What to say about the Swan...really, there's so much.
I've had so many memories here; mostly good, occasionally bad. But even the bad makes for a damn good story. The first time I was here was on Obama's inauguration night, and that night set the bar pretty high for me (haha, I made a pun). Since then I've had some better nights, but that night was definitely a good first experience. Best nigh of the week: Wednesday night trivia. It's a Red Hook classic.
The bar selection is great. They have brands and flavors here that I've never seen anywhere else. One highlight: the Monk's Cafe Sour Red. It's AWESOME. Also of note are the interesting flavors like cucumber vodka and the pineapple flavored tequila. mmmm-MM!
My only real problem is the music, in particular the live music. I'm not a huge fan of live music in a small space like the Swan, and I hate it even more when it's terrible music. Get it together guys, nobody wants to listen to horrible live bands! Or worse, just one guy on an acoustic guitar who wails. This isn't directed at any one person in particular, just a general note.
Coming from the city, this place is a big disappointment. There isn't much going on in this bar, and it's always filled with underage college students trying to score some drinks, while some douche bag bouncer is trying to give everyone a hard time. It's definitely for a specific crowd, they are not welcoming to everyone. I give them credit for being the only bar that people really go to around this area, and some nights they play decent music. But every time I've gone here, there's always drama with the bouncer or someone inside the place I rather stay at home and avoid the headache. The bartenders are pretty friendly though, and they make good drinks. Don't come here if you expect a good crowd of people, there is always some drama.
Review Source:My first memory of the Swan occurred when I was fifteen. It was a little after midnight and a bunch of us thought it would be funny to storm the bar and create our own dance party.
It didn't work. They quickly kicked us out, making an exception for our one female companion. Creepy. She didn't stay.
Six years later, they let me in to have a drink and since then we've created a few memories. The Swan, overall, is pretty damn great. It's appropriately divey without even trying. Beer selection? Awesome for such a small town bar. They have live music typically accompanied by a very reasonable $3-$5 dollar cover, trivia night, darts, a pool table and other activities.
The Swan acts as the social petri dish of the tiny village of Tivoli. During summer and college breaks, you'll find former Red Hook H.S. students who are home on break mixing with those of the Tivoli crew who stuck around. It's a goddamn high school reunion every May and every December. When school is back in session, the bar is packed full of Bard students. Sometimes it's a low key night at the Swan, other times the dance floor is bouncing with DJs and live bands. Occasionally they'll even hang a sheet up and project movies. Seriously awesome vibes for a small town bar.
All that being said, some shady shit can go down. On multiple occasions I've been charged a cover when the band was on their last song. I really don't mind paying 5 bucks even halfway through a set, but not on the last song. Another time the bartender ran out of beer we ordered and instead of alerting us to this fact, filled the rest of our glasses with a different beer. He hoped we wouldn't notice. We did. Real lame.
Enough rambling. The Swan makes Tivoli and you can't take the character of the village out of the Swan. It's my hometown bar and one of the few options in the Red Hook area. I'll represent it to death no matter where I live and no matter what shady shit they pull.
Matthew was in the right place. If he was playing darts in Tivoli, he was playing at The Swan, or as the natives say, The Pub.
Strangely enough, if you read my review of Jason's Upstairs Bar, I have caught Mr Chips DJing there. It was another wonderful night that was full of energy and a packed dance floor. It was a Thursday night, which I have come to find is the night when the Bard College crowd files in by the bus load.
Any other night there is touch and go based on what's going on that particular night. Wed night is trivia night, weekends often house live shows. And other nights it's worth hanging on the back patio for Latin food served up by the house chef Edwin.
Someone had the bright idea to travel to Tivoli to hear live music (maybe me). I think this is the bar I was at but no one ever referred to it by name. Good space to see live music, even though there was hardly anyone there. They also have a dartboard in a separate area, which is a nice diversion. Â
We had some awesome pizza from Broadway Pizza right on the main strip which enhanced the experience immensely.
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