Queen Mary Observation Bar, February 2020
Details
- Location: The Queen Mary, Long Beach, California
- Cost: $14 per cocktail
The Arrival
I drove from Ft. MacArthur in San Pedro to the Queen Mary's berth in Long Beach through tons of construction and closed roads. This is a very active port area (busiest in the USA) and trucks abound. A drive you would think is a very straight-forward 2 miles takes a good 20 minutes.There are fees for parking and even entrance to the Queen Mary ($6 a person to get in, parking is time based). The ship is quite imposing up close. It's a short walk and elevator ride to the Promenade deck, and across the gangway onto the ship.
The Observation Bar
This space has been a lounge since the ship was built; it was exclusive to the first class passengers during its service years, providing entertainment, drinks and general lay abouting for those of the leisure class.Summary
The observation bar was a blast into the past, and after a World War II event, it's a perfect setting. Very old school, wood covered, and dark (great for a guy who happens to have the looks I do). It's frequented by primarily tourists and people staying at the hotel. The photographs of the bar showing size 0 models does not seem to reflect actuality.Very reasonable drink prices for Los Angeles. The seating is more of a diner style I feel than a lounge, and since I was there in February, the outside seating with the ocean coolness wasn't a good alternate. The view of downtown Long Beach is very stunning off the bow. It's worth coming to walk around the ship and experience the bar. The light food menu has an acceptable amount of diversity to satisfy most.