False-flag operation? As trains on Metro-North's New Haven Line pass the Larchmont station, the most colorful sight to the east is The Cellar Bar. Like many drinking establishments in this part of the country, it displays the flag of the United States and several associated with Ireland. But why, I've wondered on many train rides in both directions, are they accompanied by the banner of the tiny Caribbean island of Dominica?
From the manager's quick smile, it was clear he'd heard the question before. Every so often, he noted, one or more befuddled folks who conceivably hail from the Lesser Antilles will wander in to ask, why do you have the flag of my country? (Likely the hope is for some home cooking, my thought as well.) He explained that the owner (not present during my visit) is a big fan of the singer Jimmy Buffett, whose fans have long been known as "Parrot Heads." To little surprise, only one national flag features a parrot; the owner displays it, as well as assorted parrot-phernalia inside the bar, solely out of devotion to Buffett. Alas, no chow is involved.
The manager shared one other observation as I ascended back into daylight. That's supposed to be a branch that the parrot is perched on, but it looks like nothing other than a kazoo.
The Cellar Bar
8 Railroad Way (near Chatsworth Ave.), Larchmont, New York
914-834-8723
