There exist a number of reasons you won’t be able to party with George Costanza IRL — he wasn’t a big partier, he was a fictional character, and Seinfeld hasn’t aired a new episode since May of 1998. But just because you can’t party with Jason Alexander’s legendary character (who, let’s face it, was secretly everyone’s favorite) doesn’t mean you can’t party in his honor. And what better place to do it than in a newly opened George Costanza-themed bar? It’ll make your visit to Melbourne, Australia, all the more enjoyable.
Sure, George doesn’t seem like the most likely inspiration for a watering hole — he was stingy, argumentative, and really kind of annoying. But George’s flaws make him surprisingly … human, and as such, a pretty convincing muse for the aptly named George’s Bar.
“I think he is probably the most suited of any of the characters … his humour is fairly dark and dry and fits in with a bar, it probably works more than any of the other characters would,” co-owner and operator Dave Barrett told The New Daily.
“Also, when we were developing this new venue, one of the names we came up with was George’s, and we to some extent worked backwards on ways to market that and so to some extent that is where George Costanza came into it as well.”
Costanza’s influence can be seen in various aspects of the bar — everything from the decor to the menu. “When you walk in, the two front doors have two of George’s quotes: ‘It’s not a lie if you believe it’, and ‘Everyone must like me, I must be liked,’” Barrett told the Guardian.
Better still, some of George’s less desirable qualities (his frugality, for one), work in the bar’s favor.
“We have got toasties available too, which are all $5 each, because George is a bit tight on paying for things, so we have gone with a cheap toastie menu,” said Barrett. And of course, all the toasties are named in George’s honor, like the Costanza, the Mom and Pop, the Quitter, the Art Vandalay, and more. Drinks will follow the same theme.
Despite its relative newness to the scene, George’s Bar has met with considerable success. Said Barrett, “It is quite a solid bar set up as well and we have got a really good bar team in there, but having some George Costanza homage theming in there as well, we have definitely had a pretty massive reaction.”