Overheard Conversations Upon Entry to the Fish House

Spengers Fresh Fish Grotto (a restaurant in Berkeley) has walls that talk -- Vivian Aldridge

Spenger's Night

Now that the night starts so early a warm place with marine paraphernalia is a perfect sketching place. Maybe Hemingway or Clark Gable payed attention to the woodwork in the back of the bar.

Spenger's, Pen and ink, 9x12in

Spenger's on University Ave and 4th

I sat under the railroad overpass on University Ave and drew the nautical paraphernalia around the Spenger's Grotto Building. It makes me think of far away harbors.

Spenger's Grotto, Pen and ink and watercolors, 9x12in

Spengers St. Patrick's Day Decor

Cellphone kept him entranced and posing

Spengers was decorated with green shamrocks when our Urban Sketchers group met there on a Tuesday before St. Patrick's Day. Other than all the green, it was business as usual. I love the way cellphones keep people engaged and posing like this guy at the bar, even when drinking.

One of Spengers' many model ships

Spengers has a huge collection of ship models and other sea-themed objects on every wall, ceiling and in every corner. I drew this standing in front of the display case, trying to stay out of the waiters' path. 

Guest Post: Amy Ventura's Spenger's Sketches

Amy's version of the man at the bar with hat, cellphone and martini and 

 Amy Ventura joined the Tuesday night East Bay Urban Sketchers last week for sketching at Spengers. Like the rest of us, she too drew our wonderful "model" Mark, as he sipped his martini and enjoyed his martini and graciously put up with a table of five women all drawing him.

Amy's sketches of the lanterns and flags hanging from the ceiling

Spenger's Bar Sketches

Waiting at the bar with cellphone

Last week we had a great time sketching in the bar at Spenger's, an old, formerly family-owned seafood restaurant filled with ship-themed objects including giant mounted fish trophies (which we learned are just plastic), models of old ships, steering wheels, ropes, etc.

Sonia Sketching, Flying Fish

Celing lanterns overlapped with sketch of men at the bar

I was drawing the guy in the foreground with the hat, cellphone and martini, when I noticed the man behind him kept smiling at me when I looked up. I wondered aloud whether it might be a bad idea to stare at men at the bar—would they think we were flirting with them? Everyone around our table laughed as it turned out we were all intently drawing the same foreground guy. He was a good sport and when we all finished we showed him his many portraits. Thank you Mark, for being such a good model!

Sonia's Spenger's Sketches

4th Street Holiday Lights near Spengers, ink & watercolor

Bread basket on the bar

Ship controls in the bar at Spengers