Results tagged “bar”

What's really behind the bar at Brooklyn watering holes? Hopefully you'll never find out, but the Brooklyn Paper reports on some of the makeshift security systems barkeeps keep hidden from their patrons.

The lovely-looking restaurant and bar The Breslin begins lunch service tomorrow, and co-owner Ken Friedman (The Spotted Pig) is planning on serving alcohol despite objections from the Masjid Ar-Rahman mosque across the street. Earlier this month the mosque’s leaders called a meeting with Friedman at The Ace Hotel, where The Breslin is located, and asked, "Can you move the bar?" Friedman's response makes us want to hurry over to The Breslin right now for a dram of Laphroaig to show our support (and drown out the voices):

A Staten Island man died early Sunday morning while trying to back his SUV out of a tight parking space in a pub parking lot. Oleg Kantarovich had gone outside to pull the car around for his wife, who was celebrating her 30th birthday, so that she wouldn't get caught in the rain. Police say he was leaning out of the front door of his 2007 Audi SUV as he backed up because it may have been difficult to see through the tinted side window.

Chelsea's Bungalow 8, home to late night celebrity sightings, is shutting down operations. CityFile reports that the Amy Sacco-owned lounge has long been rumored to be closing, but now it's really happening. They shut down for "renovations" weeks ago, but allegedly have no plans to reopen... and their phone line has been disconnected.

Adding to the mix of venues and restaurants in the neighborhood, a new (gorgeous) space combining space focused on food has opened in Williamsburg. The Rising Tide is a new culinary and events loft that was built over the summer and is now open to the public. This is the same space that will soon be seen on IFC's Dinner with the Band (starring chef Sam Mason). "The Rising Tide is a unique production and events studio, located in a two story loft in Brooklyn." Measuring in at twelve-hundred square feet, if you aren't looking to film a show (because, you probably aren't), it can even host dinner parties for up to forty people.

Yesterday we reported on an anti-gay attack that occurred in Hell's Kitchen this past Friday night. WPLJ DJ Blake Hayes (pictured), cabaret and Broadway performer Danny Calvert, and another friend were attacked by a patron of McCoy's bar; they claim the police officers who showed up refused to take their attacker's information, or let them file a claim. They also expressed concern that McCoy's bouncer (who stopped the attack) allowed the attacker back into the bar.

With a name like Hugs one would think the Williamsburg-based bar would open their arms to all types of patrons. But they hung a sign stating: "No Timberlands, No Baggie Jeans, No Hoodies, No Sports Attire..." and the list goes on... and we all know hipsters wear skinny jeans. Their finals words: "We have the right to be selective!" We've contacted the bar to help us translate the sign, but they're currently using their right not to answer the phone.

Eurotrash: In the old days, eurotrash did key bumps at Kokie's; now Eurotrash serves meatballs by the Levee (which replaced Williamsburg's aforementioned cocaine bar). Eurotrash isn't a restaurant, but when you're getting your drink on—either at the Levee or Radegast Hall across the street—a starchy bargain food truck in a parking lot sure beats a fussy restaurant, with all their RULES about keeping your voice down and calculating gratuities. Opened about a week ago in a lot next door to the Levee, Eurotrash serves Belgian fries ($3 or $4), Swedish Meatballs ($5) over rotini with gravy and cranberry preserves, Fish and Chips ($5) consisting of 4 oz. Corona-battered cod and Belgian fries, and Bangers and Mash (Irish sausages served over mashed potatoes with gravy). North Third Street and Berry, Williamsburg

Malta: Okay, this unappreciated Williamsburg restaurant isn't new—it opened some six months ago—but this little gem hasn't gotten the attention it deserves, and seems to be struggling in the shadow of the neighborhood's newer cool kids, such as Brooklyn Star, Vutera, and Walter Foods. Part of that may also have to do with the rather uninspired interior design, but tucked away in the back is Malta's hidden strength: a serene backyard garden that's often shockingly deserted. You might think the emptiness portends lackluster food, but Malta, open for dinner daily and brunch on weekends, is high quality at reasonable prices.

