Ed U.
Yelp
I had been meaning to come here for years but never made it until Jamie W.'s and my last trip to NYC. What finally triggered it was Melissa McCarthy who mentioned it with fondness on The Tonight Show. Early in her career, she performed here as did a lot of up-and-comers since it opened in 1951. Future luminaries like Woody Allen, Joan Rivers, and Barbra Streisand. More importantly, this was where Jack debuted his one-man show, "Just Jack", on "Will & Grace".
I had previously thought all the local history was next door at the Stonewall Inn, so I was hoping we could catch a comedy or musical act. However, they apparently were still dealing with the remnants of the pandemic because all events looked canceled on their calendar. Oh well, I was still determined to have a drink here, and the weather was warm enough to enjoy the outdoor terrace. It was only 4:30PM, but it was already pretty crowded. We could see why because it's a great location on Christopher Street overlooking 7th Avenue.
There's always a buzz of activity around here because it's a popular congregation area where people want to be seen and strut. All specialty cocktails were $17 and a 20% gratuity was added to the bill when we ordered. Jamie wasn't happy about this aspect, but we probably would've tipped as much anyway before passing out. I started with a French 75 which consisted of Backwards Gin, Prosecco, simple syrup, and lemon juice. Refreshing and bubbly enough to make me feel effervescent.
Jamie ordered a straight-up Margarita and was pleased with his decision (photo: https://bit.ly/3VTFbaP). While he had a second one, I switched gears and ordered the Dark and Stormy, a mix of Goslings rum, ginger beer, and lime juice (photo: https://bit.ly/3So8IX1). It looked like an innocent Arnold Palmer but acted more like a pre-crash Tiger Woods if you know what I mean. We were feeling no pain, and even without a cabaret show to entertain us, the people watching was enough for us. I can see why Melissa likes it here.
COCKTAILS - 4 stars...potent elixirs here but don't we deserve better than plastic cups?
AMBIANCE - 4 stars...I can only comment on the terrace and the street scene, and I liked all that
SERVICE - 3.5 stars...she was doing her job
TOTAL - 4 stars...a fun watering hole, bring on the cabaret, old chum
RELATED - Hungry and thirsty in NYC? Here's a collection of places I've tried and reviewed: http://bit.ly/2YS9ELs