Inside Painkiller, the New Tiki Bar from Dutch Kills Owners

The former East Side Company Bar has been transformed into an urban Tiki den by the cocktail craftsmen behind Dutch Kills. Officially opening Friday night, the snug little warren—dubbed Painkiller after a rum cocktail concocted in the British Virgin Islands—will serve new creations alongside high-end versions of all the Tiki standards, from the Zombie to the Mai Thai to the Suffering Bastard. Co-owner Richard Boccato tells us the latter item was originally popularized as a hangover cure at the Shepheard's Hotel in Cairo in 1942. Made with ginger beer, gin, bourbon and/or conjac, bitters, and garnished with cucumbers, mint, and an orange wedge, the cocktail was initially called the Suffering Bar Steward, which eventually elided into the Suffering Bastard.

Painkiller will also serve tiki flights and Scorpion Bowls, which communally intoxicate between 2-4 people sipping from a giant vessel with colorful straws. Those range in price from $50-75, depending on how big you want the bowl, while cocktails are between $10-$16. As for the design, Boccato insists Painkiller is "very much a New York City tiki bar. We're not trying to escape the island of Manhattan for island of Oahu." To that end, the walls are decked with plenty of graffiti along with bamboo, and trippy lights around the ceilings change colors every few seconds. Down the road, Boccato plans to open up the back room for live music and private parties.

Painkiller // 49 Essex Street // Open daily starting Friday, 5 p.m. to 4 a.m.

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By John Del Signore in Food on May 6, 2010 2:06 PM

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scootergrrl

Expensive drinks watered down with an absurd amount of ice. The decor is terrible because they insist on merging tikki theme with NYC grafitti. Adding insult to the visual injury (unnecessary strobing color spectrum lights on the perimeter which encourage heaving) is the lack of any relative music. There were no tikki or Polynesian music to be heard. If you want a real tikki bar in NYC then go to Ottos or Zombie Hut in Brooklyn or the Rusty Knot on the WestSide.

Their "famous" Painkiller cocktails was smothered in cheap ice and had less than 3 ounces of liquid. For that same price, I have actually purchase delicious rinks at Ottos AND have taken the souvenir cup home.

Sam

I echo the sentiments of scootergrrl. A tiki bar would be a nice addition to the neighborhood; however turning the former East Side Company Bar; a once-proud cocktail lounge, in to this will not end well. A tiki bar is not meant to be a $15 a drink enclave; yet in this market a properly made cocktail would fetch that price, and I am embarrassed to say that I would willingly partake every so often. Unfortunately, the drinks I had last night (Painkiller/Mai Tai) were amongst the worst I have had in NYC, or anywhere else for that matter, all while being amongst the priciest. I say this not to dissuade future patrons, but rather in the hopes that the mgmt. takes care of business and recognizes that after the initial fad is over, the core customers need a reason to return. Petraske et. al. have added a lot to this city, but over-expansion is taking away some of their novelty/credibility. Even White Star, at one time my favorite in the city, has gotten simultaneously worse and more expensive, while other neighborhood bars have expanded their offerings. You guys are innovative, figure it out.