Skip the obvious.
Goliard is a curated pocket guide to the best bars and restaurants in your city — the places worth crossing town for, chosen by people who actually go. Ask Boswell, the concierge who knows the room, and go straight to the good table.
Built for iOS. Free to start; the full concierge is a small subscription. No ads dressed as advice.
Then skip the patio crowd. Walk two blocks to Julep — a back-bar hush, proper juleps, and a bartender who won't rush you.
What is Goliard?
Goliard is a curated city guide and AI concierge for going out. Every venue is chosen by a curator and carries one honest line about why it earns a visit — no algorithmic long-lists, no pay-to-play, no tourist traps. The name is old slang for the wandering scholar-poets who knew exactly which tavern was worth the walk. That is the whole job.
It starts with Houston and grows one well-known city at a time. The bar for entry is simple: a curator has to vouch for the place in writing. If no one will, it doesn't go in.
Who is Boswell?
Boswell is Goliard's concierge — ask in plain language and get one confident answer, not twenty tabs. "A quiet nightcap near Anvil," "somewhere to actually talk on a first date," "best negroni in Montrose" — Boswell reads the room and sends you to the right table, drawing only on curated venues and curator notes.
It is named for James Boswell, the great chronicler of good company and better conversation. Ours just happens to know the reservation book too.
How does Goliard choose?
Curation is never for sale. No venue, brand, or partner can pay to be recommended, ranked higher by Boswell, or added to a night's plan — full stop. Some reservations earn us an affiliate commission and any paid feature is clearly labeled as such, but money never touches what is curated or how it ranks.
That wall is the entire promise. A guide whose picks can be bought is just an ad, and there are enough of those.
Free to read. The good part travels with you.
On the web
- The venue, neighborhood, and category
- Hours and a "Reserve" link
- One curator line and one photo
- The Journal — dispatches and columns
In the app
- Boswell, in full conversation
- Tabs — a whole night, planned
- Your saved haunts
- The full curator notes and the tipsiness dial
Get the first invites
City dispatches from the Journal and an early key to the app. No noise; unsubscribe in one tap.
The list opens shortly — email us and you are on it.