Ely, Nevada is an old mining town, when I was there for a small job there was a freak snow storm and rumors that the mines were starting back up because the cost of copper was going back up, the town was looking forward to an upsurge. This was like 2 years ago. The bar is named after the twisted pine or lodgepole pine or Pinus contorta (source: about.com:forestry) which are smaller/stunted in size because of the harsh climate, high altitude, and unfavorable soils. The bar is nice, friendly waitresses and bar stools reclaimed from the nearby cathouse. They have a stage for live music and a small dance floor. They have games for people to play and one of the most drunk people I've ever seen wanted to play cribbage because me and my coworker had dug it out. He kept saying "respect the Crib." The Crib is the extra hand the dealer gets to score alternating between dealers each hand, and can (in some cases) make or break a game, so this old dude was sort of correct. I beat him, but he wasn't sore about it and it was a good experience. read more

Twisted pines has been closed like forever. Several owners and they can't make a go of it. But not to worry plenty of other bars.