Review: Dark Star

(Credit: Joseph Lord)

“Don't dwell on your less-responsible years.” That is the refrain that's repeated ad infinitum from the grown-up region of your brain. Don't long for the days before you were a homeowner, when a broken oven meant getting takeout until your landlord got around to fixing it. The Sunday afternoons wasted on a hand-me-down couch, reading a book while you listened for the dryer to buzz. The pre-child days of impulsively seeing a movie or a band, interminable browsing for books at Carmichael's, eating out on a Tuesday because, well, it's Tuesday.

Dark Star Tavern makes me think about these things. For a year, my future wife and I lived in an apartment yards from Dark Star. It was a no-brainer to cross the railroad tracks and have a quick drink after a long day at work.

I've been to Dark Star exactly once since we moved away in 2007, and the bar has changed subtly. Dark Star was once a prime hangout for hippies — the name refers to a Grateful Dead song — but, when I was a regular, the clientele had switched to the popped-collar college set.

 These days, Dark Star's regulars are a mixed bag of neighborhood dwellers, Crescent Hill diners/shoppers and maybe a hippie and a preppie or two. The pingpong table that the preppies used to get so bent out of shape over has now been replaced by more seating. The pool tables are still there, I'm glad to report.

And the beer selection is as good as ever. The bar offers Sierra Nevada, Guinness, Bass and other delightful beverages, served for between $5 (for the best stuff) and $2.50 (for Budweiser). I ordered a Munich malt from Bluegrass Brewing Co., and a very friendly bartender served it promptly. It set me back $4, and it was quite tasty. I turned on my stool at the bar and joined the spectators for a particularly fierce game of eight-ball. Since I wasn't exactly a regular anymore, I refrained from joining the friendly ribbing. But it was friendly, still.

Dark Star will open a kitchen soon, which will be a nice addition, since on more than one occasion, my future wife and I found ourselves drunkenly picking up cheesebread at the nearby Fat Jimmy's. Dark Star has a great location. The surrounding blocks on Frankfort Avenue are as busy as ever — more restaurants, more dogwalkers, more joggers than 2006. It's a happening block, and Dark Star is still a happening bar.

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