog 1/8 ‘23
Service & Staff: A+
Guinness: 8.0 (Can)
Guinness Challenge: N/A Plastic Cup
Notes if you can’t read my sloppy scribble: Matthew Schulze is the bartender. He’s been to the Palisades Mall. Grew up in the Oranges, home of Thomas Edison. Now lives in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Grew up a Jets fan because green was his favorite color as a kid. Braves fan because “when your 10 years old and your dad comes home with a Tomahawk you become a fan for life.” His favorite player was Chipper Jones. Kayla was also working. She is a Patriots fan. Her favorite player growing up was Tedy Bruschi. Kayla is willing to lose $20 picking against the Pats gambling on a parlay if it means they get in the playoffs. Kayla’s grandfather is a massive baseball fan, knows every player from the Dominican Republic but couldn’t tell you who Leo Dicaprio is. Her grandfather was the doorman of Derek Jeter’s apartment and “it was a rotating door of women” in the 90s.
Sorry, Jeets, hope I don’t get you in the doghouse with Hannah, but this is an underdog publication at the Underdog and we need all the scoops we can get. I thought it was awesome to hear how Matt became a fan of his teams as a kid. It can really be as simple as the color you like or your dad coming home with a signature souvenir. Tedy Bruschi was an absolute menace when he played and those Patriots’ teams had a defense of class acts in Bruschi, Ty Law, Mike Vrabel, Richard Seymour, and Vince Wilfork so I could see why she was drawn to New England as a kid. Also thought it was funny that when “A Thousand Miles” came on by Vanessa Carlson, both Matt and I immediately thought of White Chicks - kind of a ‘00s classic? I’m looking forward to checking out Underdog again soon!
Ulysses 1/8 ‘23
Service & Staff: A+
Guinness: 9.0
Guinness Challenge: Failed
Notes if you can’t read my sloppy scribble: Skye is the bartender. She is from South Carolina and loves college football. Georgia Bulldog alum excited for tomorrow (was yesterday’s CFB Championship). Fell in love with College Football because it is giving people an opportunity to pursue something they love. Went to school during the Kirby Smart era. Her favorite Georiga Bulldogs were Tae Crowder, Nick Chubb, and Roquan Smith. She loves the diverse demographics the city is made up of. Cities up North are “not nice, but kind.” Has done a bunch of traveling, some of her favorite cities are Aspen (Colorado), Vienna (Austria), and Annecy (France).
Skye must be thrilled with the College Football Championship results as Georgia won handily over TCU. It was easy to tell she was very passionate about her Georgia Bulldogs and was very complimentary about the idea behind Week to Week Notes, so it was much appreciated. Skye works in private equity, but also mentioned she enjoys writing so I hope she sticks with it! Former NY Giants linebacker, Tae Crowder, made a jarring hit on Derrick Henry this year’s season opener and was recently picked up by the Pittsburgh Steelers. I’m looking forward to checking out Ulysses again soon!
Well, skip pasts Harry’s as they were closing so I’ll have to re-review them…
I was going for it at this point with the symbolism, inferring that you need to set up the scaffolding on the ground floor in order to…
…reach great heights. Oh yeah, and proud to say the Irish built this city.
More pints to drink and a Mock Draft & More later this week. Cheers!