The view inside feels a little bit like an explosion, a dense array of visual activity in what is really not that big of an interior space. The front room is dominated by the bar itself, an L-shaped wooden altar to drinking domestic beer under a drop ceiling and a wall AC unit. Beer cooler, elevated liquor bottles, mirrored back, Christmas lights (blue this time), the hits are all here. But it’s the environment around the bar that gives BJ’s Lounge its distinct feel.
The walls just inside the front door are covered with densely-packed photos circling a wooden sign that reads, “BJ’s, Your 9th Ward Living Room.” And the photos match the living room proclamation with an array of images that feel like some kind of family photo album displayed for the world to see. Some photos are fresh, some are aged, but it’s not hard to understand that this is a neighborhood bar for neighbors (and there’s a sign saying just that amid the photos).
Of course, not every family photo album includes family members taking photos in front of a massive shrine to the female anatomy, which happens to be the eye-catching feature of the adjacent wall. Writing description will both insufficiently convey the piece and give this review a sharp left turn best left to the eye of the beholder. From all accounts, it’s a popular piece of wall art at BJ’s Lounge, and with fairly obvious reason.
