Steve Shanafelt - 12 September 2009 07:45 PM
Maybe. I really liked Vincent’s, but I’d been going there since a few weeks after it opened, and went there practically every day the last year or so they were open. It could be a fantastic place—I have hundreds of great memories that relate to it—but it could also be a snobby one with mediocre food (it was never particularly good), terrible service (depending on who was working that day) and some genuinely atrocious bands (as well as awesome ones). If you knew people, it was a fantastic place to go. If you didn’t, you could get this “get out” vibe easily enough.
The closest equivalent that comes to mind is the Nu-Way down here in Spartanburg. Imagine that place if it was run by arty types who liked jazz, punk and cafes rather than blue-collar ones who like sports, country and burgers. Totally different crowd, of course, but the same kind of smoky, communal living room feeling.
I didn’t really go that often but I tried to go as much as I could.
I never really noticed a vibe of “get out” as much as I did “who the hell are you?” Of course, I was never really interested in socializing anyway.
Saw Poster Children there on my birthday once. That was fun. Saw Pink Collar Jobs there, that was nice too. Saw some experimental jazz trio once, it was crap. But the coffee was always good.
After it was gone I realized that there really wasn’t anywhere left in Asheville that I enjoyed hanging out and really there wasn’t anywhere to hang out for awhile. Then I got all stupid and caught up in life and whatnot so I guess it doesn’t matter now. What was I saying? Where’s my soup?
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