Palace Saloon near Jacksonville, FL is one of the oldest saloons in Florida. It's excellent reputation is due to the great service, excellent food and drinks and superb service you get when you walk through the doors.
The Palace Saloon was originally built in 1878 as a haberdashery. Louis G. Hirth bought the building in 1903 and turned it into a saloon. Hirth believed in order for an establishment to be successful, it needed to be inviting to its patrons so his remodeling project began with the help from his friend, Adolphus Busch, of Anheuser-Busch. Together they made the Palace Saloon an elegant establishment with embossed tin ceilings, inlaid mosaic floors and a bar 40 feet long lit up with gas lamps. The walls were complete with murals commissioned just for the saloon. This is the same style the Palace Saloon has today.
Hirth made this saloon into an "gentleman's establishment" with large spittoons for their chewing tobacco and towels at the bar to wipe the foam off their mouths. He also kept a tab for his locals, which he would bill monthly. The Palace Saloon was always open, it seems. They were the first saloon or bar to start selling Coca-Cola in the early 1900s. During Prohibition, they were the last bar to close, making themselves a lot of money in the process. They survived the Prohibition with their sales of ice cream, Texaco gasoline, specialty wines, cigars and their signature Cumberland Whiskey.
In 1999, a fire nearly destroyed the Palace Saloon. But the enthusiastic owner restored the building and turned it back into the charming establishment it's always been. Unlike many bars, the Palace Saloon does not sell foot, but is designed for the "liquid dieters".
