On October 8, the Instagram account of Circle Bar played a video loop of its logo written in the sand, only to be washed away by the ocean. After a late spring then summer season of fundraising efforts, the bar, named for its location on Lee Circle, has finally closed its doors. As so many COVID-19-affected venues have, Circle Bar turned to selling t-shirts and promoting livestreams.
The 1032 St. Charles Avenue establishment was opened in 1999 by musician and bar owner Dave Clements (owner of Snake ‘N’ Jakes), Jim “The Hound” Marshall and the late Kelly Keller . The Circle Bar was tiny, infamous, famous and beloved. It was an “insider’s place”—the kind of music venue that locals treasured and hoped tourists wouldn’t overrun (it was too small and too hip for tourists who were looking for “New Orleans-type” music). In 2012, OffBeat profiled the bar’s fight against the city when Mayor Mitch Landrieu was cracking down on what was deemed “nuisance bars.” Residents and musicians alike teamed up to support the bar as it squared off against City Hall.
The building itself is one of the oldest structures on Lee Circle, built circa 1883. The property was sold in 2016 to Phyllis M. Taylor, the philanthropist and CEO of Endeavor Enterprises, and some speculated then that this would be the end for the indie music center. Not long after the sale, the property was available for rent on Airbnb, boasting “Mardi Gras Central—You won’t want to be anywhere else—we have 30 parades that pass by your balcony! Free admission to shows and no surcharges during parades to access bar. (Save up to $20/per per day!)” The listing was quick to note the property was not “hermetically sealed” and probably not a good option for one hoping for a “sterile hotel experience.”
After Clements announced the bar’s demise, users on Reddit reminisced about naked drummers, the Iguanas’ residency, their first time getting drunk at Circle Bar upon turning 21 (or not), the rumbling sounds of the streetcar, the intimacy and atmosphere of the joint, and the many, many bands that played there over the years, like The Lumineers, The Whigs, Jason Isbell, James Hall, Shellshag, King Louie, and more who played the club.