Trattoria Cinque: It's all about the number five at this new 250-seat Italian restaurant, which, depending on your numerological stance, could signify the alchemist's five pointed star of quintessence or the Satanist's pentagram. We'll have to wait and see if owner Russell Bellanca's deal with the devil pays off, but it's certainly a good-looking establishment, with two fireplaces, spacious booths, and wooden tables that complement a grand Italian marble bar spanning the lounge area. Chef Mirco Grassini's rustic Italian menu includes just five dishes in each category (five small plates, five pasts, five desserts, etc.) and will change five times a year in tune with the, uh, four seasons. It's all priced under $25, and includes such options as Lasagna Bolognese ($18); Halibut al Guazzetto with roasted filet, potatoes, cherry tomatoes, olives ($24); and Pizza con Gorgonzola e Pere with pears, gorgonzola, white truffle oil ($12). 363 Greenwich Street; (212) 965-0555

Today Frank Bruni ends his five year gig at the Times with a review of the Redhead, an East Village bar that gradually evolved into a casual restaurant with, some say, the best fried chicken in town. Quoth the Bruni: "It isn’t exactly like any other downtown restaurant I know—its semi-polished, Southern-inflected pub grub is all its own—but it sharply reflects a few of the most prominent and rewarding developments in Manhattan dining over the years during which I’ve had the privilege of serving as The Times’s restaurant critic.

Luckydog: This isn't a restaurant—it's better: A bar with a nice backyard where you can bring your own food. Co-owned by Bill Mack, the guy behind East Village Tavern, this Bedford Avenue pub conjoins a retro-dive bar heart with a beer-nerd head. The location was previously Lenora's Way, which specialized in craft beers but had a fussy vibe that never caught on. Mack says his aim is for Luckydog to be "a neighborhood bar that happens to have good beer." (Liquor is forthcoming.) Of the 20 beers on tap, the menu spans the spectrum from lesser-known beers like Troegs to 24 oz pours ($4) of Genny Cream Ale, which Mack describes as "the beer we used to steal from our fathers." The interior design evokes a dusty old Brooklyn ale house with plenty of reclaimed wood, including tenement doors skirting the bar with doorknobs still in place, and church pews from a 1920s summer camp in Otisville. The backyard stays open to at least 11 p.m., depending on the noise level, but inside a 1975 shuffleboard table should see action late into the night. 303 Bedford Avenue (between South 2nd and South 1st), Williamsburg

Bhatti Indian Grill: This good-looking newcomer to Curry Hill marks the U.S. debut for chef Gaurav Anand, who comes from a culinary family in north India renowned for their catering and restaurant empire. Named for the lava-stone open fire grill originated in Punjab, the gourmet restaurant aims to make bhatti cooking more popular here. An exception is the Gilouti Lamb Kebab, which is specially prepared on a "mahi tawa" griddle and seasoned with a blend of 160 spices. Said to be so tender it doesn’t require chewing, the dish was created in honor of an old Lucknow king who refused to give up lamb after losing his teeth. The extensive menu includes a wide range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian kebabs, with entrees ranging between $9 - $15. 100 Lexington Avenue at 27th Street; (212) 683-4228

In December, the backyard at quintessential Hell's Kitchen dive bar Rudy's was closed down as the ownership started building a proper fire exit to comply with safety regulations. The proper work permits were obtained, but soon bar owners' received a stop-work order, and were told that a "routine audit" of the work had begun. That was seven months ago, and they still haven't been able to make the changes. Now rumor has it that the lost revenue from the backyard has put Rudy's future in jeopardy. A New York City without Rudy's is simply unthinkable—as unthinkable as a city without CBGB, Siberia, the Cheyenne Diner, Chumley's, the Alphabet City Toy Tower, or, uh, Casbar. It's unclear how dire Rudy's status is, but let's not take any chances: bar workers have started a petition, online here, demanding that city officials from the commissioner of buildings on up to Mayor Bloomberg help expedite the stalled process so Rudy's can reopen the backyard. [L Mag via Eater]

This is absurd. A DUMBO shopowner recently ditched the old sign for his storefront (which read "Cafe/Bar") and replaced it with one stating the name of the establishment: DUMBO General Store (with the word "Cafe" underneath). A good business plan, no? But now the Brooklyn Paper reports that the regulars are in an uproar, preferring the older and more anonymous sign. One man even told the paper, "It used to be like a speakeasy."

Lounge 47, a restaurant and bar with a capacious back yard on Vernon Blvd in Long Island City, has had a tough time making peace with some neighbors who say the noise and smoke from the patio is unbearable. Next door neighbor Beth Garrett and her husband have installed large signs on their property begging Lounge 47 patrons to pipe down, and a growing group of locals want the State Liquor Authority to revoke the liquor license, which was recently renewed. (The Garretts have also been accused of spraying their hose over the fence onto diners.) The current owner is now trying to sell the place, but the potential buyer wants to make sure he'll be able to transfer the liquor license.

