Saturday, October 29, 2011

The Rail

Leah Forss Photography
My sister arrived late last night from Arizona, and then insisted that I accompany her to a bar in Bloomington WAY past my bedtime.  Then we got there, and I was in love.

The Rail is a venture by three of our friends.  Located up the hill from House Bar, it is an intimate, stylish bar with kitchen service all night, serving seasonal craft cocktails and small plates of amazing food.  Seriously, phenomenal food.  I drank a Pisco Sour, and we ate the potato pancake (topped with fried quail egg!), meatball (can't begin to describe), and finished with a creme brulee.  As a French major, I am a self-described French dessert snob, and this creme brulee was top-notch.  We gave our compliments to the chef!  The wait staff was attentive and fast.  The prices were good, and the ambience was unbeatable.  Even though all the seats at the bar were full, and there were people at nearly every table, you could actually talk to one another without shouting, unlike so many other bars in town.

I love the neighboring House Bar because it feels like your friends turned a house into a hangout with an awesome cash bar.  (Um, which is true.)  You can hang out in the front rooms, or you can relax in the patio 'backyard'.  It's homey and fun, and it reminds me of college.

But The Rail is like House Bar grew up, graduated, moved to a metropolitan city, and learned to appreciate the finer things in life, like seasonal menus.  It's the kind of place you want to take your date, one of the few bars in Bloomington you would want to introduce your parents to, and the place you want to catch up with all your local friends over the best in food and drink.

If you're in Bloomington, and you haven't been there yet, you need to go.  This foodie wouldn't recommend it if it wasn't wonderful... and it IS.

The Rail:
829 N. Walnut St.
Bloomington Owned and Operated!

Tue - Fri: 5:00 pm - 3:00 am
Sat - Sun: 7:00 pm - 3:00 am


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