BAR HOPPING: Leapin’ Lizards is easy on your wallet, eyes
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WHAT: Leapin’ Lizards
WHERE: 302 E. Commerce St.
THE DIGITS: (210) 271-9494
WEB: www.myspace.com/leapinlizardpub
GET YOUR DRINK ON: All the damned time (daily specials). 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Monday; 2 p.m.-2 a.m. Tuesday-Sunday
HOTTIES QUOTIENT: I was debating this with my brother and a friend and kind of shrugging my shoulders and wall-eyeing the rather large crowd when a group of them walked in. They sashayed by in black, and we all agreed that the quotient had shot up, but that it wasn’t all that low to begin with. It’s definitely do-able if you’re into the military. Plus, when I went back for a quick follow-up, the female bartender was hot (I won’t speculate on the male bartenders, though; you’ll have to check that out for yourselves). So, all said, the quotient was fairly high, especially when you throw in the full bar.
WALLET HANGOVER: Low. There are daily specials, and the 18 taps of beer (including Mighty Arrow, Blue Moon, New Castle, Stella Artois, Smithwick’s and Guinness) allows for a range of wallet sizes, not to mention tastes. And this is no ice house: They’ve got a full bar. The specials shift depending on who’s bartending, but they’re all good; Wednesdays, for example, there are $3.50 mugs (and we’re not talking about your run-of-the-mill pint glasses here — these things are big) on 15 of the 18 taps. Fridays and Saturdays are often shot specials, while Mondays you can get Shiner on tap for $3. The only guarantee is that there’ll be a daily special, which won’t see you at the bank on Monday trying to save your house.
THE 210 TAKE: I’ve been going down to Leapin’ Lizards since before it was Leapin’ Lizards (they still have up the small O’Neill awnings above their second-story windows). I love the location, and it’s not geared toward tourists, but instead to the river rats, swanky women in black, college kids and the rest of us riffraff. Two bay windows in the front offer a great view of the street. A foosball table sits near the front door, and the long wooden bar leads back to a small area with a pool table. The bartenders are friendly and competent, which always increases the value of a place. The stone wall offers a historical feel while the loud classic rock, disco and conversations as well as the seven flat-screen TVs (and a huge projector TV) bring the place back to the roughly 10 years behind San Antonio always seem to be. It’s nice that there’s one place left downtown that’s not trying to be something it’s not.
GRADE: A
Rico Auto | 210SA contributor
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