Mike Brown: The Local Leader of Local Drunks: Sunyin Marci

Sunyin Marci is a local leader and local owner of a local bar called The Jackalope Lounge, locally located in the semi-beating heart of downtown Salt Lake City. She is also my boss and overseer and is awesome to work for. With several years behind the pine, Sunyin’s knowledge and experience makes her a local leader in our cute little bar community whether she likes it or not. But I think she likes it.

Sunyin describes being in a leadership role as being someone to be followed, because other people in our industry look up to her and trust her judgement. Whether it’s questions about a fire code or what to do when a girl won’t stop shitting and doing blow in your bathroom, Sunyin has good advice on what to do.

Now, a brief history of The Jackalope: Sunyin’s been the owner for about 15 years and we are still the cheapest bar on the block. That’s pretty much our history. I asked her how downtown SLC has changed in regards to the bar world in that time, and there are definitely more bars, which is a good thing. There’s more bar hopping these days than there used to be, more places to ghost your friends over a warm pint and more alleyways to puke in.

Sunyin thinks this has made the bar scene a little less competitive (in a good way) than it used to be. There’s more of an “us vs. them” mentality against the state and their awesome, ever-changing liquor regulations made up by people who don’t drink and who I didn’t vote for in the first place. Bars aren’t competing for certain crowds or demographics like they used to.

Now, you are probably wondering about the origin of the jackalope species. Well, one time the penis of an antelope on the Great Salt Lake’s Antelope Island fell into a jackrabbit’s vagina, thus creating this magical mix of a beast — much like Hogle Zoo’s very own liger. They like to eat Skittles and dirt and noodles and carrots and the like.

Jackalopes are notorious for their rapid breeding rituals and are mostly nocturnal, like a lot of drunks I know. The animal is also indigenous to Wyoming and Texas. Jackalopes have an affinity for certain pharmaceuticals, mostly pink ones, and are rarely domesticated. They don’t make good pets.

If we ever get a rat infestation, I have permission from Sunyin to promote the bar as a place with cute little jackalopes running around. It probably won’t happen soon because I and the other staff members are really, really good at taking out the garbage at the end of the night.

The future of downtown, especially with our new overlord Ryan Smith, has yet to be determined. I asked Sunyin what she thought the future of the bar and downtown entails — hopefully more (and better) parking. The city is definitely growing, in some ways good and in some ways bad. The way I see it, overall city expansion mostly means worse traffic but better bars and restaurants. The rest is just gravy.

Hopefully, downtown will stay hopping and busy. Remember to tip your bartenders more these days because this inflation is a real motherfucker. But I remain optimistic, something I’ve learned from Sunyin. She’s always happy, even when she’s yelling at us. And like most decent bar owners, Sunyin knows how to cut loose when she’s on the right side of the bar. If you see her, don’t hesitate to buy her a shot of tequila — just don’t feed the jackalopes.

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