I haven't stepped foot inside since Bill sold the place. I don't think I'll be able to for awhile, I loved that place. It's the only bar that's ever been "my bar". I've seen so many awesome bands over the 15 years I hung out there. Sad. But I'd love to hear what the scoop is with it, as well. It think the people who own Kingman's Lucky Lounge operate it now.

I live in the neighborhood too, but I haven't been in there yet. I've been told, though, that the new Ivy Room is very much a lounge, with stuffed chairs, ferns and carpet. Someone compared it to a hotel bar, without the hotel. And a "professional" bartender. Just about everything the old place wasn't. I don't really see the need to go into a place like that.

I wasn't ever a big fan of the old Ivy, being more of a Pub guy (the Pub on Solano), but at least the place felt like people hung out there.

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The Ivy Room used to be mighty funky, but I had a good time maybe 60% of the time. I am curious to see what its like now.

Okay so I went to the Ivy room last night, and I am still in shock!! I thought I was in SF! The decor and everything else is completely different than the old Ivy room. I have to say I liked it, but not completely. I liked the fact that it is much more open and it has wall to wall carpeting and a ton of couches. But it doesnt have that blue collar feel to it at all anymore. Definitely a lounge type experience. The bartender was nice, but a little blah, maybe on the weekends the bartenders are a little more upbeat. They dont have any beers on tap!!!! I found that really wierd. Sometimes I feel like beer and sometimes I feel like a mixed drink, but no beers on tap, that is really lame. The DJ was ok. He was spinning some old and new Hip Hop. There were only 6 other people in the place and I think half were the dj's friends and the other half were the bar back's friends. But I cant really judge it yet seeing that I went on a Wednesday night. I will check it out on the weekend and see what it is really about.

As someone who has long been a patron of the old Ivy Room, it's simply sad to see how NICE the new place looks. Nice or not, it lacks the energy and stankiness that made the old Ivy so desireable. The new Ivy feels like the lobby of a hotel... plus, there is this really hard bench in there that looks like leather, and when you go to sit your ass excitedly down on it, it goes CRACK! Ouch... my ass doesn't like that bench, or the new Ivy Room. And, for the record, Spy was a great bartender there. Without her, the place will surely suffer.

Sorry ya'll but I just couldnt keep up with the barrage of oneliners in this thread...I read as many as I could but anyway...

I lived in El Cerrito from 1997 to 2001 and the Ivy was the closest bar to me so I hit that place so many times. I rode my bike there, it was awesome..I never really had to worry about DUI's. I like to call the old Ivy an alchoholic's bar...because that is pretty much what it was. The ladies behind the bar knew how to make good stiff drinks. Drinks were on the cheap side too. I can clearly remember when thursday nights started getting pretty hot at the ivy and jacob was spinnin' classic 80's tunes a few years ago...thats when I knew the Ivy was on its way down to becoming another trendy bar and no longer the dive I came to love.

I have my own dive to frequent these days and I'm not telling you where it is! I rather keep my pints under 3 dollars!

Anybody been in lately? It seems kinda lame from the website. www.kingmanscocktails.com/inside-IR.htm

But the Monday night bartender is cool, and I'll be going to the Ivy for the first time in many years on the 28th, because he booked my experimental music project (and a couple of awesome performers from Portland). sanfrancisco.tribe.net/event/...f7083f7

I'm kind of expecting a similar alien world experience to when I first went into Amnesia in SF - which I used to hang out at when it was the Chameleon.