Oldest Bar in Miami
Miami has a host of museums and sites well worth seeking out, from the Miami Science Museum to Parrot Jungle Island, to the Venetian Pools, and so on, but after all that sight-seeing and museum-watching, you really want a great place to eat, a place that’s soaked in the local flavor and feel of the city, and I don’t believe I’ve found a better place than Tobacco Road. Just by ordering a drink at the oldest bar in Miami, you’re participating in history. For historical buffs, you might pause a moment when you consider a bar in the United States that’s operated continuously for at least ninety-five years. What about Prohibition? It seems Tobacco Road was not only serving during Prohibition, it had as one of its customers, the infamous gangster, Al Capone.
Tobacco Road obtains its status as a Miami landmark legitimately. It’s seen its way through the Great Depression, Al Capone, and several wars and hurricanes. At various times, in a shady past, it’s been everything from a speakeasy to a gambling den and a blues bar. Owners have changed several times, but the building’s remained the same. In the 1930s, the place looked like a bakery, but that was a front for a speakeasy. There was a hidden room behind a bookshelf on the second floor where the illegal booze was stored. The second floor may also have been a “gambling den” at the time. In the 1940s, the bar was bought by a New York racketeer and bookie who gave the place its current name. The place was a gay bar at this time, with female impersonators and male strippers, making it the focus of the city’s Morals Squad. It was off limits to the military until the 1986. The bar operated under many names over the decades, but in the 1970s, the place was purchased by a Miami police officer, and the bar became once again, Tobacco Road. The bar and restaurant has had a tough history, but also its highlights, including a home for national blues and jazz performers. You could see at Tobacco Road such people as George Clinton, Koko Taylor John Lee Hooker, and Albert Collins.
Over time, the bar gained a different, much improved reputation. It’s now a place where college students and tourists, downtown professionals and musicians gather. Even politicians and celebrities will come to Tobacco Road. In addition, the food is terrific. They smoke their own ribs and turkeys and make their own pulled pork. The salads are from locally grown produce and the burgers have been made by the same guy for the last twenty-five years. Anyone with that kind of longevity is doing something right.
Once you find a room in Miami, drop by for some dinner and live music at Tobacco Road. Perhaps see a celebrity who’s hiding out. But enjoy the atmosphere and food in one of Miami’s historic spots.
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