Black Nugget - Carbondale

Absolutely beautiful bar. The decor is all coal mining memorabilia and it will send you skipping down memory lane. I come froma family with a history of mining and it really hit home. The drinks here are VERY affordable and the happy hour drops them to almost laughable prices. Decent selection of Colorado beers on tap. Also, taco Tuesday's.

I have never left a bad review, or any review really, of a bar or restaurant. As someone who has worked in the service industry, including a bar, for over 5 years, I understand how challenging this form of work can be. However, last night a bartender at The Black Nugget was so abrasive to myself and my brother, that it drove me to tears and I struggled to sleep last night as a result of his aggressive, mean nature. I love a good 'tells it like it is bartender ' but this man was rude, aggressive, and unwelcoming. My brother and I went to the black nugget after a super heavy and delicious meal at Phat Thai. We had a couple drinks, but between the heavy food, tons of water, and a couple of walks around downtown Carbondale, we were far from being overly intoxicated. We went to the black nugget for one drink. My brother asked a simple question, is it okay to sit at the bar or should we grab a table. He immediately and aggressively kicked us out... as a response to that question. We thought he might be kidding, but he said I 'm not fucking around. I 'm not serving you. I may have used unkind language in response to this. After being kicked out, for no real reason, I went back to order a glass of water and to ask him why. He began to yell at me, saying that he saw my boyfriend screaming at me outside. First of all, he is my brother and that absolutely was not the case. The fact that the bartender was screaming at me, in response to thinking that my boyfriend was screaming at me was a concern. A kind woman, who works at the black nugget, came to speak with me. She said he had the right to not serve me, as it was up to his digression. I understood that, but as someone who was not visibly intoxicated, I simply asked her would you serve me? She said she couldn 't answer, which makes me believe that if she thought I was too intoxicated that she would say yes but she did not. The bar was practically empty minus one table and a single man sitting at the bar. Perhaps if the staff was welcoming and not abrasive, they would see more people in there.

I have never left a review, let alone a bad one, but my experience tonight was horrifying. I witnessed the owner drunkenly berate and shout at a woman, who I found out was an employee of his, so I pretty much immediately left. I have come to this bar before and have been underwhelmed by the offerings and the space (very dirty! , but seeing this is enough for me to never go in there again. This is a well-known bar in this valley, but I will be letting everyone I know who goes there about this experience.

This place is so fun! It's a local dive bar with a mix of both a younger and older crowd. The other plus is some fun decor (Aspen Trees Coal Mine Pillars). They have a small stage bringing in live music on the weekends. There's 2 pool tables and a foosball table to play your heart out on! The beers are pretty cheap too.

Sad, I have tried 4 times to go to this bar and all four times it has let me and everyone I talk into going with me, down. I came from Colorado Springs and was looking for fun places to go with my new local friends. This is such a charming little bar and it has the potential to be GREAT but I can only say it must be poor management because the bartenders are not trained on classic drinks and they do not leave behind the bar. They do fine with draft or bottled beer. A simple rum and coke, horrible, a long island ice tea? tasted like dish water. It should not matter how busy a bar is when there are 4 girls behind the bar they should be able to make ALL drinks and do it with grace and a smile. There is NO table servers. Occasionally you will see one of the staff come by and grab glasses. I was watching a man drink a glass of wine as he stood near a table I was sitting at and I could see red lipstick on his glass, he was not wearing lip stick and he was alone. So I assumed the glasses are not properly washed. I am certain you can tell something about the establishment when you walk in and the only females are the ones behind the bar. If this was a place with friendly staff, good drinks, and clean glassware it would attract females, which in turn attracts males who would stick around longer which would increase sales. I watch females walk in, order one drink, not even finish it and walk out. I would hate to see this bar fail because of something as simple as a little bartender training and some better management. There are few places to go in this valley where the potential is this high, this is a great location, fun décor, and room to dance and play pool. But I cant even get my own friends to just try it one more time. I hope this helps as it is not meant to offend.