Traveller's Inn
This inn sits within a walled stockade in a rural area. Simple in design, it has a large house with seven small rooms containing straw mattresses and a single larger room with a bed that can be hired by travellers. An open doorway links the kitchen to the public room and one of the innkeeper's children sits in that doorway on a stool, taking orders and helping the innkeeper's with various odd jobs. The open kitchen doorway also ensures that plenty of heat from the ovens will pass through into the main area. There's always a ready supply of mead (or any other local liquor) and a number of locals will fill in at tea time to have a few drinks in public before heading home to their families. There's a stable to one side but most people don't use that. Most people just use the hitching post as they aren't intending to stay.
The Gentleman's Tavern
This tavern is designed to appeal to gentlemen hoping to get away from the wife and children for a few hours so that they can become embroiled in upper class masculine activities such as reading books in silence and discussing local affairs around the dining table. The building contains plenty of curtained windows to let in enough light and a large central meals room with a sizable table. There's a variety of animal heads mounted to the walls and a perpetual smell of tobacco, leather and wood smoke that pervades the entire place. One requires membership to enter here or needs to be accompanying a member. Naturally women may not enter.
The Ladies Tavern
Not to be outdone by the gentlemen, a variety of women of the adventuring persuasion have set up their own tavern that has a rather cozy front room containing a shocking variety of doilies and lace which is overseen by a rather matronly figure who sits on a rocking chair doing her knitting and gazing at people over her glasses. Members, or the female friends of members, are allowed to enter the back rooms and cellars which contain a mixture of training mannequins (for sparring), dark libraries lit only by glass orbs filled with phosphorescent moulds, and an underground bar that runs the full length of a narrow room packed with bar stools and booths. The female branch of the thieves and conwoman's guild, a mostly upper class bunch, come here regularly to meet with the poorer members who enter via an underground passageway.
Eco-Friendly Tavern
All of the chairs are organically grown from dirt-filled holes in the ground and sculpted to create rather attractive but uncomfortable chairs. Several directional chutes in the top of this mudbrick building capture direct sunlight during different points of the day and create a spotlight on different parts of the rushes-covered floor where the bards are encouraged to stand. All the alcohol here tastes vaguely of honey.
Lover's Lane Tavern
This particular tavern is decorated in reds and dark woods and specialise in romantic individuals looking for a pre-wedding gathering place - as is the custom in this city. They have a surprising array of chocolates, more flavors than found anywhere else, which is also why they are ridiculously expensive. The usual adventuring party might find themselves a little bit confused when they slide into a booth and notice the place is filled with couples and celebrating families. Luckily if anyone can afford the costs to get in, it will be adventurers.
The Hunt Club
This club for like-minded adventurers has furs covering just about everything. Fox furs on the back of bar stools. Bear rugs by the fire. Mounted heads of all kinds of things both weird and wonderful line the heavy wood walls. Fires burn in braziers, keeping everyone nice and toasty. Luckily the bedrooms have real beds and glorious furs. Unfortunately the good luck comes with a high price tag.
The Little Hut
There's no real taverns for miles around but there is a friendly alcoholic who will sell drinks from his own hut. He uses the crates and barrels for furniture and then sends them back to be refilled. His hut is a bit sticky from spilled booze and it always smells mildly flammable but hey, beggars can't be choosers. Other than crates and barrels, the only places to sit are on the ground and the mugs are either washed in the nearby river or in a barrel full of scummy water.
The Smuggler's Cave
Alchohol is illegal in this community but that doesn't stop people from creating little spots to booze up and pass out while outside the watchful eye of the authorities. This particular one is managed by the sheriff and woe to anyone who threatens his supply lines as he's managed to become quite rich due to his monopoly on alcohol. Sure there are parties in noble houses where alchohol is served on the sly but his caves are the only places where the poor man can drink. ----------- Hope that's enough to get you started. If you have any cool tavern ideas, feel free to post them below.
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