The first long bar I ever bellied up to was, arguably, the original Long Bar inside the old colonial-era Raffles Hotel in Singapore, birthplace of the cloyingly sweet Singapore Sling. No one seems to know how long the Long Bar really is but other legends abound such as iconic celebrities of the day like Charlie Chaplin and Jean Harlow.

One has it that Singapore's last remaining tiger was shot in the bar when it crouched under the billiard table ready to pounce. Writers — W. Somerset Maugham, Rudyard Kipling, and Joseph Conrad, among others — checked into Raffles to meet deadlines and reputedly spent much of their time elbow bending at the bar. In the late '70s, when I was there, the Long Bar wasn't very exciting and the barmen seemed bored. I'm told it had an energizing $120 million facelift in 1991.

The longest bar I've propped myself up against was the plank at Breen's in San Francisco, a saloon shuttered since 1979 that catered to Irish newspapermen and cops — and anyone who liked a cheap drink and colorful yarns. There are no hard stats on the distance from one end of the bar to the other. I never stepped off the length of Breen's bar but it seemed like a half a football field.

Big barkeeps, their sizeable stomachs wrapped in white aprons, would slide a mug of draft suds to a thirst customer at the end of the bar rather than walk down and properly place it before him. It was dark, dusty and delightful.

During the Jazz Era to the '50s, the Long Bar at 1633 Fillmore St., about 10 minutes west of downtown San Francisco, boasted one of the longest bars in the world. It stretched from the front door on Fillmore all the way back to the next block but no records include the length of the bar.

Now in 2008, The Long Bar has returned to Fillmore (at Clay Street) as a saloon and bistro. No jazz singers or keyboarders but it has a nice feel the minute you walk in the door and has commanded a crowd from Day One. The corner has had something of a culinary curse to it for the past 20 years. In that span, it's been a bad Mexican restaurant, a dark and badly managed bar and grill, and empty.

Today's Long Bar and Bistro is lighter. The frosted front windows have been defrosted. The seating is more comfortable; the second level has brown leather banquettes. And the bar is the star of the show with the food playing a supporting role.

Proprietor Alan Walsh, who was a mixologist at its previous incarnation, the Fillmore Bar and Grill, and an Irishman, knows exactly how long the Long Bar is — "30 feet of Honduran mahogany," he says. As for opening the front windows for passers-by and two mirrors built into the custom-crafted mahogany back bar surrounding a single 50-inch plasma TV, he claims, "The kiss of death is a dark bar."

Opposite the bar is a mahogany rail for standup drinkers who don't want to perch on a stool or sit at a table or banquette. Big in U.K. are pubs and bars where customers like to move and mingle. Fact is Walsh did his homework on bar design and etiquette at a young age. His father was an international salesman in Ireland for a U.S. company and he accompanied his dad on sales calls that often wound up in pubs for a little get-to-know-you-better socializing.

Under a 20-foot ceiling with amber-glowing sconces encircling the room, the new Long Bar is long on old traditions. You can eat on the plank, choosing from a house Caesar salad, $9, to grilled salmon, to a grilled Angus New York steak, $27. There are about 30 dishes on the menu.

But I'm here to assess the libational hospitality, not the food. On this night, right after opening, and playing to a packed house, the three bartenders in green shirts were scrambling to fill orders. It was hardly a barroom ballet and there was scant to zero schmoozing.

Four Long Bar cocktails have been created as twists on old classics at $9 apiece — the Longbarita, a marriage of Partida Anejo Tequila, Agave nectar, freshly squeezed lime and OJ. The Fillmojito has high-end Trinidadian 10 Cane Rum and mint-infused simple syrup. The San Francisco Sling (you surprised?) blends Junipero Gin, pomegranate juice with a float of Pama liqueur. The famed Mint Julep uses smooth Bulleit Bourbon.

Beers are rather boring and predictable. On draft are Fat Tyre, Sierra Nevada, Stella Artois and Bud Light. Bottled beer purveyed is Bud, Coors Lite, Corona and Heineken. Five bucks for any suds. Wines range from $8 to $16 a glass.

Some nice decor touches are obvious. There's a brass foot rail on the bar and the white tablecloth tables are not jammed together cheek to jowl.

The Long Bar, so far, is getting thumbs-up from customers, mostly in the Fillmore neighborhood. "We're 'hood kids and if service is slow or I'm pushed to order, I'm outta here," says Eric Fifield, who works in business development for a software company in Silicon Valley. "Everything is good here, although I ordered a Keel One dirty martini and didn't get eye contact. Normally, you throw your eyes on them (bartenders) and look for a connection. Didn't work here."

His lovely pal, Melissa Swanson, who works in corporate communications for the Gap, and who was sipping on an Andeluna Cabernet Sauvignon from Mendoza, Argentina, $9, gave her approval. "Nice to have something different, nice-looking that caters to an older crowd in the neighborhood." (Melissa is hardly a member of the "older crowd").

I wanted to jaw with owner Alan Walsh several times but he's been too busy to spin yarns about himself or his new Long Bar. Odd reaction for an Irishman who owns a bar. If he wants to break the curse of the corner of Fillmore and Clay, he needs to amp up the charm — no matter how busy he is.

Chris Barnett writes on business travel strategies that save time, money and stress. Reach him at cbarn@aol.com. To find out more about Chris Barnett and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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