Kettle of Fish (bar)

Kettle of Fish
General information
Address59 Christopher St.
Town or cityNew York City
Inaugurated1950
Relocated1987, 1999
Website
www.kettleoffishnyc.com

Kettle of Fish is a historic bar in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City.[1][2][3] The bar was opened in 1950 on MacDougal Street, but in 1987 it relocated to the former site of Gerde's Folk City, before moving again in 1999 to its current location on Christopher Street.[4][5][6]

History

[edit]

Kettle of Fish is associated with Beat Generation figures such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg[7][8][9] and was also frequented by folk revival musicians such as Bob Dylan.[10][2][11] During the 1960s, Kettle of Fish was located above The Gaslight Cafe, and performers at the Gaslight would often go to the Kettle between sets.[12] According to Blues figure Dick Waterman: "Whoever was playing at the Gaslight, they went upstairs between sets. The Kettle of Fish had a bar on the left and a middle aisle all the way back to the restrooms... Bob Dylan and his manager, Albert Grossman, always sat at the back table with their backs against the air conditioner, looking at the room."[13]

Musician Tom Paxton, discussing the Gaslight, noted that during the 1960s "it was really the Kettle of Fish where all the ideas, gossip, songs, and friendships were exchanged. There were constant comings and goings, and the cast of characters included Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs, Dave Van Ronk, Eric Andersen, and David Blue."[14] The original MacDougal Street facade was recreated for the 2013 film Inside Llewyn Davis, loosely based on the life of Van Ronk.[15][16] A recreation of the original location has also been featured in the TV series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which took place in the 1950s and 60s.[17]

Kettle of Fish is currently noted as a New York City Green Bay Packer bar, and has been visited by Packers players such as Aaron Rodgers, Jerry Kramer, and Dave Robinson.[18][19][20][21]

Like other bars in New York City, Kettle of Fish was shut down in March 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. In order to meet their high rent payments, the owners launched a GoFundMe campaign with a goal of raising $100,000. The funding campaign and the hashtag #savethekettle was shared on Twitter by a number of celebrities, including Aaron Rodgers.[20]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Arikoglu, Lale (4 August 2017). "Where to Drink in New York Like a Literary Legend". Condé Nast Traveler. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  2. ^ a b Sablich, Justin (2016-10-18). "From Macdougal Street to 'The Bitter End,' Exploring Bob Dylan's New York". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  3. ^ Petrus, Stephen; Cohen, Ronald D. (2015-06-08). Folk City: New York and the American Folk Music Revival. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-023104-0.
  4. ^ Hayes, Bill (2018-04-17). "The Landmarks That Made New York a Cultural Capital". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  5. ^ O’Hagan, Andrew (2016-11-08). "A Love Letter to Drinking in Bars". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  6. ^ "The Villager". www.kettleoffishnyc.com. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  7. ^ Kortava, David (26 October 2018). "Literary Pilgrims Visit the White Horse Tavern". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  8. ^ Devers, A.N. (2015-04-24). "Ernest Hemingway Drank Here: The World's Greatest Literary Pubs". Men's Journal. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  9. ^ Scheffler, Ian (6 September 2013). "Football and the Fall of Jack Kerouac". The New Yorker. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  10. ^ Browne, David (2020-06-23). "Man Out of Time: The Music and Mystery of David Blue". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  11. ^ Hinckley, David (August 14, 2017). "Greenwich Village and the birth of the folk movement". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  12. ^ Epting, Chris (2007-05-01). Led Zeppelin Crashed Here: The Rock and Roll Landmarks of North America. Santa Monica Press. ISBN 978-1-59580-981-0.
  13. ^ Turner, Tammy L. (2019-03-25). Dick Waterman: A Life in Blues. Univ. Press of Mississippi. ISBN 978-1-4968-2270-3.
  14. ^ Petrus, Stephen; Cohen, Ronald D. (2015). Folk City: New York and the American Folk Music Revival. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-023102-6.
  15. ^ "PHOTOS: Coen Brothers Give East Village A 60's Makeover". HuffPost. 2012-02-16. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
  16. ^ "The Coen Brothers Take Over Macdougal Street". New York Magazine. February 24, 2012. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
  17. ^ Owen, Erika (January 3, 2019). "A "Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" Guide to New York City". Departures. Archived from the original on July 7, 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-07.
  18. ^ Van Susteren, Dirk (November 8, 2014). "Kettle of Fish a slice of Wisconsin in NYC". www.jsonline.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2020. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  19. ^ Goble, Corban (2013-12-02). "We Went There: Watching Green Bay on Thanksgiving at NYC's Best Packers Bar". Grantland. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  20. ^ a b Faraudo, Jeff (July 6, 2020). "Aaron Rodgers aids in campaign to save Packers' bar in New York City". SI.com. Retrieved 2020-07-06.
  21. ^ "Video: Packers Fan in a 'Fine Kettle of Fish'". NPR.org. January 3, 2008. Retrieved 2020-07-06.

40°44′02″N 74°00′09″W / 40.73379°N 74.00240°W / 40.73379; -74.00240

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kettle_of_Fish_(bar)&oldid=1219046665"