Nightlife

  1. BarBacon is coming, try not to cringe

    BarBacon

    Update: They’re open now, and the place is very well done. Click through to see everything about the place, or visit their site for more.

    Sigh. A nice little café along 9th Ave is being replaced with what we can only imagine will be a “bacon-​inspired” bar. Bacon is trendy at the moment, if you didn’t notice, so naturally opening a bar named after it can only lead to good things.

    The sign announcing BarBacon is coming soon

    The spot they’re moving in to is the former home of Brasilina Café, a Brazilian café which opened back in 2011. They closed their doors this month, making way for BarBacon…

    The exterior of the now-closed Brasilina

    If you want to see what Brasilina’s was like while open, or just want to try out the novelty, they have a 360º virtual tour on their site for some reason. It’s safe to say the place is going to get a whole lot less classy real soon.

Friday, Oct 25th

  1. Rooftop lounge Z Bar opened tonight

    Another “trendy” rooftop restaurant and bar has opened up along 11th Ave. Z Bar, the latest addition, opened tonight at it’s home above Stage48 just down W 48th St. As you’d expect, it’s got some pretty nice views, looking right out towards Midtown:

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    Source: Z Bar
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    Source: Z Bar

    You might think that with the temperature plummeting, a rooftop bar wouldn’t be too inviting, but they’ve got plenty of food options to keep you warm, plus a full cocktail menu to help you forget the weather. Gothamist has more about what’s on offer, or you can have a look at the menu and cocktail list.

    The new place is just across the road from Press Lounge, another rooftop bar/​restaurant, at Ink48, so this is another next step towards bringing some life to 11th Ave.

Thursday, Oct 24th

  1. Welcoming Convo Bar to 9th

    This appeared out of nowhere. Convo Bar has opened up in the former space of Zigolini’s, taking over in what must be a record time of a week or two. Good news, they’re still very much a pizzeria, with much more of a focus on the “bar” side of things than Zigolini’s, it seems.

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    Gotta love the “quirky” neons:

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    We noticed the big peace sign on the inside of the store over the past week and they’ve been open for business for at least a few days now, but the storefront signage hadn’t gone up yet, so it’s been a mystery…until now.

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    We’re reaching out for a bit more info about the place, but if you can brave the cold you can head on in and check it out for yourselves!

Saturday, Oct 19th

  1. Quinn’s Bar & Grill tries their luck on 44th

    Another bar is having a go at the “cursed” spot on W 44th St next to Don Giovanni’s. The new tenants, Quinn’s Bar & Grill, are getting close to opening, with a bright yellow color scheme. Workers were out today putting the final touches on the exterior and getting the interior ready:

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    The spot has been a virtual revolving door of bars. Earlier this year Harley’s Smokeshack closed down, and the year before that Irish Rouge closed.

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    Harley’s Smokeshack, May 2013 Source: Lauentius T/​Foursquare

    Hopefully Quinn’s can make it more than a year.

Wednesday, Oct 9th

Saturday, Oct 5th

Monday, Sep 30th

  1. Ñaño bar & restaurant construction watch

    691 10th Ave

    The new bar and restaurant opening up across from Hell’s Kitchen Park is coming along, and recently signage has been put up with the name. ñaño will bring Ecuadorian dishes and drinks to 10th Ave, between 47th & 48th.

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    Their website is up and has the full menu, complete with photos of each of the dishes. They’re also hiring, if you’re interested.

    The spot was formerly the home of Hell’s Kitchen Pizza, whose signature shutters always stood out:

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    Look forward to ñaño opening in the coming months.

Sunday, Sep 1st

  1. Atlas Social Club signage is up, and is disappointing

    It’s time for another update in the ongoing saga of the Vintage-​to-​ASC conversion (previously here). The new venue has put its signage up, and it is nothing more than paint on paint:

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    For reference, here’s what it replaced:

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    The new bar will be a “cross between a gay speakeasy and a retro athletic club”, apparently. It’ll be interesting to see what that actually means. The inside will be decorated with classic boxing, bodybuilding and wrestling and bodybuilding memorabilia. Hopefully they put a little more effort into the interior decoration than they did with the exterior.

