A dance studio held down the space on the ground floor of the Bossanova Ballroom building for twelve whole years, and the end of said era apparently arrived quietly and recently. I noticed when Viscount moved to a larger space between Beaker & Flask and Rum Club on SE Sandy Blvd, but only just checked in with Bossanova's new first floor friend, a shiny new bar called the Wurst.

Named for their only menu offerings—exactly nine different kinds of sausages (not a single one of them veggie-friendly)—the Wurst opened about a week and a half ago with as many pinball machines as one could wish for. A standard selection of draft beers and a few pricy bottled options compose the majority of the drink menu... along with a four-item vodka-centric cocktail menu, not one of which I would ever in my life consider ordering. For twelve bucks, there's the Copenheering (vodka, cherry liquore, and lemon juice) or the German Chocolate Cake (vanilla vodka and frangelico). I regularly pay less for drinks at the best cocktail bars in town... and maybe I'm missing something here, but an incredibly expensive and very sweet cocktail menu feels out of place in a joint that plays sports on a TV by the bar and has Buck Hunter.

There are features of the Wurst that lend charm to what should only be an incredibly busy stop on the way into or out of shows at the Bossanova. Pool, skeeball, aforementioned Pinball and Buck Hunter, Goldfish crackers on the bar, and friendly enough bar staff are valid offerings for a good time prior to seeing your next-next-favorite band upstairs—but there are odd or misdirected choices being made that could alienate future clientele. For example, surely they realize that Sizzle Pie is a minute down the street with vegan and vegetarian options galore... yet the Wurst offers chicken sausage as it's least meaty feature. Personally, it's a toss-up at 1 am between a slice and a hotdog, but it's a rare occasion when not even a single concert-companion has a dietary restriction. And I did try the Wally's Gator option (woohoo!) when I stopped in to check the place out, but they don't make their sausage in house and the bartender didn't know who made them. That wouldn't be weird, if that wasn't the only thing on the menu and if they weren't named for it. Also it was a very dry snack.

I'd definitely stop in for a shot of whiskey or a beer before musical happenings, and I hope they figure out some additional bar food and decent drinks to complement an otherwise great atmosphere. Until then, they'll surely make a killing in quarters from Buck Hunter.

The Wurst is located at 724 E Burnside.