Welcome!
Some people collect autographs, some collect antiques, others collect stamps. My hobby is a little different, I collect bars. This site represents my collection, documenting each bar I visit.
This is not a review site, there's plenty of those already. Most posts in this bar diary are slice-of-life recaps of the half hour or so I spent having a beer. I hope you enjoy browsing through my collection!
--ScooterJA Few Random Favorites
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Ebb & Flow Fermentations
24 November 2023(Downtown, Cape Girardeau, MO) Scooter’s 1725th bar, first visited in 2023. My next destination turned out to be a nice, relaxing places to sip on some really good libations. The...
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DJ’s Bar & Grill
17 July 2009(Downtown, Fremont, NE) Scooter’s 624th bar, first visited in 2009. We made it just in time, 10 minutes before the kitchen closed. B ordered a hot ham and cheese sandwich,...
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Confluence Brewing
05 July 2019(Greater South Side, Des Moines, IA) Scooter’s 1338th bar, first visited in 2019. Though I’ve had some of their beer before, this is my first visit to an Iowa brewery....
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Browse By Location
Dates of First Visit
Types of Bars

Strawberry Hill Brewing
(Strawberry Hill, Kansas City, KS) Scooter’s 1838th bar, first visited in 2025. After a few years of delays, this finally opened in the Fall of 2024. But since it’s only…

Missy’s White Rabbit Lounge
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1837th bar, first visited in 2025. Missy’s White Rabbit is located in one of the staircase alleys, either one flight down or 2 flights up…

Jack Rabbett’s Whisky Bar
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1836th bar, first visited in 2025. This is one of two bars in the Basin Park Hotel, located on the 1st floor (which is actually…

Voodoo Lounge
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1835th bar, first visited in 2025. This is the other bar in the New Orleans Hotel, at street level and tucked away in the back…

The Quarter
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1834th bar, first visited in 2025. One of two bars in the New Orleans Hotel, I wouldn’t necessarily call this a basement bar because it…

Brews Taproom & Java Joint
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1833rd bar, first visited in 2025. A combination coffee shop and craft beer bar. Also offered at least some cocktails — my wife got a…

Spring On Main
(Downtown, Eureka Springs, AR) Scooter’s 1832nd bar, first visited in 2025. This bar/restaurant is accessible only via an outdoor flight of stairs on the second floor of a downtown building….

Kon Tiki
(Downtown, Kansas City, MO) Scooter’s 1831st bar, first visited in 2025. I didn’t even know this tiki bar existed until visiting it on this Sunday afternoon for a birthday party….

Parkville Wine House
(Downtown, Parkville, MO) Scooter’s 1830th bar, first visited in 2025. This wine bar (which also features a curated set of craft beer) opened in 2024 in a converted house right…

Warbird Whiskey
(Downtown, Excelsior Springs, MO) Scooter’s 1829th bar, first visited in 2024. A whiskey/cocktail bar that opened a few months ago, this one with theme honoring American military aviation history. When…

Huey’s Hidden Vault
(Downtown, Excelsior Springs, MO) Scooter’s 1828th bar, first visited in 2024. This is a new whiskey, cocktail, and cigar bar that opened this past August. Don’t worry if you don’t…

The Undertow
(Orange Beach, AL) Scooter’s 1827th bar, first visited in 2024. One of the locals suggested we go here next. We were a little let down when we saw it was…

The Sloop
(Gulf Shores, AL) Scooter’s 1826th bar, first visited in 2024. We were looking for a true dive bar among a sea of touristy bars, and we struck gold with this…

Grassroots Garden Lounge
(Downtown, Smithville, MO) Scooter’s 1825th bar, first visited in 2024. While I was circling around the block after leaving the brewery I noticed this cocktail bar and decided to check…

WelCo Brewing Project
(Smithville, MO) Scooter’s 1824th bar, first visited in 2024. I was camping nearby at Smithville Lake and got bored one afternoon so decided to head into town to check out…

Ron’s Bar
(Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1823rd bar, first visited in 2024. While we were at the winery my wife asked one of the servers, “If we wanted to go to a dive…

Mackinaw Trail Winery, Brewery & Bistro
(Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1822nd bar, first visited in 2024. This winery / brewery is a few miles south of Petoskey. I’d originally planned to do a wine tasting or have…

The Back Lot
(Downtown, Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1821st bar, first visited in 2024. We were looking for someplace to get lunch, and I was charged with finding a place, but no one could…

Legs Inn
(Cross Village, MI) Scooter’s 1820th bar, first visited in 2024. This historic tavern is a must-see tourist destination at the end of the Tunnel of Trees scenic highway. It was…

Petoskey Brewing
(Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1819th bar, first visited in 2024. This had been on my must-visit list ever since I saw a picture of the building a little over a year…

Tap30 Pourhouse
(Downtown, Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1818th bar, first visited in 2024. Since this was right next door we decided it was a must-visit before heading out of downtown. Most of the…

Mitchell Street Pub
(Downtown, Petoskey, MI) Scooter’s 1817th bar, first visited in 2024. We had parked a couple of blocks away and shopped and a candy shop and a clothing store. I took…

Great Turtle Brewery & Distillery
(Mackinac Island, MI) Scooter’s 1816th bar, first visited in 2024. After high tea at the Grand Hotel we went to the bar at the top of the hotel, which offers…

Mustang Lounge
(Mackinac Island, MI) Scooter’s 1815th bar, first visited in 2024. While we were at the Pink Pony we heard about the oldest bar on the island, so headed over there…

Pink Pony Bar & Grill
(Mackinac Island, MI) Scooter’s 1814th bar, first visited in 2024. Our visit to Mackinac Island was kind of a spur of the moment decision. Upon arrival we had a great…

