12 Great Places to Drink and Eat Outside, A Photo Tribute
12 photos
<em>Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/pjcoleman/1321848792/">pjcoleman</a></em><p></p><strong>Bohemian Hall:</strong> There is no way this isn't one of the top outdoor bars in the world. Sure, it gets crowded and loud, and the line to get in can reach around the block at noon on Saturdays, but you don't <a href="http://www.bohemianhall.com/">stick around for 100 years</a> unless you're that good. All beers, from the humblest Stella Artois to the finest Slovakian Golden Pheasant, are $15 a pitcher. The menu is mainly Czech, with some things like buffalo wings thrown in, but centers around Klobasa, pierogi, goulash and Anglická Slanina, a dish of just bacon and pickles that is actually really delicious once you figure out how to eat it.<p></p><em>29-19 24th Avenue, Queens; 718-728-9278</em>
<strong>B Bar & Grill:</strong> The gas-station-turned-fashionable-eatery is a perennial favorite all year round, but comes alive in the summer as garden's roof is pulled back. Their brunch, which starts off with complimentary banana bread, can't be beat, with dishes like eggs Benedict or the lemon poppy seed waffle. But their lunch and dinner menus have a lot of summery plates. Appetizers include yellow tomato gazpacho and raw oysters at $30 a dozen. There are entrees like cold poached salmon with mustard dill sauce and pickled cucumber, and both red and white sangria by the glass or pitcher.<p></p><em><a href="http://www.bbarandgrill.com/">40 East 4th Street</a>, 212-475-2220</em>
<strong>Faustina:</strong> Though their patio is perilously close to the sidewalk, Faustina's shrubbery buffer separates you just enough to feel like you're in your own little exclusive world. <a href="http://gothamist.com/2010/02/17/chef_scott_conant_faustina.php">Chef Scott Conant</a>'s Italian <a href="http://www.thecoopersquarehotel.com/the-restaurant">eatery off the Cooper Square Hotel</a> juxtaposes classic, casual food with the upscale modernity of the building. Summery dinner dishes include raw bar selections like lobster with tomato concentrate and raw oysters with a mojito gelee. There's also maccheroni with tomato and sea urchin, fennel-roasted duck breast and lobster risotto with preserved truffle. A new dinner menu features a section called antipasti della fattoria, a rotating selection of vegetable dishes inspired by the green market, with "simple, yet elegant presentations" that showcase the ingredients' purity. (They are priced at $6 a piece, or a platter of six selections for $30.) Entrees run from $17-$32, and there's a full list of Italian wines, dessert wines and flavored grappa.<p></p><em>25 Cooper Square, 212-475-5700</em>
<strong>Ardesia:</strong> You don't need much on a hot summer day. Sure, dinner may have to happen at some point, but sometimes it's just too hot for anything but a cool glass of wine. Having received <a href="http://newyork.timeout.com/articles/restaurants-bars/84427/most-ambitious-bar-food-ardesia">TONY's "Most Ambitious Bar Food"</a> award, they'll probably be in for a busy summer serving up house-made mortadella and ice cream sandwiches, but don't let the people stop you from trying out one of their collection of 75 bottles from around the world. Plus, an ice cream sandwich would be a nice snack to enjoy on their patio.<p></p><em><a href="http://www.ardesia-ny.com/">510 West 52nd Street</a>, 212-247-9191</em>
<em>Konstantino Hatzisarros</em><p></p><strong>Summit Bar:</strong> As we <a href="http://gothamist.com/2010/05/04/eat_cetera_skip_lunch_fight_hunger.php?gallery0Pic=3">mentioned earlier</a>, "The Summit's small back patio is going to be seeing a lot of use. [Co-owner Greg] Seider tells us he's installing a smoker in the back for regular bbq nights, and hopes to one day use a greenhouse around the corner for a year-round, semi-private beer garden in an actual garden." But until all that goes down, the patio remains a great place to enjoy one of Summit's whimsically named cocktails, like the Shu Jam Fizz (DH Krahn gin, apricot jam, fennel Infusion, peach bitters, fresh lemon, soda) or the Say Hello to my Little Friend (Beefeater 24 gin, Agwa de Bolivia coca leaf liquor, fresh lemon, agave, grapfruit bitters, topped with soda). <p></p><em>133 Avenue C</em>
<strong>Hot Bird:</strong> With an upcoming food truck dedicated to serving the new Clinton Hill bar, Hot Bird is looking to be a one-stop shop for all your outdoor dining and drinking needs. We've <a href="http://gothamist.com/2010/05/20/new_restaurant_and_bar_radar_7.php">already mentioned</a> the 12 beers on tap, the bourbon, and the yellow benches from the transformed auto-shop, but now the <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2010/04/20/hot-bird-a-mystery-in-brooklyn-returns-as-bar-on-atlantic-avenue/">Wall Street Journal reports</a> that BBQ chicken will "probably" be on the menuâa tribute to the neighborhood's mysterious sign. <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/hot-bird-brooklyn">Yelp commenter Sarah H. predicts</a>, "Mark my words: Hot Bird is going to be the central Brooklyn bar of the summer. Here's hoping it doesn't turn into doucheville." We'll drink to that. <p></p><em>546 Clinton Avenue, Brooklyn</em>
