On the corner of Duval and Caroline, these bars have a New Orleans appearance to them (I am assured by my much more travelled partner!).

The story is the same for most bars along Duval -- dark wood, large central bar, live music, big groups getting steadily drunker and louder -- it's just what you want on a holiday night out!! The big advantage of the Whistle (upstairs, above the Bull) is it's long, wraparound balcony from which to watch the assorted goings-on of Duval. People wave at their friends who weave across to the middle of the road and try and have a shouted conversation . . . you may see the guy with the snake walking up from mallory Square and parting the crowded sidewalk like the Red Sea . . . all the bar representatives competing with each other to draw you into their MUCH finer establishment.

So . . . you get beers and margarita, lean over the balcony and go with the flow. That flow might well take you even further upstairs to 'The Garden of Eden' - the group stood next to us were heading up there. A rooftop bar where clothing is optional . . . apparently. Check out the website and you'll get the idea.

Of the bars we wandered into along Duval this was the most enjoyable . . . it was here we finally noticed it was after one in the morning and we'd driven the 400 miles from Orlando that afternoon and we really should go to sleep . . . but just one more??

This place really should be more popular. I wanted to check out all the bars on Duval, so we headed here after midnight one night, and there really weren't that many people there. The place was decorated in old-timey bar signs and real wood panelling. The building itself is of historical value to Key West, having opened it's doors in 1912 as Carlos Recio's grocery.

The first floor is "The Bull." It has large windows that open to the outside, keeping the insides cool from the breeze. It supposedly features live music, but no one was playing.

From the outside, we had noticed a balcony, so we each grabbed a beer and headed upstairs to the second floor. Upstairs, there is another bar, and several pool tables. On our way out to the balcony we ran into an older topless woman. What the? Well, turns out, the third floor of this bar is a "clothing optional" dance club/bar, called "The Garden of Eden." We decided to just go out to the balcony. The balcony was more crowded than the actual bar.

Grabbing a stool, we sat down to watch the action on Duval Street. It's a great spot. Tons of people walking around, beads being thrown, a miniature Mardi Gras.

The Bull and Whistle is a great place to grab a beer and people watch from the balcony.