When traveling, I have a few required stops- local market, coffee spot and high quality dive. And…read moreOle hookers definitely fulfilled #3! Great friendly inclusive vibe with lots of fun decor. Barkeeps were cool and pour with a heavy hand. It was a great pleasure to meet some really nice locals, and a special shout out to Trish who was A+ company! Convenient location very close to Good Sam hospital and looks to be fairly easy parking on the street or nearby lot.

Yup - still my favorite bar in Lexington! The staff, the patrons, the vibe, the drinks - it doesn't…read moreget better!

Good prices and service. I went once a couple weeks ago and now I can't stop going. The $5 for a…read morehot dog and beer is a pretty good deal. There is a pool table and corn hole. Only two comments are that the food trucks are a little loud and will hinder conversation and I wish they had a dark beer on tap. Other than that, I highly recommend.

Great spot for affordable beer on the drive into Lexington. They have good happy hour rates and…read moredeals too. No kids or dogs allowed.

I just bought a home nearby that I'm remodeling and don't usually have much time. So when I…read moredropped into Backstretch I expected, like many neighborhood bars, to be "assessed" by everyone prior to figuring out if I was cool enough to be in their neighborhood bar (patrons more than owners). I was pleasantly surprised. Rachel, the bartender, and Mike, owner, were both working behind the bar and both welcomed me and introduced themselves. The service was great, the burger the best you can get on this side of town. It was fast, attentive, and followed up to ensure that I was happy. It's got a smokers patio for those of us who don't want to die from natural causes and the regulars out there were friendly and talkative. When I asked for my check I got it. Both Rachel and Mike thanked me for coming in and invited me back. Stop in and don't miss this one. I'm glad I'm a bike ride from the place.

When i go to a bar after work every once in a while i don't really care for a rude waitress. I…read morethought maybe she just had a bad day. Nope its every single time. I want to relax and wind down and bullshit with friends. If I want to deal with a shitty attitude I can get that at home and the beers aren't $3.50. The only other option is deal with the other waitresses who constantly try to scam you into paying for more beers than you actually had. When it happens consistently, it's not a mistake. One time i paid the girl beer for beer, no tab. when i was leaving she insisted that i owed for 4 beers. Another time me and a friend had 2 beers apiece, i went inside and paid. Ten minutes later the girl gave my buddy a tab for 4 beers that were already paid for. I hate it for Mike.

What are Dark Arts? "Magic, Occult, Mystery, Experimentation, Transformation, and the Unknown."…read moreAncient symbols from alchemy abound here in the darkly sophisticated decor, the beautiful bottles, and on the menus. On the tee shirts of the sharply attired staff. Not staff; "Spirit Guides" is what they're called here. 7 symbols from alchemy have been repurposed to represent the 7 stages of whiskey-making from crop growth to bottling. The menu? It's an astounding 35 pages long, with their spirts classified by the 5 ancient elements Earth, Air, Fire, and Water, and Ether. The Dark Arts theme was played so well it didn't come across at all pretentious. It's all pseudoscientific nonsense of course but all good fun. First off, this is not primarily a distillery. They do some limited distilling but they self-identify as a "finishing house", mostly buying sprits from other distilleries and blend, apply various finishing techniques (special woods, etc.) and age them further in house. I was skeptical when a bartender at another distillery enthusiastically recommended the place as a must visit but I'm glad I did. I had a flight of 4 from their Special Annual Limited Releases section. Descriptions were intriguing. For example the Blunt Blend Volume III: "113.8 proof, 95% rye, 5% malted barley. 8 year rye finished in Armagnac and Madeira casks, built to pair with bold flavors and deeper moods. Pine, manuka honey, toasted oak, and terpene-like depth. Not subtle -- and never meant to be." I really liked all of them, especially the Ripple Rye of which I bought a bottle. 2 ounces total for $13; not bad. Prices in general were very reasonable: most around $7-10 for 1-ounce shots and $12-16 for 2 ounce. I like having a choice. Some higher-end offerings up to $50 for an ounce if you want to splurge. As for cocktails, how about the "All-Seeing Eye" from the Water section: White Port-Finished Bourbon, Chamomile-Infused Honey, Orchard Pear, Fino Cherry, Cherry Bark Vanilla & Bolivar Bitters. Or the "Nocturne Noir" from Air section: Amburana Rye, Crème de Banane, Banane du Brésil, Fresh Cold Brew. As fascinating as these all sound, I couldn't stay here and drink all day though I much wanted to. Instead, I finished with a mocktail, an "Essence Of Mercurial Bloom": Housemade Joker Syrup, Lime Juice, Lemon Juice, Soda, garnished with mint and blackberry. A perfectly balanced refreshing masterpiece. Can't decide? Try a Mystery Cocktail Dice Roll: "Roll the dice and let fate decide your next pour. Each number corresponds to a different Dark Arts cocktail." Or get a flight and let the tarot cards pick your choices. One brief visit isn't nearly enough. So many things to try. And premium experiences like the direct-from-the barrel special tastings. I'm already fantasizing about a return visit though it is 900 miles away from home!

