Went to Mary's today for the...

Went to Mary's today for the first time. I know it's supposed to be a classic/historic club, but somehow it just was never really on my 'must go' list. But I happened to find myself downtown with a bit of time to spare at lunchtime and popped in.

The place is pretty small. In fact, really small. Once you go in, there's a small cash register and a little sign saying that there's a $2.00 cover in the evenings. Then the bar is on your right, with pair of seats at it. The stage is right next to the bar and is also small... maybe 8 seats at the rack total. The back wall was maybe 30 feet away from the entrance. There's a couple of dozen chairs lined up along the side wall and floor, facing the stage, with a few small tables. There's glamour photos of strippers and dancers on the wall (and also some neat murals), and a pair of video poker machines-- and bathrooms at the back. There was a stale beer miasma in the air. Overall, it seemed more like a small neighborhood titty bar, and not a place that would be as famous as it is.

When I went in, I was greeted by the extremely lively blonde (female) bartender, who got me an inexpensive soda (it was a bit early for booze) and gave me a bunch of ones to tip with. To my surprise, the place was pretty empty-- especially for a lunch hour in a downtown area. When I came in, there were only five folks visible, including me! In addition to the bartender, there was one dancer on stage (more on her later), and two guys sitting at the rack (one 20 something eating tacos from next door, and a guy in his 50s who appeared pretty drunk and giggled to himself a lot-- and me.