Slow & Smooth

Some good news has come down the pipeline in the last week ... Slows Bar-B-Q in Corktown is finally starting up their Thursday Patio Nights again. Hail Mary!

A train in the tunnel, baby.

If you managed to hit Yacht Rock Thursdays during the late summer last year, you know that co-owners Phillip Cooley and Dean St. Souver know how to spin some smooth tunes, laced with a touch of irony of course. And you know that there are few places as lovely on a summer's eve than the patio at Slows. And finally, you know that the gay hipsters cannot get enough Michael McDonald.

[Catch a snapshot of late summer Slows at the end of this article in Model D, "A Night Out with ... Aliccia Berg Bollig"].

Last Thursday was the soft launch for soft rock at Slows, and it seems the boys are mixing it up just a little this year. And that's a smart move. As the Yacht Rock phenomenon becomes more mainstream it seems only natural that early-adopters would seek to expand the scope of it. Fun music (maybe drifting off a bit into wedding-reception territory at times) and cool people acting decidedly un-cool pretty much define the vibe of the evening.

Is it really gay? Well first off, Slows is one of the gay-friendliest restaurants in the city. And there was always a good batch on the patio when I was there last summer. But I think a better testament comes from Sarah Lurtz, formerly of Wound Menswear and a longtime server at Slows, who said with a laugh, "Oh great, it's gonna be gay night again!"

The official start of Thursday Patio Night is this Thursday, so squeeze into your dangerously low-rise jeans and kiddy t-shirt and go drink beer. And see the very pretty Phillip Cooley in his really, really short white shorts.

The very pretty Phillip Cooley. I'm just sayin'.