Gothamist: Milk & Honey, Cocktail Mecca, Goes from Secret to Private

djbeefhart

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 01:47:09 -0500

Chalk one more up for the blogs, and another interesting little bar closes/goes private/disappears.

Boomski

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 13:22:41 -0500

People are harping on the 3,000 figure - however the standard membership is 300. Most M&H regulars go more than 10 times a year usually during the week anyways.

MissPinkKate

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 13:14:51 -0500

I've been to M&H, and found it way overrated. And that was before this! Keys! Required attendance! Give me a break.

JacqueMehoff

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:32:05 -0500

who cares? but thanks for showing me what a douchey place this is. douchebag.

Teddie Boy Eddie

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:26:16 -0500

Sorry, I'm just too cynical to be on board with the proliferation of these types of places. Like I said, there are actually plenty of places where bartenders take their craft seriously and the bars in which they work are quite comfortable. They just do it without the noteriety of places like M&H, Apotheke, etc. And, not surprisngly, they usually aren't located in Manhattan. Don't get me wrong, I like creative cocktails and I would rather not be around loudmouth assholes and douchebags hitting on girls in the bar. But there is something annoyingly elitist about these places. However, the social club idea is probably a good one for people who don't know what to do with their excess cash and sense of entitlement.

ironybubble

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:22:10 -0500

Think that's $9 for a rack of Crystal Palace? If That price tag has middle-shelf attached to it, might not be so bad.

Speakcheesy

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:02:49 -0500

comment #10 is so stupid. why go out and buy a bottle of gin, some oranges, limes, sugar, ginger syrup (which if you can find, by all means tell me where) and spend EVEN MORE MONEY! People go to rooftop bars in nyc and pay $13 for a vodka soda, while at M&H a $15 cocktail costs over half that to make! People should stop hating on a bar they won't go to (or get into). Going to M&H is like going to a fine restaurant instead of a burger king. Btw, if you get a membership and you're a douchebag, it gets revoked and you're told to leave. Money doesn't make you any better at M&H. It's all about class!

Teddie Boy Eddie

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 11:42:28 -0500

There are literally hundreds of bars in this city that have decent ambience, great bartenders and great cocktails. They're the unspectacular and decidedly untrendy ones. Putting up with noise and douchebags is part of life in NY, and just because someone can fork over $3,000 a year for the privelege to drink overpriced cocktails does not mean they won't be a douchebag. Milk and Honey and its ilk ... the speakeasy, prohibition-era cocktails, etc., are a gimmick, a very successful gimmick for suckers. If you are truely interested in quiet conversation and cocktails prepared exactly the way you want them, then invite some friends over. That's actually free.

Boomski

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 11:42:26 -0500

"$300 a year to drink $9 cocktails and you're not allowed to make any noise? It's all the fun of sneaking booze into your bedroom at your parents' house when you're 15 with the added bonus of a huge bill!" You wouldn't act the same way at Jean Georges that you would @ Dave and Busters. That is pretty much the best analogy I can think of when it comes to M&H vs all other bars. M&H isn't even as pretentious as a place like Per Se or JG, as you can come as you are. No one cares how you dress, or what you look like. Just that you are a quiet person who appreciates a good cocktail. If you think of a bar as a place to get rowdy and hit on chicks, then there's an area of manhattan known as the upper east side where you can relive your frat days. But please, leave M&H to the adults

Qraymond

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 11:41:38 -0500

It's a really nice place. And it's admirable that he makes such an effort to respect his neighbors. If more bars in NYC were like this, we would all be happier.

Rob T Firefly

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:28:40 -0500

I suddenly have the urge to sneak my way in, just on principle.

ganghiscon

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:27:04 -0500

$300 a year to drink $9 cocktails and you're not allowed to make any noise? It's all the fun of sneaking booze into your bedroom at your parents' house when you're 15 with the added bonus of a huge bill!

Clarice City

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:26:43 -0500

...and I can't type "noise" either

Clarice City

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:25:44 -0500

typo...respects.

Clarice City

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:25:28 -0500

Right on. I live above a bar outside Times Square. Can't complain because the rent is cheap, but you can imagine what the niose is like. New York has noisy dive bars on every corner that really only benefit tourists and students. Petraske has a great idea that both repsepects the neighborhood and provides an environment worth paying for.

serinde

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 10:24:00 -0500

zodak

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 09:43:00 -0500

i hate going to bars but based on the rules posted, it seems like this is the kind of place i would hanging out at. inconsiderate trendoids ruin everything.