It's hardly surprising that Key West's legendary Green Parrot Bar gets mentioned in the sundry of gritty mystery novels set in Key West, but honestly, mentions in Travel & Leisure, Islands, and other noted high-brow glossies can mystify. Now the Green Parrot gets high accolades from another stellar publication. It's not your basic coffee table book, but you can now, with honest sincerity purchase the May, 2000 issue of Playboy magazine for the article!
Yes, fans, a blue-ribbon panel of judges at Playboy magazine has named The Green Parrot Bar one of the Best Bars in America. In alphabetical, not numerical order, 24 bars in the United States have made this impressive list compiled by food and wine aficionados, editors, and critics.
The Green Parrot is celebrated, along with Chilkoot Charlie's in Anchorage, Alaska, for its "down-home, funky, ethnic and shit-kicker" ambiance. With a generous amount of editorial space, the writer confesses, "The search for the definitive Key West saloon ends at James Bean's Green Parrot." The writer also takes keen notice of the décor, observing that, "the decorations are whatever the customers are wearing."
James Bean and manager John Vagnoni are most pleased that Playboy acknowledges that, "The management works tirelessly to avoid progress." Further proof of attention to detail by the magazine, Playboy's crack editors did in fact spell "No Snivelling" correctly (there should really be only one 'L').
So, the folks at The Parrot raise their glasses to our sharp-eyed and vigilant critic. After all, it was a dark and rum-infused night...
