Sunday, August 8th, 2010—Bar 210
Day 210—Saturday, August 8th, 2010
Southwest Porch (In Bryant Park)
First off, I got a special donation today. My friend and downstairs neighbor, Deloy Stoll sent in a very generous PayPal donation of 25 dollars in memory of her late husband Dennis. Dennis passed away a few weeks ago and Deloy’s message read, “Have a shot and a beer in memory of your friend and neighbor Dennis.” Thanks Deloy and cheers to the memory of Dennis!
I got an email from my Aussie mate, Tim Clack and he sent me a link to an article about expensive beers, that will probably never be drank on this bar crawl. Check it out here: Brewing Superstars. Thanks Tim and cheers, mate!
Okay, on to the crawl. The other day while walking to my parents hotel in midtown, I found an outside, porch type area in Bryant Park called the Southwest Porch. It was packed and there was no place to sit at the bar so I went to Langan’s instead. I’m hoping since it’s a Saturday, it won’t be as crowded. So let’s venture out into the rotten sunlight and see what’s what.
Wow, another bright-ass day!
This gentlemen offered up a nice solution though.
That helps, who is that behind those Foster Grants cheap-ass sunglasses? Oh, it's just me, never mind.
And here we are...
Bryant Park.
Saturday in the park.
Can you dig it?
Yes I can.
And there's a seat at the bar, let's go snag it.
Here's John the bartender who was quick to serve up an ice-cold beer.
Mike, one of the friendly people on staff at the Porch offered to take my photo at the bar.
And here I am, a rare shot of me in the dreaded sunshine. Thanks for the shot, Mike! And cheers to the memory of Dennis Stoll, a good friend and neighbor.
Some of the draft beer available at the Porch bar.
And booze for the cocktails.
Behind the bar is the comfortable porch area with lots of chairs, tables and umbrellas overhead.
Here's a couple at the other end of the bar, let's go say hi.
Meet Andrew and Lynnann who were chilling out at the bar and enjoying a drink or three.
Popcorn!
Ashley was seated next to me and was enjoying a beer at the bar.
After a few drinks at the Southwest Porch, I met my parents in their hotel room for a drink before dinner.
And here's the whole dinner crowd for the evening: From the right, my mom and dad, me, my niece Cara, her boyfriend John and my big brother, Tom. Cheers and goodnight, everybody!
Review
The Southwest Porch is a relaxing and comfortable oasis at the southern end of the Fountain Terrace of Bryant Park. The bar is small and seats about a half a dozen, but there’s a large porch-styled area with large wooden chairs and tables to relax and enjoy a drink and a snack. Large umbrellas loom overhead allowing for plenty of shady spots if you’d like to escape the sunshine (like me.)
There are three draft beers available, four selections of wine and specialty drinks including a Ginger Margarita, Vodka Watermelonade and a refreshing Bourbon Mint Iced Tea. There’s also snacks to nosh on including: Guacamole with tortilla chips, marinated olives, three styles of popcorn and a cookie plate. The menu also offers 15 handcrafted specialty sandwiches provided by ‘wichcraft.
The Southwest Porch is open Monday through Saturday from noon to 9pm and Sundays from noon to 7pm.
Southwest Porch
Bryant Park is situated behind the New York Public Library in midtown Manhattan, between 40th and 42nd Streets & Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
212-768-4242
28 Comments
Reader Comments (28)
A change of pace is always welcomed and a Saturday in the park relaxing in the sun is great. I vote the Southwest Porch the brightest bar on the crawl (a joke). Again, a nice picture of your family enjoying another evening out. Not to dwell to much on the person who blogged about pictures taken at Blarney,,,,I say that sometimes you have to take at least a couple of the interior to make this journey enjoyable to everyone. I understand that at times Bartenders speak for the house, fine, but this crawl has involved some historic bars, dives, etc and I think that taking a quick couple of pictures does not break rules. These are public bars. A big problem with Jim Atkinson's book about bars was the fact that he did not take any pictures,,,leaving the reader in the dark. Marty, I respect her opinion and I want you to continue to do this crawl just the way you are doing it and going the extra mile for us. Remember the Dublin House? this type of stuff happens once in a blue moon,,,@Tina: I respect your comments but I disagree with you and I think you should not judge a persons character here as you did.
Wow, the 365 Wombacher guy drinking in the sunshine! I think hell just froze over, LOL! I agree with Al, nice change of pace, love the variety on the crawl! And very cool that you're working your family into this as well! And cheers to the memory of Dennis!
I've never noticed that place during the few million times I've walked by Bryant Park ! Looks like a great outdoor spot, if the weather is nice :) My guess is the beers there are not cheap though :( $10+ is my guess ???
@GENE: I think the beers were seven bucks, which isn't bad for an outdoor park venue with no cover.
A great spot for people watching too.
