Arts & Entertainment
 

Bar exchanges style for steep prices

Liquid Diet

Mario Gudmundsson

With the reawakening of downtown after the Super Bowl, a number of very posh new bars have been popping up in the city scene, but the Cotton Exchange Bar, 808 Franklin, remains one of the city's best in spite of the competition.

On weekends, a convenient side entrance on Travis street opens up right into the milieu, but during the week the only entrance is from a small lobby on Franklin Street, where an elevator leads up to the grand expanse. 

The Cotton Exchange is a beautiful bar, set in a gracious historic building where Houston's biggest names used to make their millions. Tall ceilings are highlighted by hand-painted cotton blossoms in intertwining motifs, while grand gilded archways separate the spaces, leaving intimate nooks full of sofas and armchairs. Beautiful cocktail waitresses roam from the marble-topped bar to the dark, wood paneled back room, all under antique chandeliers.

Bartender Shaun Monday said, "We have a great upscale clientele. The after-work crowd is very laid back, so it's a nice atmosphere to relax in."

The well-heeled crowd is heaviest on the weekends, when college students and yuppies come together to party in their fancier attire, but all week there's a steady march of attorneys and business people from the offices nearby.

Tuesday through Friday, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., the Cotton Exchange offers one of downtown Houston's best happy hours, with $2 domestic bottled beers, as well as $6 martinis and $4 wines and well drinks. Well drinks here are a cut above the usual, as generic boozes don't ever cross the threshold. There is also a small selection of nicely presented bar snacks like crab cakes or cheese platters.

Quality is a hallmark that extends from the selection of scotches to the array of fine cigars, which range in price from $9 to over $70. The wine list is heavy on Napa Valley producers.

Vintage cocktails are a specialty here, and this spectacular landmark is the perfect place to appreciate them. Oddly enough, amid cushy sofas, stained glass and gilded columns, sipping a Mint Julep or a Sazarac with your friends doesn't feel anachronistic.

"It's very different from the usual downtown bars," Monday said. "It's a relaxed place where you can come and have a drink and talk without having to yell over the music, a good mellow lounge where you can start the night."

The lazy glamour of the decor is reflected by the prices, which are decidedly on the upper end, but weekends still find a packed house and lines outside. Friday nights will soon be designated "Stoli, Stogies and Swing" nights, where $10 gets you a top of the line cigar, Stolichnaya mixed drinks for $5 and a live band brings the swing sound back to downtown.

Cotton Exchange Bar

808 Franklin

The verdict: Cotton Exchange is an elegant place to bring a date or enjoy a low-priced happy hour.

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