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Much has been said about People's Republik in Cambridge, but Will is spot on here. It had character. And characters. Across the whole spectrum. You'd see well heeled professionals drinking with folks experiencing homelessness, talking like old friends. Which they probably were. https://twitter.com/WillGordonAgain/status/1358277114798215170
Many bars actively discourage strangers from engaging in conversation with one another. But at People's, it was expected. You'd chat with your direct neighbors, or with folks all the way across the bar. Folks would laugh or curse or both. It was grand and will never be recreated.
And you can't overlook the design scheme. In an era when many bars feel as if sprung from a prefab kit (subway tile, reclaimed wood, Edison lights), People's was different. Quite literally. A papier-mache bomb hung above the room. Wood paneling like in your old uncle's basement.
Not sure I've ever been in another communist themed propaganda bar. And it kills me that I won't even get to say good bye. It was a respite, a place I knew I could go at lunch once or twice a year to have a beer and shot during a hard week. Or a place to celebrate a win.
And it had a damned solid craft beer list for a divey bar. All in the least pretentious way possible. You could drink a Bud Heavy or other macro, but most folks, including the down on their luck types, often had some kind of craft in their glass. It was quite the spot.
COVID has been terrible for many people in much worse ways than losing a bar. But even smaller losses such as this can be painful for those who found community within its walls. On the other side of this, we'll all be left worse off for the characterful places we've lost.
For the owner, bartenders, line cooks, cleaning staff, regulars, lawyers, doctors, construction workers, city employees, cab drivers, and unemployed who have lost their second home, my condolences. RIP People's Republik. You will be missed. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/02/07/metro/peoples-republik-will-not-reopen/
