It’s not every day that you can walk into a bar that used to be a funeral parlor. But that’s exactly what Fat Matt’s Vortex is. The onetime dead-person destination is now owned by the cheerful and personable Joanie Bocelewatz, pagan witch and second-degree (that’s one notch away from top tier, or high) priestess. Originally called Irene’s, Fat Matt’s got a name change in 2007, but witchy quirks still decorate the place. Witches on broomsticks fly across the walls above the wooden bar, and the place is decked out in New Orleanian green, purple and gold. The drink specials are supercheap, the jukebox is up-to-date, and there are plenty of current and old-school video games to be played. Just don’t look in the basement, where the old crematorium remains.
