If you enjoy classic cocktails and a gourmet take on bar food, your visit to Anvil will be quite the treat! Conveniently located on Westheimer, between Mandell and Yupon, it’s a struggle to get in on a weekend night but the spirits, the great bartenders, the aesthetic and the bar bites all contribute to Anvil’s huge draw.
Low-lit with an industrial flair lends the bar a sort of elegant trendy, yet slightly masculine look, softened, brightened and warmed by stained wood fixtures and exposed brick. The unique design gives the impression of a speakeasy, though much more refined than that theme generally suggests.
Even without the bar’s aesthetic aside, Anvil is unlike many of the other bars on this stretch of Westheimer: for starters, it’s more upscale than your typical neighborhood bar. The spirits are high quality, and was Houston’s first bar devoted specifically to classic cocktails when it opened in 2009. Those classic cocktails are featured on a “100 List” (yes, there really are 100), and separated by taste preferences like “Light & Long” verses “Bitter & Bold” and even “Tropical & Tiki.” While cocktail bars have started to see their vogue in Houston, nobody does it quite like Anvil.
The bar bites, though only a very small portion of the menu, offer a fairly robust selection of food. Careful meat and cheese selections are exquisite but look like standard fare next to Pork Belly Tacos and Campari Popcorn. And they live up to their hype. The bartenders, too, are more than usually helpful and amicable. I’ve never had a bartender here that was anything less than exemplary—once I mentioned to my friend in passing that I had a stomach ache, and next thing I knew I had a little cup of bitters and carbonation being pushed towards me. It’s a level of care that you don’t typically see.
If you’re looking for a night out that’s elegant, decadent and intimate, you’ll find it at Anvil!
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