<strong>Upstairs:</strong> If picnic tables and cheap beer isn't your idea of a night out in the city, <a href="http://upstairsnyc.com/index.php">Upstairs at the Kimberly Hotel</a> may be more your speed. And with an express elevator to the penthouse level, you don't even need to deal with anyone actually staying in the hotel. The furniture is definitely not your typical patio style, and views of Midtown's skyscrapers may be intoxicating enough that you don't need a cocktail. If you do, their signature cocktails are $18, and include moderns twists on the Manhattan, Sidecar and Champagne cocktail. There's also the namesake Upstairs martini, made with Belvedere Pink Grapefruit Vodka, splash of house-made fresh ginger puree, crushed mint, fresh lemon juice. The small plates menu is filled with upscale bar food staples, like truffled mac & cheese, kobe beef sliders and duck cigars with pomegranate dipping sauce.<p></p><em>145 East 50th Street, 212-702-1600</em>
<strong>Luckydog:</strong> Co-owned by Bill Mack, the guy behind East Village Tavern, this Bedford Avenue pub has the heart of a retro dive bar and the brain of a beer nerd. Of the 20 beers on tap, the menu spans the spectrum from lesser-known beers like Troegs to 24 oz pours ($4) of Genny Cream Ale, which Mack describes as "the beer we used to steal from our fathers." Inside, the design evokes a dusty old Brooklyn ale house with plenty of reclaimed wood, including tenement doors skirting the bar with doorknobs still in place, and church pews from a 1920s summer camp in Otisville. The fun backyard, illuminated by big old Christmas tree lights, stays open to at least 11 p.m., depending on the noise level, but inside a 1975 shuffleboard table is in action late into the night. <p></p><em>303 Bedford Avenue (between South 2nd and South 1st), Williamsburg </em>
<strong>Blackout: </strong>You'd never guess that tucked away behind this shadowy, appropriately named Greenpoint bar awaits a precious little patio oasis that stays open until midnight. <a href="http://blackoutbar.com/">Blackout</a> has developed a following beyond the neighborhood for its moody, vintage/goth interior, its DJ booth, and its sweet drink specials (Tuesdays are 2-for-1 all night), but the bar's summer Sundays are really swinging right now. $15 gets you a plate BBQ (hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, etc.) and a stamp for as many "Blackout Brews" you can drink until 8 p.m. <p></p><em>916 Manhattan Avenue, Greenpoint, (718) 383-0254</em>
<strong>Traif:</strong> Come for the forbidden food, stay for the garden! Named after the Yiddish term for all things non-Kosher, <a href="http://www.traifny.com/">Traif</a> <a href="http://gothamist.com/2010/04/22/new_restaurants_11.php?gallery0Pic=5">boldly opened</a> within a stone's throw of Hasidic Williamsburg this spring, bringing pork and shellfish and a menu sporting culinary influences from around the world. But the restaurant's provocative name obscured <a href="http://www.traifny.com/">Traif</a>'s greatest secret: a serene little gem of a backyard. Beyond the food menu, there's a nice list of wines by the glass, pomegranate beer (!), and some very good cocktails. <p></p><em>229 South 4th Street, Brooklyn; 347-884-9578</em>
<strong>Sky Terrace:</strong> Take an elevator up to the 15th floor of the Hudson Hotel, walk down a nondescript hallway to an inconspicuous door, and emerge<em> into another world.</em> This spacious, sublime roof lounge may be the most tranquil space in town, and since last call's at 10:30, it's one of the best spots in midtown to have an early cocktail and enjoy the sunset. <a href="http://www.hudsonhotel.com/default.aspx#/explore/?id=skyterrace">The hotel's website claims</a> it's only open to guests, but (so far) that seems to be just a front to deter the rowdy masses. Walk confidently out onto the garden terrace and relax on a hammock or couch and let the bikini-clad waitresses attend to your every beverage need. We're not going to lieâthe cocktails are good but expensive here, clocking in at $16 a popâbut because the atmosphere is so relaxing you can just take the money you would have spent on a spa treatment and invest it here. <p></p>If you get turned away at the Sky Terrace, head downstairs to the lobby level, where you'll also find Private Park, a lushly landscaped courtyard garden. Open later than the Sky Terrace (until 11:30), Private Park is the more uptempo of the hotel's outdoor lounges. And it opens early (8 a.m.) too, if you're looking for a midday cocktail in the open air to take the edge off midtown west. <p></p><em>356 West 58th Street.</em>
<p>The mission of Park Slope's new pub venue The Rock Shop is to be a one-stop-shop for live music and sports. The downstairs performance room has a capacity of 100 people, and was designed for exceptional acoustics by Michael Winsch (Bowery Ballroom & Mercury Lounge). Upstairs there are ten flat screen TVs for all your spectating needs. But what we're concerned with here is the deck, which can accommodate about 40 drinkers. In July, they'll start serving "typical bar food." </p><p></p><em> 249 4th Avenue (between President & Carroll) </em>