On March 19, 2013 it came
in third on Zagat’s list of the must try beer bars in an article that appeared
in Time Out New York Magazine. Right off the bat that is amazing. There are more
bars than I can count in New York City and most of time you could live without them.
Most I wish I hadn’t gone in, especially the bathrooms. Ugh.
Well back to the
pleasantness. Hudson Common was a bar I had never heard of and actually I had
missed this article in the original running of this magazine. I find it ironic
that I ended up going there anyway because I always have loved Time Out New
York Magazine and it always recommends the same places I am interested in. This
was a good sign of things to come.
In this brief mention it
is promoted as an indoor version of a beer garden with cool couches and
furniture to hang out on and around. During the summer there is an outside
patio and garden for a more backyard theme. On the inside there is a walk-up
window where you can place individual orders of their gourmet bar foods and
their old school themed cocktails. It is casual yet chic. It sounded unlike
anything I had ever heard of and I was intrigued.
I was drawn to this
location for my brother’s twenty-sixth birthday. It seems like it was just
yesterday we were at The Darby celebrating his twenty-fifth (http://thequeenoff-ckingeverything.blogspot.com/2013/04/for-celebratory-meal-darby.html). Where does the time go?
Normally I would pass on
the traditional bar experience for two reasons. First of all, I am a chronic
migraine patient and cannot have alcohol with my daily preventive medication.
Second, being around the smell of alcohol in close proximity is usually a
migraine trigger. Plus nowadays it is not my preferred way to spend a birthday.
But since this was my brother and this sounded like a great time I was game.
After I looked it up I had no idea this would be a place worthy of a blog! But
as a New Yorker far be it for me to withhold excellent information in our fair
city from my readers.
Hudson Commons is located
in the Hudson Hotel a very posh N.Y.C. palace to hang out in, have a party, or
spend the night. I had never been before but when we pulled up it appeared to
be the place to be. It felt like there were a million parties going on at the
same time but there are really just separate areas of the hotel with different
bars for different venues. Even when I left around one-thirty a.m. (this area
was closing at two a.m.) the whole hotel was still buzzing with people coming
in and out. Apparently it was where the cool kids of all ages go.
Overall it was a great
experience. The music was loud but generally good. Since we were there for a
birthday and had reservations we had a couch in the back so we were able to put
our stuff down and even sit if we wanted to. While it was crowded this place is
massive so there was plenty of room for dancing too. The bar was extremely busy
but parties have their own bartenders so they got attention faster. I imagine
if I could afford it I would love to rent out the entire place for a big
affair.
As for that food counter I
was all about it. Just because I couldn’t drink doesn’t mean I couldn’t eat. I
ordered their signature gourmet fries cooked with duck fat and sea salt that
came with truffle mayo or Velveeta cheese on the side for dipping. I also got
honey maple fried chicken that came with a homemade biscuit. That was their special
that night, my friend and I was sharing and although this would ordinarily be a
hard thing to split it was actually quite easy because both were so incredible
delicate, fresh, and broken apart like fresh butter. All of the food was
amazing and the fries were piled so high we were able to share with everyone. I
have to say sitting there nodding along to the music, eating my chicken, taking
pictures, watching everyone have fun was really the highpoint of my night.
The path that led us to
the Hudson Commons was a first. It was a new party planning website (new to us,
link below) that took all of the stress away. Normally when you want to invite
a large group to an outing, especially in N.Y.C., especially around the
holidays, it involves putting a large deposit down, or too many risks of no one
showing up. Here the experts help recommend a place, take care of all the
reservations including providing your coordinator at your location. With one click your event is done and you never had to stress. Even
better it is all done for free. It is like getting your birthday wish before
blowing out any candles.
For a party of your own:
For More Information:
For Rave Reviews:
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