Friday, Aug 30th

  1. Million Second Quiz descends on 41st St

    Get ready: the Million Second Quiz is coming. The stage for this new TV show has been set up on the roof of the still-​vacant former Mercedes dealership on W 41st St:

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    The show will be filming pretty much every night throughout the first half of September, with host Ryan Seacrest (!!). NBC has gone all out with the setup for the stage, with the full high-​tech lighting structure and grandstands. They’ve even got billboards up for it across the road:

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    As if that wasn’t exciting enough, you can even be part of the audience for the show. Tickets are still available for most of the nights, so get in quick. SEE YOU THERE.

Thursday, Aug 22nd

  1. It All Ends: Last Summer Movie at the Intrepid Tomorrow

    One Intrepid Square, 12th Ave

    Tomorrow night is the night: The Karate Kid (the original 1984 version, not the Jaden Smith one) will be playing at the Intrepid for the final movie of the Summer Movies Series.

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    Source: Intrepid Museum

    The details, for the last time: doors open at 7:30pm, get there early to make sure you get a spot, bring chairs/​blankets.

    The series has had a good run, with big turnouts for all the screenings, and amazing luck with the weather, with tomorrow night looking ready to keep that going.

    Summer is ending too quickly.

Tuesday, Aug 20th

  1. “Kick Back to the Futures”

    621 W 46th St

    This Thursday night, Futures in Education are holding a charity night at the Hudson Terrace to raise funds for providing education to underprivileged children. Per the event:

    Enjoy a one-​hour open bar against panoramic views of NYC and the Hudson River from a stunning rooftop, while supporting a life-​changing education for thousands of underprivileged children in our own backyard.

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    Source: Hudson Terrace

    Some more info about the charity:

    The mission of Futures In Education is to ensure that the gift of an excellent education continues to be a viable option for current and future generations of deserving students in Brooklyn and Queens.

    Early registration for the night is $25 and closes tomorrow, otherwise walk-​ins are $35 at the door.

Sunday, Aug 18th

  1. @Nine on 9th

    The signage had been up for a while now, but just over a week ago the new Thai restaurant and bar “@NINE” opened between 42nd & 43rd, surprisingly enough on 9th Ave. The bright glowing “9” at the entrance is pretty interesting:

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    They’ve been incoming for a while now, with the storefront signage being up for several weeks:

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    You can check out the menu to see their offerings. They’re joining the dozen or so other Thai restaurants along the avenue. Still not 100% sure on the spelling of the name (@Nine? @9? At Nine?), but that massive “9” alone is sure to draw in crowds.

Wednesday, Aug 14th

  1. It’s The Big One: Top Gun at the Intrepid Tomorrow

    One Intrepid Square, 12th Ave

    Here we go. The next installment of the Summer Movies Series at the Intrepid is on tomorrow night, and it’s the one we’ve been waiting for: Top Gun, on the flight deck of the Intrepid. Gonna be huge.

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    Source: Intrepid Museum

    As usual, doors open at 7:30pm, but you’ll want to be there well in advance – it fills up quickly.

    Just one more to go after this one – the Karate Kid next week. Is summer over already?

Tuesday, Aug 13th

  1. White Oak Joining 10th Ave

    818 10th Ave

    Right next door to the new Mamasita, another new spot is opening up. Named “White Oak”, we don’t know too much about it yet, other than that it’ll have a rear garden.

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    The spot was formerly “Fusion”, which closed around May of last year.

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    Source: Foursquare

    That block along 10th Ave is changing rapidly. First Mamasita, and now there’s White Oak coming shortly. The paint store a few stores up has closed, and the building next to that is being rebuilt. Exciting times.