by Debbi | Sep 1, 2011 | Off the Wall
Did you know there's an actual sand beach upstairs at the Sandbar? I'm pretty sure we've blogged about this before, but after searching through nearly five years' worth of posts, I couldn't find it.
Once upon a time, the upstairs area was uninhabitable. We had an office, but no one dared to venture into the front area upstairs.
Then, Dave and Ted and other Sandbar staffers renovated the area. It was exciting to have more space! Even though it didn't increase our occupancy limits, it gave us more space for fun stuff.
About ten years ago, we started a gift shop upstairs. We had T-shirts and other luau and tiki-themed gifts for sale. The gift shop worked well for a couple of years, until suddenly people decided to start stealing stuff and we decided to close it.
What could we do next?
Of course, the logical answer was to create a beach. We hauled in a ton of sand. Not literally; that might break the floor. Dave thinks he brought in 20 bags that weighed either 60 or 80 pounds each of the fine white sand that is used for sandblasting and so closely resembles the sand on faraway tropical beaches.
For a brief time, we had a wedding chapel upstairs. We remember one wedding that took place but the idea never really caught on with people (wonder why!?).
So today, the Sandbar beach is a quiet place for customers and staff to escape the madness. Next time you're in, feel free to ask the staff if you can check it out. However, keep in mind that the staff on duty has full discretion to allow people upstairs, so if they tell you no, don't get upset- just check back next time.
by Debbi | Aug 30, 2011 | Cool Stuff, Downtown, Newsworthy, St. Patrick's Day
The Lawrence Journal-World recently featured a cool photo project they called "Dear Lawrence," based on the Dear Photograph site. The objective is to take a picture of a picture from the past in the present. Confused? So were we, until we saw examples.
We searched through our photo archives, which are pretty limited prior to around 2003 when we started using digital cameras, and we finally found a couple of pictures of our building from the 90's. They aren't very old pictures, but our building looked significantly different back then- many of you may only know us as the lime green building with a giant tiki head, but it wasn't always that way.
Here's our first submission:
Remember the white building? And the giant green palm trees that adorned our old windows? Back then our windows didn't open, and we didn't have a patio.
We used another picture from our wall to create our second Dear Lawrence photo:
This picture is fun for us because it features Sandbar people in it. The picture is from St. Patrick's Day 1997, when we built an "Under the Sea" themed float.
Pictured are Cheryl, a former Sandbar-tender and one of the only girls to ever work the door (read her memories of the Sandbar here); Peach, our esteemed founder; Betsy, Ted's daughter; and finally little Andrew, who tends bar today.
And yes, that's a zebra. Peach and Ted own zebras on their farm outside Baldwin, and Peach walked the zebra in the parade behind our float.
We actually profiled the St. Patrick's Day/zebra picture as part of our "Off the Wall" series, where we share the stories behind the stuff on our walls. Read about it here.
You can see the entire Dear Lawrence photo gallery here.
by Debbi | Aug 29, 2011 | Downtown, Events, Our Ghost
Regular readers of this blog know that we've been serious about researching the ghost that seems to haunt the Sandbar.
Last week, on the 148th anniversary of Quantrill's Raid on Lawrence, several Sandbar staff and friends went on a history tour around town.
Our chief ghost researcher, Emerson, believed at one time that our ghost was a soldier killed in the raid. He's since moved on to other potential theories, but during his research we got interested in the raid and thought it would be smart to learn more about it. Just in case our ghost really was a soldier.
We met up with the tour leader and other participants at the Eldridge Hotel, one of the most historic sites in Kansas related to the Civil War and also home to a ghost. From there, we traveled by van to Oak Hill Cemetery in East Lawrence, the site where Quantrill's raiders gathered and looked out over Lawrence before the raid; South Park, where Lawrence soldiers were camped; Pioneer Cemetery on the KU campus, where many of those killed in the raid are buried; and finally back to the Eldridge.
The tour we took was through Paranormal Adventures USA. This group offers a variety of history and ghost tours around Kansas and Missouri, including some "ghosts and grapes" tours at wineries that really piqued our interest!
They also offer the opportunity to "clear your space" of ghosts, something we're not really sure we want to do as our ghost appears to be friendly and harmless, as well as ghost investigations. We're hoping to schedule an investigation sometime soon so we can learn more about our ghost.
In the meantime, though, we'd like to encourage everyone to learn more about the history of Lawrence, especially the Civil War and Quantrill's Raid. It was a significant event in this country's history, and it gives a lot of insight to today's ongoing sports rivalry between Kansas and Missouri!
by Debbi | Aug 28, 2011 | Around the World
Sandbar friends Phil and Bailey wore their Sandbar shirts on vacation last month. Here's a nice change from the flood of shirt pictures from tropical locations, which were beautiful but making us insanely jealous of vacationers.
Last month, my boyfriend Phil and I went on a camping road trip in South Dakota and Wyoming. We camped and explored for eight days in the Black Hills National Forest, Custer State Park, Buffalo Bill State Park, Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park. I already had a Sandbar shirt but seeing as we would have lots of photo opps, I made sure to purchase and take an extra t-shirt for Phil.
We decided to wear our shirts on our first full day in Yellowstone; we had lots of exploring to do and a hike planned. At one overlook we stopped at, a fellow tourist offered to take our picture. "Make sure you get the t-shirts in the frame," said Phil, "we are wearing them for a reason". That reason, of course, was to be featured on the (world?) famous Sandbar blog. If you're planning a trip to the area (and you should be!), let us know! We'll be happy to share our favorite spots!
by Debbi | Aug 25, 2011 | Bachelorette Parties, Drinking Rules
The Sandbar is a popular place for bachelorette parties. The combination of fluffy drinks with umbrellas, brightly colored beads and the cheesy hurricane show that girls can use to embarrass the guest of honor just keeps reeling them in.
Most bachelorette parties are fun for everyone in the bar. A few, not so much. Here are some of our favorite tips for having a successful bachelorette party at The Sandbar.
1. Get here early.
The Sandbar is small. It's busy. Especially on a Saturday night at 10 p.m., which is when everyone wants to be there. Get there by 8 or 9. Yes, it's early and not very crowded. This is a good time to chill out with your girlfriends, drink some fun tropical drinks and prepare for the night.
2. Wait patiently
If you didn't follow our advice above and get stuck in a line outside, be patient. Just because you're with a group of dolled-up women doesn't mean you get to cut the line. Everyone waits in line, even the staff. We aren't making you stand in line because we're mean- it's because fire codes limit our legal capacity to 49 people and we don't want a ticket and a fine. And trying to tell the doorguy that you "called ahead" doesn't work. We don't take reservations- we aren't a restaurant.
3. Have a plan
If you're ordering for a group, it helps to order everything at once. Don't ask for one drink, only to ask for another when the bartender comes back with it, and yet another after that. And on that note, don't order twelve different complicated shots at the same time. It also helps to run a tab instead of asking the bartender to run your credit card after every single drink order.
4. Don't expect free stuff
We love bachelorette parties, but it's against the law to give away free drinks. Be nice, and the bartender might buy you one or even a round. But please don't act like you're entitled to something free.
5. Don't be a diva
The bartender will almost always let your bachelorette be the mermaid if you ask, and if someone else hasn't already called dibs. But don't keep demanding a hurricane *right now* if they're busy. There are other customers in the bar. They'll get to it. Be patient. And nice.
You might have noticed a theme in these tips- be nice. That's our number one tip for bachelorette parties, or really for anyone!
