Best of 2000: Best Place To Buy Beer By The Yard

O'Hungry's
2547 San Diego Avenue,
Old Town
(619) 298-0133

Beware! O'Hungry's in Old Town has these three-foot-long trumpet-shaped "yard of ale" glasses with bobbles at the end, and they're going to make a mess of your dress. Or your shirt. These glasses have been a challenge to English beer drinkers since the 1600s. A yard has always contained 42 to 48 ounces of beer. That's three pints. Even half a yard feels like it'll never end. They come in vertical wooden holders. If you're a purist you take the glass out of its cradle, hold it up like a trombone, and try not to panic when the golden sparkling river starts to roll. Best part comes when you're three-quarters down and the bubbles catch the light as they scurry toward you. Worst part is when you underestimate the bowl at the far end, tip, and -- tidal wave! There goes the shirt. Here comes the applause. Another novice sits dripping in O'Hungry's. A yard of Bud costs $7.45. Half a yard, $5.45. But if you drop one and break it, or start swinging it like a shilelagh, O'Hungry's rules say you pay: $30 for the broken yard; $20 for the half-yard.