Lexington ‘bookstore’ has a high-proof secret: Ring the bell to enter this speakeasy
If your idea of the perfect bar is one that’s intimate, quiet and hard to find, then maybe what you’re really looking for is a speakeasy.
In that case, check out the “book store” on Constitution Street in downtown Lexington.
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Walk inside, ring the bell and wait.
Keep your eyes on the bookshelves for the hidden entrance and be prepared to travel back in time.
Once inside you’ll find a dapper bartender named Rusty Wright and his elegant cocktail menu. If you’re lucky enough to have a reservation (highly recommended), you will be escorted to a cozy booth in the back.
If you don’t, you might get to sit on a bench along the wall, or on a stool at the bar, if it is after 7 p.m.
Either way, you’re in for a lovely time.
“We kinda hope when people come in that it feels like a secret they’ve been let in on,” said Amy Camenisch, who opened the Constitution “bookstore” with her husband, Ryan, and Jesse Brasher, manager of West Sixth Brewery.
“My husband, Ryan, and I wanted to bring some of the best aspects of bars from travels back to Lexington,” Camenisch said. “Whenever we’d go to a new city we’d try to find a new cocktail bar, and we loved speakeasies.”
They found a small space on Constitution that had been former workshop for someone who made dentures, Ryan Camenisch said. They gradually transformed it into a space that looks like it has been a bar since the Prohibition era of the 1920s.
“We wanted it to feel like a time travel experience, with everything from light fixtures to the furniture,” Amy Camenisch said. “It’s not over-the-top Twenties ... We want people to feel like this place has always been a speakeasy, like it has it been around forever.”
You’d never know it has only been open since July 2023.
Wright, who developed the original menu for Constitution, decided to stay on and now puts out a seasonal menu that changes several times a year.
“We like to highlight classic Prohibition cocktails like Old Fashioneds, Manhattans, made as they were intended to be,” she said. “But then we play around to develop signature drinks, with roots of the cocktail they are ordering.”
You could get a classic Old Fashioned (bourbon, organic cane syrup, bitters and orange oil) for $15 or their signature riff, the War & Peace (bourbon, rye, cognac, apple brandy, bitters, organic cane syrup and citrus oils) for $18.
The favorite cocktail at the bar, according to Ryan Camenisch, is the Jane Eyre, which is Earl Grey infused gin, cherry blossom syrup, blueberry purdo, lime and sparkling wine for $18.
The bourbon selection isn’t vast but hits the high points. And cocktail ingredients such as syrups and purees are made fresh in-house.
The menu also has non-alcoholic options. And snack mix to eat but no real food.
Patrons tend to come in early, before heading to dinner. Or stop by later, for a nightcap.
“Our busiest hour is 5 to 6 (p.m.) People like starting their night here then going downtown,” Ryan Camenisch said.
A note about parking: In keeping with the underground nature of the bar, there isn’t any. (A parking lot full of cars would kind of be a tip-off, right?) Constitution is a one-way street with a few spaces so your best bet is to look for street parking on North Limestone.
Constitution
Where: 109 Constitution St.
Hours: Wednesday 5-11 p.m., Thursday-Saturday 5 p.m. to midnight.
Online: Constitutionbookstore.com/knock
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