FOOD | ARTS | COMMUNITY | STYLE+LEISURE
SERIOUS PEDIGREE
Because we live in a city that doesn’t sleep, there’s another new bar, one with
some serious pedigree, now open on Main Street. After a quick six-month
renovation to the (random fact) 11th oldest building in downtown Houston,
and a soft opening in early April, The Cottonmouth Club, way up on the north
end, a block or so past favorites like Nightingale Room, Pastry War, Bad
News Bar, etc., is ready for headlining.
We mentioned that serious pedigree, well, certainly you know Reserve 101,
one of the city’s top-notch bars and if you do, you likely know owner Mike
Raymond, because if you like whiskey, you like Reserve 101. And to like
Rese rve 101 is to like Mike. Great dude. And a very lucky dude, who now
gets to work side by side with a buddy he loves and respects, renowned
cocktail master Michael Neff. LA designer Greg Swanson of Black Swan
Design helped put the vision into reality and after four years of planning The
Cottonmouth Club is the result. In the music world this is like Temple of the
Dog, N.W.A, ASAP mob or the Traveling Wilburys. Quite the super group
for Houston.
You’re correct to note this is the Brewster Building/the old Barringer Bar,
and while we’ll miss Barringer after its owners recently went to more stable
pastures, you’ll be happy to know that Cottonmouth has retained quite a
few of your favorite folks from Barringer to serve in the come one, come
all atmosphere. As for the Brewster, they’ve lightened up the inviting interior,
adding some curtains, mirrors, grouped vintage seating including a baller
red velvet loveseat to get people mingling, music memorabilia, a fat Elvis
mural (look closely) and the jungle room (from Graceland) now serves as the
waiting area for the bathrooms. The owners are calling it 70’s era meeting
of Houston and NYC East Village set to jazz, punk, rock or just music in gen-
eral lifestyle, and this old building is perfect for the ideology. And just what
Downtown needed, if you have a (super) group, they have an event space
on the second floor. It’s curated cocktails and nerding out on glassware up
here, uh huh huh.
Double fisting (not that kind of place but pretending it was) in the main bar
downstairs would have you holding in one hand drinks from quite the whiskey
and barrel program and progressive cocktails without being “a cocktail bar”
in the other. Oh, and for sure they’ll offer beer and do the classics well – quite
a few soft opening folks commented on the solid old fashioneds. Stop by
and find out for yourself, but overall we’ll say Cottonmouth is a solid second
coming for 108 Main with the foundation for a long future.
THE COTTONMOUTH CLUB
04.17.2018
3:39pm
108 Main St. | Houston, TX 77002 | 832.303.9891
[email protected] | www.cottonmouthhouston.com
www.facebook.com/pg/cottonmouthhtx
Open 7 days a week from 4pm–2am
By Mike Cook | Photography by Quy Tran
32
L O C A L | 5 . 2018
5 . 2018 | L O C A L
33