Ladies Night Out On The Ave

A girlfriend and I recently ventured to Greenwich’s notorious, late-night weekend watering hole just around the bend at the top of The Avenue, Barcelona (18 W. Putnam Ave.).  Although it offers top Spanish cuisine and is invited to host annual dinners at New York City’s culinary powerhouse, the James Beard House, it’s the after-hours reputation that seemingly receives more local acclaim.  

We've heard the rumors – “it’s a total meat market once the dinner crowd moves out,” “people drive from all over the area to come and try their hand at the Greenwich single scene,” “the bartenders are aggressive” and my favorite, “it’s not a place for nice, young married women,” as told to me by one Greenwich Avenue merchant. Nevertheless, it’s near The Ave and thus in my wheelhouse of topic. So, I convinced my friend (who is both young and married) to come along and either confirm or dispel the hype.  

We arrived around 9:30 p.m. on a Friday, which, according to my friend’s sources, is the best night at Barcelona in Greenwich (the restaurant has five branches in CT). The place was packed with good energy, lots of laughter and lots of sangria on the tables. People were clearly imbibing. And from the looks of it, the staff is more than ready to appease the let-go sentiment.

First, there’s the restaurant (and Spain’s) tradition of the Porrón, where a magnum of wine is attached to a pouring device, similar to that on an olive-oil bottle, and poured directly into the patron’s mouth for a three-second count. This path-to-inebriation begins at 10 p.m. and is, of course, optional. The wine of choice our evening was a Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. In the name of research, I opted in. My friend did not. To be fair, it isn’t the most appealing gesture. However, it is rather quick and the quantity shockingly small given the very thin stream.

Second, is that 10 p.m. is the witching hour when the restaurant, which serves remarkably delicious tapas, is done serving (funny since in Spain that’s when they’d begin). At 10, the music volume increases and the setting becomes more or less, a suburbanized dance club. Or as they refer to it on their website, “a lively bar scene,” which lasts until 2 a.m.

Waiter JP tells me it’s the best part of his night, “we get up on chairs when the music starts,” and Andre, a bartender, tells me that once the dining is over the ambience becomes “more like a party with body shots served at the bar.” “Body shots? Like in Cancun?,” I countered. Indeed, he tells me. Alas, I’m sorry to report there were no body shots on my watch, however, we did leave before closing.

For the most part, our dalliance with Greenwich’s late night scene was fairly tame. Yes, despite our wedding bands and evident body language, we were approached by two sets of single men. Fortunately, both conversations were very pleasant.

I asked one of the guys, a confirmed regular who prefers not to be named, why he returns to Barcelona again and again. He candidly answered, “I’m a divorced man in my mid-40s and most of the women here are single and in their late 30s. Where else am I going to find a date in the flesh? Otherwise it’s online. I’m old-fashioned and I’d like to meet someone in real life first, if I can.”

His comment prompted me to take a poll of people's ages. Now, given the sensitivity (and likelihood for honesty) regarding this question, I gave people a 5-year spread, though consideration should still be applied when viewing the statistics: 20-25 (there were none but I figured I’d throw it in to be polite); 25-30 (1 waiter); 30-35 (myself, my friend and the bartenders though I doubt one of the guys); 35-40 (the clear majority of the few women respondents and a quarter of the male responses); 40-45 (half the male responses); 45-50 (the other quarter of male responses) and 50-55 (two males).

Although my intent was not to meet someone, I still enjoyed some amusing conversations, indulge in some serious people-watching and, most important, maintain a relatively uninterrupted conversation with my friend. Overall, the evening was an enjoyable one. My dirty martini was very good and the one cheese tapa we had was delicious (though beware of the strictly-enforced 10 p.m. kitchen closing hour that can make the grog of alcohol or multiple Porrons a bit hard to weather come 11:30 p.m.) It also would appear that Barcelona lives up to its lauded reputation as both a lively bar scene and a meat market. As far as not being a place for nice, young married ladies, I felt perfectly comfortable. Then again, we did leave at midnight.

For my money, I would return on a Wednesday or Thursday evening, preferably during wine-hour from 4:30-6:30, enjoy the complimentary tapas from 5 to 7 p.m. and then, perhaps stay for dinner.

Then again, if a single friend of mine wanted a wing-woman, I’d be happy to oblige. I can’t deny it. The place is entertaining.

**I hope to review the two other popular options also at their peak times; Ginger Man at 6:30 p.m. on a Wednesday and Morello's at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. If either of those aren’t right, let me know. Looking forward to sharing my observations and hopefully, ensuring that patrons will share theirs.