PS ... Marty: I'd like to see like to see you locate one of these "expensive beers" and do away with the bad memory of "The House of Brews" fiasco :)
@ Marty ... I can handle $7 :) maybe I'll do the Snapple bottle trick also ! It really does look like a cool spot if it is not crowded --- me & Smoops will have to try it !
nice to see you in the sunshine for a change! looks like a nice place to relax in the summertime.
TO : Tina
It is the comments that bring me to watch & read this site , yes it's wrong to do something that someone told you not to do , but if Marty didn't sneak the pictures & broke rules , then this site & it's comments would be boring !!
TO : The Wombachers !!!
A great daytime stop on the crawl.
(although I thought you took the long way and stopped at a Market in Morocco for the glasses)
Love the picture documentation today.
Great to see some of the Wombacher Clan all enjoying and evening out.
Cheers to the Wombachers!
Very nice change of pace. And a great place to people watch, something I love to do, if the weather isn't too hot. And speaking of, its summer! Why aren't you wearing shorts and a tshirt? :) Cheers to Dennis! And your family! Great to see them on here.
and where was dinner? is this an older brother? look how big your dad is! and again, Mom is sporting a nifty outfit! its seems so odd seeing you outside, in the sunlight....
WOW!! so much sunshine, thats the way New York!!!!....if one was'nt in the "know" you could easily mistake the Porch for a bar on the Gold Coast or even our Beach House pub here....nice sunny's too marty, nearly mistook you for a Hollywood movie producer....LOL!
@kari: I never wear shorts or t-shirts. One of my many weird little "things!"
@Shannon: We ate at Ruth's Chris steakhouse in midtown. It's one of my parents favorite places. And yeah, Tom's my older brother and Cara is one of his three daughters. (The other two being Casey and Caylin.)
@fitzy: I thought of you and all the Aussie followers while boozing it up here, it felt very Australian.
Opposite side of the spectrum from the dark bar you went to a couple of weeks ago. Love outdoor bars!
~Sandeep
http://sleeplessInNewYork.wordpress.com
Did you have a 30+ on? Awesome out door bar. If I perched my ass up on one of those stools for the afternoon you could guarantee I'd still be there at closing time. You look a little out of you comfort zone being outside in the sun but you're at a bar so ALL'S GOOD!!!
I got freakin' smashed at one of my local pubs last night. I didn't mean to but at the end of the day I don't drink to stay sober....anywho...They had free internet there and I showed a few strangers the 365 site....I can't remember anything after that.
Today I drank at Sydney's oldest pub-the Lord Nelson Brewery in the Rocks. Awesome beer. All brewed in house. Marty I'll send you a photo but didn't take any inside because I was too busy drinking my beer and enjoying the fine fare from the bar menu...(but in all seriousness, I was just too hungover to make the effort)
Thanks for adding the link!!
@Fitzy: You're a photographer? Thats kick arse....just picked up a new DSLR for my trip to NY.
When I get your contacts I'll send you some of my handy work.
Also....
@ Marty: Your folks still have the same drinks in their hand from yesterday. Didn't they drink them last night? Ha ha.
Cheers to the folks.
nice stop on the crawl...raisin' one to dennis...great shot of the wombacher crew...KOC
rr
p.s. thought you would have thrown in clip of zz top in honor of that fine eye-ware...KOC
rr
@Tim Clack: Thanks for spreading the 365 news to fellow Aussies! And my folks had refills in the drinks.
@rr: It's there now, good call!
This looks like a very nice place, although I might enjoy it more in late September or October than in the dog days of August. Regardless, looks like a relaxing setting and you can't go wrong with free popcorn. I would like to take this opportunity to point out the difference between Ohio and New York, though. In New York, those chairs are appropriate and comfortable. In Ohio, they would be broken and flattened under the weight of big, fat asses. It's not our fault, though, God made us the fast food test market for the entire nation. And who are we to question God? In any event, thanks for showing us this neat-o park bar. Hope you're having fun with the fam. And your hair looks very freshly styled in this post.
@Biff: The popcorn's not free, but it's fresh with butter and cheese and well worth the dough. As far as the hair goes, that was just a lucky day!
Marty, you look incredibly handsome in those "cheap-ass" sunglasses. You make them look like a million bucks!
I must say that the Southwest Porch looks like my kind of place. I love the sunlight and a nice selection of ice cold draft beers. Enjoying a beer and soaking in the beautiful sun...I love it!
The people at the bar loook quite nice and friendly as well...all smiles. I love that!
Thank you for sharing the photograph of your family enjoying dinner together, that was nice to see.
And next time you feel as if you don't lke the sunlight just remember how much you miss it in the dead of winter....UGH Winter Sucks and that is why I am Tiki Bar Susie!
I know how you feel about the sunlight Marty. I'm the same way...kind of like Anthony Zerbe in The Omega Man.