fantastic bourbon and experience! highly recommend…read more fantastic bourbon and experience! highly reco

Such a wonderful places. There's a few tables outside, couches inside and tables to hang out on. I…read moreknow that this is a specialty beer place but it's such a local place that everyone enjoys! They're always so nice and happy to be around customers, and I love how they spend time making sure you know what you're getting.

About as good of a beer spot as you're going to get in Lexington, without the hype of some of the…read moreplaces across town. There is always a great collection of eight or more beers in draft here, and a few hundred bottles ranging from the normal to the aged and exotic. Kevin is beyond knowledgeable, and will guide you to the right pour for you every time.

There are three things that I enjoyed at Arcadium. The environment, the video games, and the drink…read moreselection. The environment was very relaxed.There was not any dancing or loud music. So if you enjoy a place to hangout with friends and play games this is your spot. They have a good range of video games. My favorite retro game is the Mario Donkey Kong classic. I was impressed that this bar actually had that game. The drink selection was great. The drinks were reasonable. Overall, if you like video games and want to go to a chill environment this is the perfect bar for you!

Like my recent review of Lockbox, this is a four star review that might earn a fifth star at some…read morepoint. This is a neighborhood bar with a hometown vibe. Bartender laid back and kinda dry, but kept everyone's drinks flowing and seemed like the kinda guy who probably warms up as he gets to know you. The drinks aren't bad. Not great, but you're not here for craft cocktails. I had the garden variety, made with Jamaican rum, curry orgeat, velvet falernum, Montenegro, lime, and grenadine. Sweet and a little watery. The Baby gap was probably my favorite, made with mezcal, luxardo, grapefruit, dem syrup, angostura, salt, and malort spritz. I was really surprised by how much I liked this drink. It was smoky and a little savory. I also had the HOA punch, made with Tito's, chamomile lemon ginger tea, scorched lemon, suav blanc syrup, and lemon. It had a tiki vibe. Arcadium has movie nights, including "bad" movie nights which are campy and fun. They do have a large beer list. I was hoping to play some arcade games (I brought tons of ones and a roll of quarters), but they don't have very many games and several are out of order, so that was a bummer. I'll try them out again. Random fact: Arcadium is adjacent to Favor, a niche restaurant that's hard to get into, and they provide the cocktails for the restaurant when they do dinner services. I am going to try to score a res at Favor next week.

Great facility. They use track man which I thought was great. Cool vibe in the place. Sim space is…read moreplenty. Currently have 2 bays. Friendly staff. Price is reasonable. No food but I'm there for a few a beers and some golf. Miss rating....

Great find near the Kentucky River. Awesome owner. Outstanding service. Good beer and bourbon…read moreselection. Reasonable prices. Fun golf simulators. We'll definitely be back!!! ‍

A perfect spot for game night. Villainous knows their market and it shows. Staff is always…read morefriendly, the specials are always great, and their unique cocktails are always a treat. I've been coming here for years for D&D nights and always look forward to it.

Villainous is one of my favorite places to go in Lexington. The staff are friendly and the food and…read moredrinks are great. I love the wide selection of games that they offer and it's really neat to see the large variety of pop culture displays they have (the horror ones are my favorite). My gaming group frequently reserves tables there on Saturdays so that we can get together and play board games for a few hours. I highly recommend that people check this place out.