On the Circuit: Rusty Knot Turns One

[cpnews]

On what was hopefully one of the final chilly nights of the year, with the wind whipping of the Hudson, the Rusty Knot celebrated it's One Year Anniversary with a festive get together of friends and pretzel dog lovers. The lead up to the Knot's opening was way overheated, as its owners Taavo Somer and Ken Friedman were knighted as saviors of the dive bar scene. But its opening led to the inevitable backlash, with many griping that the Rusty Knot was trying to hard to be a real dive bar. What phooey! Its 12 months of operation, capped off with last night's get together, proved that none of it matters. The place was packed with a mixed crew of people hoisting tiki drinks and enjoying free Busch beer, ordering up said pretzel dogs and savoring the return of the Chicken Liver and Bacon sandwich. Taavo even busted out a smoke machine and light show, making that corner of the bar uninhabitable, but kitschy nonetheless. It's day 366 for the Rusty Knot, and the place will just keep on keeping on, and that's all it needs to do.