After being sandwiched for three hours on a plane between a snotty 11-year-old girl and a middle-aged man who smelled like soup, I needed a cocktail. So when my flight landed in Fort Lauderdale, I hightailed out of the long-term parking lot and was sitting at the Rustic Inn's bar within five minutes.

The Rustic Inn Crabhouse is a waterfront restaurant and nightspot at 4331 Anglers Ave., Fort Lauderdale. It has been in business since 1955, and I don't think much has changed since Day 1. The floors are covered in faded gray linoleum tile, and an array of old-fashioned nautical knickknacks hang from the ceiling. Wood-paneled walls are plastered with 8-by-10s of outdated Popeye-esque boats, weathered caricatures of past patrons, maps of Florida that might have been drawn by Ponce de Leon, and a Jim Morrison & The Doors concert poster from 1966. A sole crab leg is stuck to the ceiling above the bar, either a deliberate addition to the decor or the remains of a garlic crab recently smashed by a mallet-wielding customer.

The Rustic Inn is an intentionally preserved snapshot of yesteryear, and it radiates soul like a dusty old Ray Charles tune. The staff is welcoming and specializes in southern hospitality. The barstools are filled with Lauderdale locals and tourists from nearby hotels. The seafood, frog legs and fried gator are mouth-watering, and the drinks are inexpensive and poured with a heavy hand.

Specialty drinks are served in beach pails usually reserved for sand-castle making. Try a Purple Nurple mixed with Grape Jack Rum, grape soda and fresh lime juice. If that's a bit too fruity for your taste, the bar is also stocked with ice cold beer, Jack Daniels and his partner Jim Beam.

The Rustic Inn doesn't have happy hour but if that's what you're after, you don't have to travel far. Bass Pro Shops is about a mile away at 200 Gulf Stream Way in Dania Beach. Although there's a vending machine full of live bait near the parking lot, Bass Pro Shops doesn't just cater to fisherman, hunters and James Bond bad guys (they sell blow guns as well). Inside is the Islamorada Fish Company, a sushi bar and the Marlin Bar. Happy hour at the upscale Marlin Bar is from 4-7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and people line up for $4 sour apple martinis, $2 16 oz. Bud drafts, $3.25 house wines and a dozen raw oysters for $7.

Bartender Chip Wasson is as popular with the just-turned-21 crowd as he is with the well-past-61 crowd. He offers a firm handshake, introduces newbies to regulars, mixes a mean margarita and tells bizarre bar stories. Maybe I can sit next to him on my next flight.

UPCOMING

The roots reggae of Jahfe spreads its conscious vibe at America's Backyard at 6 p.m. Friday.

Legendary rock band Hot Tuna plays at 8 p.m. Saturday at Revolution Live. Tickets are $22.

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