January 8, 2008
Brooklyn Bar Lures Drunks With Prizes
What with Pacific Standard’s North Slope location, their blog, their robot blog, and their faux-formal alternative title (Jon & John's House of Starchy Living and Temperance Den), the Fourth Avenue watering hole seems determined to become the McSweeney’s of bars. Now they’ve taken their clever eccentricity one step further with a Frequent Drinker Card Program, which gives patrons something in return for their consumption beyond inflated self-worth and unwanted pregnancies.
Each patron who joins pays $10 and gets their own membership card; for each dollar spent at the bar, the member is allotted one “yard”. Save up enough yards and cash in for such fabulous prizes as:
- All-Expenses-Paid Trip to Williamsburg. Pacific Standard will pay for a subway ride to glorious Williamsburg, a $20 bar tab at Barcade, and $50 towards dinner at the amazing Fette Sau. 1400 yards.
- BAM Membership. A year-long membership to BAM, which includes many exclusive benefits like special events and advance ticket-buying opportunities. 1500 yards.
- Pacific Standard Tattoo. It’s part of your stomach – now make Pacific Standard part of your skin! Pacific Standard will pay a local tattoo parlor to place a gorgeous Pacific Standard tattoo on your body. Yards TBD, but likely around 3000.
- Growler of Runoff Bucket. Some of you may know that all the beer that falls down our drain goes into a bucket in our refrigerator. What sweet nepenthe must that be, the combination of all the ethereal brews we serve? It’s our most modest “reward” at 10 yards.
Though a liver transplant is not yet on the long list of rewards, membership also features such privileges as Priority Boarding: “If Members are waiting with others to enter the bar, the bartender shall allow the Member to board the bar first, administering, if need be, physical violence upon the offending Non-Member in order to ensure that proper societal rank is maintained.” On a Friday night in Manhattan, that privilege would be worth at least ten bucks; but has it come to that on Fourth Ave in Brooklyn?
Via Zagat Buzz. Photo by Graydon Wintour.




I have a suspicion that the liquor control authorities will not be amused and will put an end to this promotion.
silly yupster gimmick
real bartenders (they are an endangered species)simply serve "buy-backs" to good customers
so for spending $1400 I can get $72 bucks worth of stuff or $1500 for a $75 membership? totally makes me want to do it :enormous rolleyes:
Tries Too Hard Tavern
Is this in place of buybacks?
Can I pay to not win that last one?
i always love a good gimmick. and who is to say they do not give you buybacks along with this membership program? win-win if you ask me.
2200 yards: Liver transplant from suitable donor.
this is actually a really great bar. try it before you bash it. I'm glad to live near it.
This pub is one of my favorite places so much so that I have a monthly get together there even though I don't live in Park Slope...don't knock it till you try it. Very laid back, lots of fantastic microbrews @ reasonable prices, games, friendly staff, Sunday pub quizzes, conveniently located next to 11 freakin trains...and I personally love their tongue-in-cheek writing.
I will be moving to the area shortly and this bar sounds great-lots of good beer at reasonable prices in a laid back, unpretentious atmosphere. I also like their cheeky writing style. Stop gulping the haterade people. Btw, I don't know anyone who ruined a liver drinking pints, but I know a few fashionistas who drank too many appletinis...