Duffy's Tavern & Family Restaurant

Duffy's is the kind of bar that goes a little something like this, tucked at the end of high street that's right high street where the military goes to sip there beer and talk politics, where students jabber there Arabic, Japanese, Spanish or whatever the language program they are studying, where I go to have good conversation and listen to the bartender make sharp clever comments that make me smile. Dive Dive Dive.

Great burgers-CHECK.
Kind service-CHECK.
A little sass on your menu-CHECK.
Dive bar with a sense of humor-EPITOMIZED.

And to top it off, whoever thought of putting not one but THREE full-body length mirrors in the women's restroom is genius.  We don't need art, we need to know if there's some unknown substance smeared on our rears.  And that these pants make us look mighty fine.  Thank you for that, Duffy's.

I remember coming here when I attended school at DLI back in 2001 and it was one of our favorite spots to hit up. Good music, good food, and the bartenders were about as cool as they come. And now that I'm back it was only a matter of time before I went back to that old hole-in-a-wall of a bar. But going back there yesterday I felt like I probably should have gone elsewhere to eat.

Customer Service. I'm not going to jump on the bartender for her service considering she appeared to be the ONLY person taking orders AND serving food. (-) And at 6 PM, during what is considered dinner hours, that's just no good. Upon entering, no "hello" - no nothing from the bartender. (-) After seating myself it was another couple minutes before she came to offer me a menu and something to drink, because she was talking to other folks already sat at the bar and running around taking care of other orders. (-)

Beer. I ordered a Shock Top (my usual bar beer), and it came out flat. (-) I told her the next time she came around and got me another one with no issue, and the second pint came out better. Not great, but better. (+)

Food. When it came time to order food, it took a bit because the bartender was busy running around to deliver food to other patrons, in addition to taking care of filling pints. (-) There were sports on TV, so there's another (+). The food didn't take long at all to come out (+), and it was pretty damn good if you ask me (++). I ordered the Philly Cheesesteak, which isn't a REAL Philly but still hit the spot. MMM! I was STUFFED. Oh, but the potato salad... Avoid it... Not great at all.

This is definitely one of those spots that caters more to regulars than your once-a-month crowd. I mean, it seemed that some customers chilling at the bar talking with the bartender knew her on a more personal level than most other patrons. And she seemed to focus a lot more on them. There was a couple sitting next to us playing some puzzle game, and the girl starts singing songs she said she wrote. "That's nice, lady, but would you mind shutting the f**k up? Thanks." Okay, I didn't say that but wished I had. But I feared the bartender might get upset since it appeared these two were regulars by the way she was feeding them shots. Instead, I bolted as soon as I paid my bill because this girl announced to her friend that she was about to sing another song. I had to spare myself.

Will I go back? Sure. I'm here for a while, so I might as well get to be considered a friendly and welcome face around there, especially since I'm not a fan of the rest of the Monterey bar scene. And the food is good! Can't avoid this place just because of one mediocre experience. FOR THE GUYS: The bartender was cute; totally my type. Would have been nice if she introduced herself like most other bartenders I've met everywhere else in the world. I guess I'll take the lead next time. :-)