Blessed with some of the best real estate in town and a name that implies a non-stop drinking venue, it is no surprise that New Orleanians love to frequent The Circle Bar. Located right smack in the middle of Lee Circle, the laid-back music venue and bar regularly hosts clientele as funky as the medley of Victorian, Greek Revival and other architectural styles that make up the place. The bar has a fascinating history to go along with the visually captivating facade – Elizabeth Magus Cohen, the first female physician in NOLA (and a damn good one at that), housed her office at the joint in the mid 1800s. A century or so later, in 1999, the building became The Circle Bar. Recently it endured what seemed like an agonizingly long renovation (which unluckily took place while I lived mere blocks away) and the bar reopened early last year looking better than ever. As before, at the bar the drinks are cheap and on the floor the music is jiving. The Circle Bar has played host to hundreds of musicians both local and from afar including the likes of Elf Power, The Lumineers, The Whigs, Rotary Downs, Free Energy, Cardinal Sons, Alexis Marceaux and way too many more to name. There are plenty of other things that I love about Circle Bar – like the fact that it’s smoke free and related to Snake and Jakes, my favorite place to go when I want to have a night not to remember – but I think it’s best if you just check the place out for yourself.
The Circle Bar offers live music each week from Thursday through Sunday and is open daily from 4 PM ’til. To keep up with their live music schedule follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
The Circle Bar
1032 St. Charles Ave.
All photos from The Circle Bar’s Facebook page.
