🍸 Another day, another longtime Valley food and drink establishment is closing. This time it’s Merc Bar, the cocktail lounge that’s been pouring drinks at the Esplanade in Phoenix since 1996.
This Saturday night will be the upscale bar’s swan song.
‘‘28 years, 10,000 nights, hundreds of thousands of Cosmos, Sophia Lorens and Goldfish later, we’re saying goodbye,’’ owner Rick Phillips posted on social media.
The Biltmore area bar was modeled after the original MercBar that Phillips and John McDonald launched in New York in 1993.
‘‘None of this would have happened without John McDonald and his vision and dream to open a bar in SoHo NYC, and the good fortune we all had to participate and contribute to building an iconic brand that has also launched the careers of many of today’s stars and bars.’’
Phillips added:
‘‘There are soon to be announced new plans in the works for the space as well as much more we are bringing to the Esplanade this Fall.’’
