Here Comes a Regular
Last week marked the second anniversary of starting Alcolog, and during that time I’ve written almost exclusively about alcohol… which makes sense with a name like “Alcolog”. But, like with my life, I’m hoping to delve into bars later in my career. To mark this new aspect, I felt it necessary to talk about my first bar: CC Club of Minneapolis.
CC Club is one of the more established bars in the city, opening as the CC Tap just after prohibition. Back then it was just beer and live music, but in 1975 it changed. They added a liquor license and the live music needed to be replaced by a jukebox. These changes meant they needed a new name, so it became CC Club. By 1985 it was dominated by a small group of regulars when Leland ‘Moe’ Emard bought the place. He knew the regulars weren’t the way to make a bar so he courted the younger crowd living in the neighborhood – punkers in their 20s. Once word got out that CC was the place for them, the business took off. As Moe put it, he tripled his business in three weeks. Out of that, the CC Club of today was established.
One of the more remarkable things about CC Club is the length of time its staff stays on. I’m writing this on a Tuesday night and there’s Sammy, behind the bar, and he’s been here for 17 years. Servers are Kim, 20+ years, and Peggy, the young one, at nine years. Moe would say that it’s because they al can be their own bosses and that it’s not a corporate joint so they can just be people. I’d also say that the bar essentially runs itself. The patrons keep to themselves and don’t get too out of hand. The relaxed atmosphere that makes it a great place to hang out is also why it’s a great place to work.
So what kind of bar is CC Club? It gets called a dive bar, usually by people who haven’t been to an actual dive bar. It’s been called punker, grunge, alt, and lately a hipster bar. But those aren’t labels for CC Club; those are the people who live in the area at that time. CC Club is located in the Wedge area of the city, which is predominantly twenty-somethings living in cheap apartments run by absentee landlords. As these young adults grow older and move to other places in the city, they’re replaced by younger versions of themselves. So, really, CC Club is a neighborhood bar. In a neighborhood that moves from generation to generation of young adults. With a good share of disposable income and few responsibilities, these young adults help ensure that CC Club as a steady stream of regulars, even as the older ones move on.
Moe and his crew stay on, and next February marks the 25th anniversary of CC Club becoming the bar it is today. He says that they’ll probably have a celebration once it gets warmer, and you can be assured that whatever he does; it’ll be pretty low key. Just like the bar.