Our NYC Italian Wine Bar of the Day: Virgola, located at 28 Greenwich Avenue in Manhattan’s West Village.
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We couldn't have said it better ourselves!
We saw the following sign on a recent NYC pub crawl at the newly-opened World of Beer in Manhattan’s Chelsea.
A review of West End Hall in Manhattan's Morningside Heights
Located at 2756 Broadway in Manhattan’s Morningside Heights, West End Hall picks up where Five Lamps Tavern left off. Twenty very quality tap beers are the main draw (full bar also available). There’s some outdoor seating along Broadway. The main seating area inside comprise of 4-6 person communal tables. A sizeable backyard spot holds numerous communal tables. The food menu is a mix of German beer hall food mixed in with bar/bistro fare (brunch available on weekends). We look forward to returning here.
A review of Bill Baker's in Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Located off the beaten path at 364 Grand Street, along the border between North Side and South Side in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg, Bill Baker’s is a solid craft beer bar to begin or end your Brooklyn NYC Grand Street bar crawl. The 16 tap beers are mainly from the tri-state area. Food is a mix of upscale bar and bistro fare. Sidewalk seating is available in warm weather, though the nearby BQE doesn’t make Bill Baker’s the best outdoor drinking spot in the area. The layout is half bar and half table seating. Bill Baker’s is an overall great spot.
A review of Mr. Fong's in Manhattan's Chinatown
Located at 40 Market Street, way off the beaten path in Manhattan’s Chinatown (or is it Two Bridges?), Mr. Fong’s is the latest cool/chill spot to open below Canal Street. Mr. Fong’s feels as though it’s been in this space for a long time, even though it opened in mid-summer 2015. Mr. Fong’s has its own house cocktails and a few craft beers. The juke box is just for show. A few booths serve as window seating. A 12-seat bar takes up a good chunk of the space and the rest of the space is for standing room. Whether or not you live/work nearby, add Mr. Fong’s to your to-do list. It’ll be worth your while.
St. Patrick's Pub opens for business in Midtown Manhattan
New NYC Bar Alert! Located at 22 West 46th Street, St. Patrick’s Pub opened for business in mid-September. After we have a chance to visit St. Patrick’s Pub, we will provide a brief review.
Is it a bar or a restaurant?
It’s a question we often ask ourselves and a recent New York Times article caught our attention: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/09/dining/a-blurry-line-between-bar-and-restaurant.html?_r=0
The article discusses how a few recently opened NYC establishments are either restaurants with a great drink menu or bars with quality food. Some of these new establishments have been opened by successful chefs in what is their first attempt at a bar. The article got us to thinking about how sometimes, when researching for new NYC pub crawl routes, it’s difficult to judge when a potential establishment is a restaurant or bar. Most of the time, it’s obvious whether an establishment is a bar or a restaurant. Though 10-15% of the time, the place could go both ways. We could write about this topic for a long time, but we like to keep things brief. Ultimately, whether or not the borderline spot is a restaurant or a bar comes down to the patrons’ primary activity. If they’re mostly eating, then the spot is a restaurant. If the patrons are mostly drinking, then it’s a bar. It’s important, as we like to say, to “see the place in action.” What are your thoughts on this topic? Please leave us a comment!
NYC Oktoberfest pub crawl on Saturday, September 19
Here’s a NYC bar crawl with an Octoberfest theme for Saturday, September 19. Ulyssses is sponsoring their annual Octoberfest on Stone Street in Manhattan’s Financial District. It’s an opportunity to do some bar hopping along Stone Street and visit Ulysses and other spots, such as Vintry, The Growler and Adrienne’s. Details in the announcement below (courtesy of Ulysses’ website):
Happy Half-way to St. Patrick’s Day!
Just six months to go until one of the best NYC bar crawl days of the year!
Two bars in Manhattan's Chelsea on our radar
A couple of spots we look forward to visiting. The first, World of Beer (a national chain, we gather), just opened a location in Chelsea at 316 8th Avenue. As craftbeer fans at Pub Crawl NYC, we look forward to stopping in at World of Beer on our next NYC pub crawl through that section of town. A few blocks north, another beer bar / gastropub, Haymaker, located at 262 West 29th Street, is expected to open for business in the coming days (or weeks). Soon after our visits to both spots, we’ll post our brief thoughts on the two establishments.