Vue Wine Bar
(Downtown, Charlevoix, MI) Scooter’s 1813th bar, first visited in 2024. It was too windy and choppy to put our kayaks into Lake Michigan, so we decided to drive down to…

New Holland Brewing – Holland Tap Room
(Downtown, Holland, MI) Scooter’s 1812th bar, first visited in 2024. This brewery has been on my bucket list for a few years, and today our driving route just happened to…

Barley & Vine
(Downtown, Platte City, MO) Scooter’s 1811th bar, first visited in 2024. Half brewery, half wine bar, this place opened (I believe) around the end of last year. I opted for…

Willcott Brewing Company
(Downtown, Leavenworth, KS) Scooter’s 1810th bar, first visited in 2024. As we walked in the door we were stopped by a lady who said “Here’s even more people I don’t…

VFW Post # 56
(Downtown, Leavenworth, KS) Scooter’s 1809th bar, first visited in 2024. We were walking from Fluffy’s to Willcott Brewing when we found ourselves in front of an open VFW that we…
Latest Posts
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#115: Eagles Club Room – Post 1398
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Creston, IA) Scooter’s 115th bar, first visited in 2006. The bar area was quite large and located on the upper level. We think this may have been a members-only place... -
#114: American Legion – Post 70
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Creston, IA) Scooter’s 114th bar, first visited in 2006. We munched from styrofoam cups of snack mix and I found that the restroom had the smallest trough-style urinal I had... -
#113: Montgomery Street Pub
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Creston, IA) Scooter’s 113th bar, first visited in 2006. A fairly small place with an L-shaped bar and a slightly rowdy crowd. One guy was particularly drunk and tossed out... -
#112: Good Time Charley’s
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Creston, IA) Scooter’s 112th bar, first visited in 2006. This was a fairly large place with a long bar, font and rear entrances, that was split lengthwise with the bar... -
#111: Elms Club
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Creston, IA) Scooter’s 111th bar, first visited in 2006. Nice neighborhood spot. L-shaped bar and several booths. 108 N Elm St Creston, IA 50801US [launch map] (641) 782-2615 Visit Web... -
#110: TJ’s
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Afton, IA) Scooter’s 110th bar, first visited in 2006. After Bert’s, having a beer in what was essentially a Butler building wasn’t quite as enchanting but this was still a... -
#109: Berts Pub & Grub
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Afton, IA) Scooter’s 109th bar, first visited in 2006. Afton, Iowa is the former county seat of Union County, and has a nice town square to prove it. While people... -
#108: Long Branch Lounge
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Arispe, IA) Scooter’s 108th bar, first visited in 2006. This place had a pretty big dance floor. When we explained to the bartender that we had come up through Lamoni,... -
#107: Darlene’s Place
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Ellston, IA) Scooter’s 107th bar, first visited in 2006. We sat at the short end of the L-shaped bar under the watchful eye of a mounted goat head smoking a... -
#106: G & L Bar and Grill
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Diagonal, IA) Scooter’s 106th bar, first visited in 2006. From the outside this was probably the most run-down looking of any place we visited but once we stepped in we... -
#105: Office Bar & Grill
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Mt Ayr, IA) Closed, but a new bar has opened in the same location. Now called “Bo’s Place” Scooter’s 105th bar, first visited in 2006. When we stepped inside we... -
#104: Smith’s Sports & Spirits
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Mt Ayr, IA) OUT OF BUSINESS Scooter’s 104th bar, first visited in 2006. This place was a lot more of a restaurant but the kitchen was already closed, not reopening... -
#103: K-Town Legends
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Kellerton, IA) Closed briefly, is back open now with a new owner. Scooter’s 103rd bar, first visited in 2006. We drove onto the main strip in this quiet little town,... -
#102: Poor Boys Lounge
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Decatur City, IA) Scooter’s 102nd bar, first visited in 2006. Lots of dead animals on display, and showers in the restrooms, leading us to believe this used to be a... -
#101: Bears Den Pub
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Leon, IA) Scooter’s 101st bar, first visited in 2006. This place had a roulette-like game that used the ceiling fan as the spinner. 101 W 1st St Leon, IA 50144US... -
#100: Characters Sports Bar / The Raging Buffalo
Posted on August 2006 | No Comments(Lamoni, IA) Closed, but a new bar has opened in the same location. Was also called The Longhorn Pub for a while, is now simply called The Bar. Scooter’s 100th... -
#99: Ponak’s Mexican Kitchen
Posted on July 2006 | No Comments(Downtown, Kansas City, MO) Scooter’s 99th bar, first visited in 2006. Mexican restaurant & bar. I didn’t really care for the restaurant side, but the bar side seems to be... -
#98: John’s Big Deck
Posted on July 2006 | No Comments(Downtown, Kansas City, MO) Was closed for 3 months for cleaning/remodeling. Re-opened March 13, 2009 under new management. Scooter’s 98th bar, first visited in 2006. John’s Deck is three bars... -
#97: Chez Charlie’s
Posted on June 2006 | No Comments(Westport, Kansas City, MO) Scooter’s 97th bar, first visited in 2006. A pretty hard core dive bar, with strong, cheap drinks. Has a pretty regular following. Can be hard to... -
#96: Lava Room
Posted on June 2006 | No Comments(Westport, Kansas City, MO) Closed, but a new bar has opened in the same location. Now called Gusto. Scooter’s 96th bar, first visited in 2006. Nice, laid-back, relaxing lounge. 3810... -
#95: Buddies
Posted on June 2006 | No Comments(Midtown, Kansas City, MO) Scooter’s 95th bar, first visited in 2006. This ended up being one of the most fun places we went to. It was laid back, relaxed, and...