1,000 bottles of beer on the wall...

Patrons lend elbow grease for bar's expansion

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By LAURA TUCKER

VIEW STAFF WRITER

Owner of the Freakin' Frog Adam Carmer said his bar, located across the street from UNLV at 4700 S. Maryland Parkway, currently has a "bohemian alcoholic coffee shop feel" to it.

When renovations of the Freakin' Frog are complete by the end of October, Carmer said the atmosphere will be more of a bohemian alcoholic entertainment venue.

"This plan is going to be hot," he said.

When the Freakin' Frog opened in June 2003, the space was 1,100 square feet. After this month, in its third renovation, the Freakin' Frog will be just under 4,500 square feet.

The Freakin' Frog kicked off renovations at midnight on Sept. 26, when patrons were offered free beer and a shot at the south-side wall with a sledge hammer.

Carmer said the main criticism he receives about the Freakin' Frog is atmosphere. That aspect, he said, will be changed.

"We are focused on more of an integrated, interactive bar," Carmer said.

Carmer said the renovation will include a new 150-square-foot stage for nightly bands. The new entertainment space will include a state-of-the-art sound system, complete with a central "nerve center," where Carmer said the lights, sound and projection television stations can be controlled.

The Freakin' Frog will install four additional projection televisions, bringing the total to five. When a band is playing, it also will be projected onto the screens.

"No matter where you're sitting, you've got a great view," he said.

When no live entertainment is provided, Carmer said the Freakin' Frog will provide recorded entertainment, including podcasts.

"You name it, we can do it," Carmer said.

Carmer said lighting experts from Cirque du Soleil, who also frequent the bar, will install new lights. The design does not include neon.

And, of course, there's the beer and whiskey, Freakin' Frog's specialty.

"Currently, we have the largest beer bar this side of the Mississippi. And we have the largest whiskey bar outside of Scotland," Carmer said.

One of the bar's renovations includes a larger beer cooler.

Right now, Carmer said Freakin' Frog possesses the largest beer cooler in Nevada. Current plans call for its size to increase fivefold, making it the largest beer cooler in the country at more than 1,200 feet, he said.

The new capacity will increase the Freakin' Frog's beer collection from 720 beers to more than 1,000, Carmer said.

Carmer said the Freakin' Frog will add four more beers on tap. Freakin' Frog carries the Belgian beer Delirium Tremens, the only bar in the state to do so, Carmer said.

Delirium Tremens is brewed in Belgium and was named Best Beer in the World in 1998 at the Beer Championships in Chicago.

In addition, Carmer said the Freakin' Frog will have a Guinness bar, one of two in the city.

Carmer said he has been asked to provide merchandise carrying the Freakin' Frog logo. The new design calls for a point of sale, in which the store will carry clothing items for purchase.

The frog also will be displayed more prominently with paintings inside the building.

In terms of entertainment, Carmer said the Freakin' Frog will feature six nights of bands -- two of them specializing in adult songs. Carmer also plans to bring in improv comedy troupe "The Inedibles" one night per week.

Scott Nuchols, a regular at the Freakin' Frog for the last 1 1/2 years, said he is happy about the upcoming changes. He said he chooses to frequent the Frog because of the "craic," an Irish slang word meaning good times and conversation.

"The people here are like family," he said. "It's homier."

After the renovation of the Freakin' Frog, Carmer's next project is Moose's, located in the same parking lot, which he recently acquired. Carmer would not reveal what he plans to do with the property.

"Next up, Moose's," he said.