El Batey Bar — Restaurant in San Juan

The walls are covered in graffiti, the bartender looks like life smacked him with a freight train but he's still standing, the drinks are cheap, and the cold, mean memory of all my mistakes and misery melted out of my eyes and into the medalla I was chugging.

The bartender has great musical taste. He keeps a good vibe. Some carpenters came in, half covered in plaster. Two medallas coming right up. They were all friends, they toasted the bartender with a Jameson shot. And there's tourists and guys putting it on for their girlfriends, pretending it's 80s Miami vice and their cigarette boat is parked right at the rocks in La Playita. And there's bum tourists like me boozing and scratching bug bites and thinking of things I shouldn't.

But this place is alive, it keeps you alive, it feels real and in the moments I spent there, I was in the book instead...

Very rude female bartender. You ask her nicely for a drink, she mocks you and says she won't serve you. I came for the first time and just wanted to have a good time. Not a clown to dance the makarena for the bar girl in order to have access to order a drink (as she asked me to do so if i wanted before ordering a drink). She never served me the drink and her partner bartender did. Not returning, but sure lots of other people will return and enjoy, depending on the mood and feel of the day from the bar girl I guess... poor...

I was surprised when I heard Michael Imperioli on the Talking Soprano's podcast talk about how much he loves El Batey. My experiences there began in 1978. I remember Davy Jones, I believe his son Davy and his daughter who's name I can't remember all tended bar. She had blonde curly hair. Either way, my Coast Guard buddies and I spent hours playing bumper pool and drinking rum at El Batey. Local celebs hung out there and I think I remember Roberto Duran hanging out there. Anyway, we had great fun and you shoud visit...