This ‘Caddyshack’ Themed Bar In Boston Misses The Mark

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Little known fact about me? I love themed bars. That’s right, Boston’s Boy is a hugeeee themed bar guy. Can’t get enough of them. There’s a Point Break bar in NYC that I like, which is also called Point Break, and is in fact not to be confused with the country bar Johnny Utah’s which is not the Point Break bar. There’s a Costanza bar in Melbourne called George’s Bar that may be at the top of my list of modern day wonder’s of the world to visit. I’ve even got, like, ten ideas for themed bars I’d open in a heart beat.

One bar I never knew I needed until I heard about it? Bushwood Cocktail Club, which just opened in Boston. It’s a Caddyshack bar, which, off the bat, sounds amazing. But upon further review, there’s nothing really “Caddyshack” about it…

Per Boston.com:

The team behind Finn McCool’s Public House has opened Bushwood Cocktail Club, a Caddyshack-themed bar and arcade in an adjacent downtown Boston space.

The name Bushwood is a reference to the fictional golf club made famous in the 1980 cult comedy film starring Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Bill Murray. But without a golf course in sight of Bushwood Cocktail Club’s location on Broad Street, bargoers might be curious about the origins of the moniker.

“We thought it was a fun and cheeky idea,” said owner Todd Smith. “We were going for a concept that people would want to hang out in and spend time with their friends. The reference to Bushwood is a nostalgic lookback.”

The 50-seat bar offers arcade and board games like Pac-Man and Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, as well as retro music and décor from the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s. Smith said that Bushwood’s overall atmosphere “hearkens back to the fun in those eras.”

The menu includes bar food like nachos with sweet corn and Sriracha mascarpone, Cajun fried pickles, and a Bushwood burger with American cheese on a potato bun. But Smith said his favorites are the bar pizzas, a regional specialty of the Cape and South Shore that feature a thin, pan-cooked crust with no-frills toppings, like the Meat Lover, with country ham, bacon, and pepperoni, and the Burger Time, with fancy sauce, ground beef, and French fries. All bar pizzas are served in 10-inch sizes and work as either a shared item or a personal pie.

The cocktail program features a range of drinks named after Caddyshack characters, including the Ty Webb (Chase’s character), with tequila, Perrier, and lemon; the Judge Smails (Ted Knight’s character), made with Fresca and gin; and the Bishop Pickering (Henry Wilcoxon’s character), described on the menu as a “sweet rum punch.” Smith said the bar also has an extensive craft beer selection, and that he’s particularly taken by a collection of ceramic shot glasses resembling red Solo cups, “just like parties in high school.”

Ummm, this isn’t a Caddyshack bar. Naming the place after the Caddyshack country club and naming drinks after the characters is surface level shit. There’s nothing “golf” about this place. At a minimum it needs Golden Tee. At a minimum! How about an actual caddy shack, which serves as a kind of lounge within the bar, where you can go and get secret menu items? What if they had a small putting green?! That would be a bonafide thunder factory. (Sidebar – did I just invent a mini golf bar? I think I just did.) For fuck’s sake, how do they not have a Whack-A-Mole arcade game?! Carl Spackler dedicated his life work to killing varmints and if that’s not honored in some way in the Caddyshack bar, then in my eyes it’s a complete failure of a themed bar.

Am I still going to go check this place out next time I’m back home? Hundo P, if only for the chance to channel my inner Rodney Dangerfield and just keep screaming “Hey everybody! We’re all gonna get laid!” Classic..

[via Boston.com]

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Boston Max

Spending my retirement fund at Trader Joe's and trying to remember to check my mailbox semi-regularly

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