Bar/Club

The Little Red Hen is a real honest-to-Gilley's honky-tonk. To step inside the Hen is to step into Wyoming. Western murals adorn the walls while the pull-tabs behind the bar are reflected in a mirrored ceiling — "Shane" meets "Urban Cowboy." Sadly, there is no mechanical bull — but there is lots of dancing.

The Hen's heartbeat is live country western music six nights a week (Wednesday nights are for karaoke). And be forewarned: This is not the Tractor. The Hen's faithful deck themselves out as if it were rodeo night in Cody. On a recent Friday, the room was packed full of Western bling — belt buckles the size of pie plates, Tony Lamas shined up to the point you could shave in the reflection, and at least one hat so big the owner should have paid two cover charges.

The full service menu is simple and cheap. For $7.95 you can choose from six dinners, including steak, ribs and salmon, and there's plenty of bar grub to be had (think chicken fingers and nachos) if you just need something to soak up the whiskey. The bar staff is amiable, the pours are decent, the beer is cold, and at the end of the night the tab's not too bad at all.

While the Hen is a clear draw for hardcore and closet honky-tonkers, it attracts a pretty wide demographic. Youngsters, oldsters, goths, yuppies, preppies and even Rastafarians come to mingle with the cowboy crowd. Early in the evening, someone from this diverse mob holds forth that there is no Satan ... it's just God doing tequila shooters. We'll buy that.

By Mark Shaffer
NWsource