       

We've seen glimpses of the Jane Hotel before, but now the West Village establishment has opened their lobby bar. Owners Sean MacPhearson (Bowery/Maritime Hotels) and Eric Goode say the style is understated; "Since our rooms are compact, the bar will feel like a living room for our guests, a place where they can just hang out. If you ever see a velvet rope, it’ll probably be hanging from the ceiling.” Consisting of three rooms—a front bar, a ballroom lounge and an upstairs mezzanine—the space will be open to hotel guests as well as friends and visitors. And thirsty artists take note: "The Jane lobby bar will also revive the revered New York tradition of bartering drinks for art from its patrons."

T.B.D. Garden: True, we told you about the massive new courtyard garden at Greenpoint's T.B.D. in last week's big roundup of al fresco drinking options, but what we didn't know then is that they're also going to be barbecuing back there every weekend and on select weeknights. Cook Min Chen, who knows T.B.D. co-owner Allen Welch from when they ran Long Island City's Lounge 47, tells us she's working on an expanded menu that promises to push beyond the standard BBQ fare. To that end, last weekend's menu featured seitan pulled "pork" and house-made potato veggie burgers, in addition to the regular burgers and potato salad you'd expect to find. Still under the radar and open just a few weeks now, this is a sweet space to spread out and read the paper while drinking a hard lemonade or five, and on weekends there's usually an old-timey jazz band or slot car racing.

              

Click on the images above for details on 13 other sweet spots for al fresco drinking, including the Extreme WOW (Presidential) Suites in Midtown East, Ortine in Prospect Heights, Spuyten Duyvil in Williamsburg, T.B.D. in Greenpoint, Studio Square in Long Island City, The Diamond in Greenpoint, LIC Bar in Long Island City, Nita Nita in Williamsburg, Huckleberry Bar in East Williamsburg, The Hotel Gansevoort in the Meatpacking District, Vutera in Williamsburg, 5 Ninth in the Meatpacking District, and The Brooklyn Ice House in Red Hook.

    

Bushwick, you're getting so spoiled. First a mini golf course, and now Beauty Bar is opening in your 'hood. This weekend the shiny, new establishment will unlock its doors at 921 Broadway, many subway stops away from its East 14th Street location. They'll host two free parties for the grand opening, Friday and Saturday, which will include a ton of deejays, bands, and an open vodka bar each night from 9 to 10 p.m. (RSVP here). As for the space, it has 600 more square footage than the Manhattan one, a possible garden in its future, and fixtures from a Lancaster, Pennsylvania beauty salon that the owner purchased for $1,500. The L has some more photos, and Grub Street reports they'll also be serving up cheaper drinks ($3 to $5 beers, $5 to $7 mixed drinks), and “retro finger foods."

It's last call at one of Williamsburg's pioneering hipster hangs: Black Betty, which has been a Metropolitan Avenue mainstay for over a decade, is closing down after a dispute with the landlord. Co-owner Bud Schmeling tells Brooklyn Paper he thought he had a deal to increase their monthly rent from $2,700 to $5,000, and he even paid a $35,000 fee as an incentive. But he says the landlord went behind his back and found new tenants willing to pay even more. (The landlord insists he gave Schmeling a chance to renegotiate their lease but he was too slow to respond.) The dark yet upbeat and unpretentious haven for dancing, debauchery, live music and Middle Eastern food just celebrated its 10th anniversary this month; on June 15th it will join Stinger Bar and Kokie's in Billyburg bar heaven after a final blowout party. It's unclear what will take its place, but Schmeling says, "We were definitely the first of a new breed of Williamsburg bars and performance places—and I don’t see something truly replacing Black Betty."

Rejoice Williamsburg residents, there's finally a music venue coming to your neighborhood. Okay, so maybe it's already saturated with sonic dens of slack, but why not add one more...with a roof! Eater has been on top of the goings-on at 4 Berry Street since March, and reports that the new venue/bar/restaurant/roof deck should be open by June (they'll be hosting a Northside Festival show in mid-June). "One of the owners tells us that they will have a large selection of European beers with an emphasis on their German selection and will serve 'beer infused menu items.' The lower level is 35,000 sq. ft. but the big focus here will be the 3,000 sq. ft. roof." Most recently they noted the roof fencing was in, and the bar is being built. To top it all off, it's under 450 feet away from the Gutter! [via Brooklyn Vegan]

       

Here's a look at Entwine, a new wine bar and small plates lounge over on the far side of West 12th Street. Perhaps you're thinking, "Finally! Another wine bar in the Village." But Entwine has some attributes that make it worth a trip west (or east, if you want respite after roaming Hudson River park). There's the tranquil back yard garden, for one thing, as well as the creative cocktail menu, which includes bartender Duane Fernandez's delicious twist on the Rusty Nail; dubbed the Scotland Yard, it sports Dewars, Drambuie, fresh ginger, lemon juice and basil.

No one likes to see another music venue shut down, but it's happening again, people. Grub Street declares, "We hear an off-Ludlow music venue with high ceilings, a mezzanine, a basement, and a capacity of 300 is trying to sell off the remaining eleven years of its $15,000-per-month lease. The tavern-club hybrid, once a destination among rocker-hipsters as well as the young glam set, comes equipped with cabaret and liquor licenses." This has to be Fat Baby or the Annex, but have either actually ever been a destination for rocker-hipsters? Maybe in a "we could see it being used as a generic backdrop in Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" or a "the cast of the Real World Brooklyn may have gone there" kind of way. Anyway, LES, take either as your sacrificial lamb, just keep your greedy paws off of Cake Shop.

Campbell Terrace: Summer's here (in spirit) and the time is right to relax outside in mahogany rocking chairs and drink. Campbell Terrace, run by the same folks who operate the clubby Campbell Apartment in Grand Central Terminal, have just re-opened for the season in the Vanderbilt Avenue portico between 42nd and 43rd Streets. Boasting 1,500 square feet of shady, open-air imbibing, the terrace's myriad rocking chairs are a homage to the furniture provided in the ladies' waiting rooms in the early days of Grand Central Terminal. This year Campbell Terrace reopens with a new and expanded spirits menu, featuring vintage cocktails such as the Strawberry Southside (Gin, fresh muddled strawberries and mint topped with Champagne), and signature cocktail The Terrace Punch (Cane rum, orange liqueur, ginger liqueur, mango nectar, fresh lemon juice and a pinch of allspice). The food menu is the same as the inside bar, and includes club sandwiches, quesadillas, and cheese plates. Open Monday through Friday from 2 p.m. until 10 p.m. 15 Vanderbilt Avenue, (212) 980-9476.

Here's the latest installment in our ongoing quest to find a good, cheap meal that won't kill us or our budget.

So just where was artist Yoshimoto Nara tossing back a few before his arrest in February? Prior to getting arrested for drawing some smiley face graffiti on the L platform, he was at Niagara bar in the East Village. He adorned the place with original artwork on the walls there, too, but the owners didn't try to arrest him, instead they put it under plexiglass to preserve it.

Earlier this month, Lost City observed the removal of the iconic sign for the Upper West Side's P&G Cafe; despite outcry from the regulars, the 66-year-old watering hole had been denied a lease renewal by the landlord. So fourth-generation owner Steve Chahalis relocated to a bigger space a few blocks away, and took the sign down when he left. But because it was a city landmark, many wondered whether it was even legal to remove the sign. Today a spokeswoman for the Landmarks Preservation Commission tells City Room that "a warning letter was sent to the owner explaining that a permit was required." But Chahalis's lawyer says they never received any letter, and now the sign is no longer functional because the fragile electrical connections and metal underpinning "were rotted out from decades of water on the exterior." Chahalis says he'll try to incorporate some "surviving neon-tubing remnants" into a new sign, but the old one's disappearance makes the city's Landmarks Commission look pretty toothless.

       

Long Island City will at last get its own atavistic cocktail lounge when Dutch Kills opens sometime in the next few weeks. Proprietors Richard Boccato and Sasha Petraske (both of Milk & Honey fame) promise an 1890's style saloon serving classic cocktails ($8-$10) using hand-cut ice, along with a selection of spirits, liqueurs, cordials, wine, and beer on tap (as well as by the bottle). There will also be live jazz and ragtime on select nights, and a small pub menu provided by Sage General Store, a local organic kitchen. Boccato's description of the place also comes with a little history refresher:

The name of the bar is the same as the ancestral name of the neighborhood where it is located (Dutch Kills), which was one of several small enclaves that unified in 1870 to become Long Island City. The word "kills" means "creek" in Dutch, whose settlers arrived in the area in 1643. Originally named "Canapaukah" (loosely translated as "bear's watering hole") by the Canarsee indians who were the first occupants of the land in and around what is now Long Island City, the "creek" in question is the Newtown Creek, which runs behind the bar dividing Long Island City from Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Dutch Kills was an important road hub during the Revolutionary War, and the site of a British Army garrison from 1776 to 1783.

A YouTube video titled "NYPD corruption at its best," depicts undercover NYPD officers stuffing cash in their pockets during a raid at embattled Staten Island bar "Beer Goggles" (MySpace). The surveillance tape was recorded back in November 2007 when cops busted the bar for promoting gambling; three employees were arrested but the charges were eventually dropped.