Bars and Clubs - NYC Nightlife
January 22, 2005
Raising a Glass in Manhattan. Actually Lots of Them.
By MARC SANTORA
O'Connor's bar in Park Slope, Brooklyn, a neighborhood that a report says has more residents who drink to excess than average.
It may not come as news to bartenders, waiters and sommeliers, but New Yorkers drink a lot, a new City Health Department study shows. But what may not be so obvious to those who pour for a living is that New Yorkers in some neighborhoods drink much more than those in others.
The study - based on information collected in 2003 as part of the city's community health survey - suggests that the heaviest drinking neighborhoods are Greenwich Village and Chelsea, where 32 percent of adults report drinking amounts that the report defines as excessive, followed by the Upper East Side and Upper West Side and Gramercy Park in Manhattan, and Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope in Brooklyn.
The study also breaks down the city's drinkers by age and race - white New Yorkers in the most affluent neighborhoods are twice as likely as those in poor neighborhoods to drink excessively - but does not address some of the historic intangibles that make those in one place more likely to drink than those in others. The Upper East Side and Park Slope, for example, have drinking cultures that stretch back decades, to times when the neighborhoods bore little resemblance to those today.
And the report defines "excessive" in a way that may prompt dispute. The survey considers a man to be drinking excessively if he has more than two drinks a day - or 60 a month - and a woman to be drinking excessively if she has more than one drink a day (30 a month). There is no way to tell whether those being interviewed are telling the truth.
In Park Slope yesterday, Jesse Howard, a bartender at the Gate, said that the definitions used by the Health Department classify just about everybody he knows as a problem drinker. "That sounds like a lot of Bloomberg" nonsense, Mr. Howard said, only he did not use the word nonsense. "New York's that kind of town; it always has been. People go out."
Mr. Howard, who wore a Slayer T-shirt and a red goatee, looked off into the distance. It was mid-afternoon, and the bluegrass harmonies of the Old Crow Medicine Show coming through the speakers sounded loud in the uncrowded room. Mr. Howard spoke up again, this time to clarify that his opinion was not colored by his professional experience.
"I've got friends who hate bars, and they still go home and have a cocktail," Mr. Howard said. "People who have any social life in New York City go out and booze."
While 49 percent of New York adults said they choose not to drink at all, and most of those who do drink say they have healthy habits, about 15 percent of all New Yorkers drink to excess, according to the report. A majority of those drinking too much said they were binge drinkers, consuming more than four drinks in a single sitting. The results are similar to national surveys that have been conducted, according to Health Department officials.
After 32 percent of excessive drinkers in Greenwich Village and Chelsea comes Gramercy Park and the Upper East Side (25.6 percent); the Upper West Side (23.5 percent); Brooklyn Heights and Park Slope (22.2 percent); and Union Square and Lower Manhattan (22.1 percent).
Residents of the South Bronx, the Northeast Bronx, Kingsbridge, Flatbush, Eastern Queens and Borough Park reported the least drinking.
The study also found that men were more than twice as likely as women to drink to excess. And men who have never been married drink more than those with a spouse.
By far, the heaviest drinkers are young and white, with 35 percent of those 18 to 34 saying they drink at the level defined as excessive.
"All New Yorkers should understand the difference between healthy and unhealthy drinking," said the health commissioner, Dr. Thomas R. Frieden. "Moderate alcohol consumption - no more than one or two drinks per day for men and one for women - is safe for most adults, and reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke. However, excessive drinking can cause serious health problems."
In the 2003 study, 10,000 adults 18 and older representing every neighborhood in New York City were interviewed by telephone about their health and the health of their families. The first time New Yorkers were surveyed in such detail was in 2002, so there is no good comparison to drinking habits in past generations, health officials said.
At the White Horse Tavern in the West Village, most famous for serving the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas his last drink before he stumbled off and died on his way home, the study's findings did not surprise Fran DeMastri, a bartender.
"I'd be shocked if it wasn't true," she said. "This area is a big tourist attraction. You have so many people coming from out of town. And there are so many bars in this neighborhood."
Ms. DeMastri, who has been tending bar there for two and half years, said that people come into the bar to honor the fallen poet, not to practice temperance. "It's a tavern atmosphere. There's no reason that they would come here for one or two beers."
The city estimates that every year about 25,000 people are hospitalized from various preventable illnesses and injuries caused by excessive drinking.
The report also finds that roughly 1,500 people die annually either directly or indirectly because of alcohol use.
While white men are the most likely to drink to excess, according to the report, black men are twice as likely to be hospitalized for detoxification. Both blacks and Hispanics are also more likely than whites to be hospitalized or die from chronic alcohol-related conditions.
Michael Brick and Janon Fisher contributed reporting to this article.
Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company
Press Release
Oh... there're a few persons who drink, at least, in the range of my year (22 years) here in Spain the youngs drink (not in weekdays) a lot of, and more than 4 alcohol drinks, and here the alcohol drinks are biggers than there (at least in all the countries in what I have been they were smaller).
My friend and me like to go out every night and I would like to know where are the pubs and discos in Manhattan and more or lees, the prices of the drink.
Thanks
Bye
Oxygen Bars?
I was wondering if NYC has oxygen bars? I've been to one in las vegas, nevada. and loved trying it so i was curious if NYC had one(s) too. THanks Joyce
No. Like someone else posted, a simple Google search should clear up questions like this.
I tried
I tried doing a google search that's why i asked here. nothing's coming up. thanks though.
google.com > "oxygen bars new york city"
http://www.google.com/search?q=oxyge...en-US:official
Thank you
Thank you very much!!!
Nice bar for an after dinner night cap?
I'm taking my girlfriend to the River Cafe this weekend, and would like to know of some nicer bars in Manhattan that we could go for a night cap. We'd probably enjoy something more on the quiet side that's not too touristy. We'll be at the ESB after dinner, so something near by would be great. Thanks for all your suggestions.
Others may be able to guide you to something trendier, but one suggestion I often make is the Bar at the Rainbow Grill (http://rainbowroom.com/rainbow_grill.htm), at the top of the GE (ex-RCA) Building. The views are stunning and the atmosphere classy and classic. It's not far from the ESB and is probably the best place in the City to watch the ESB. It's not cheap, but if you can afford the River Cafe, you can manage the RG.Originally Posted by aural iNK
Last edited by ManhattanKnight; September 20th, 2005 at 05:23 PM.
Great choice. I was thinking of going there for dinner, but hadn't thought about going for a few drinks. The view alone would make this a worthy selection. Any other suggestions are more than welcome.
Last edited by aural iNK; September 20th, 2005 at 08:25 PM.
In the theatre district you might want to try Angus McIndoe (44th just east of 8th Ave.) -- it's a good bar with some interesting people who show up there:
http://www.angusmcindoe.com/
258 West 44th Street New York, NY 10036 212-221-9222
The Cheapest Beer in NYC
Try the upper deck of the Staten Island Ferry.
Bud tallboys are $2.50,definitely the cheapest I've found,and the views are better than any bar can provide...
Ferry Crawl
Hmmm, I think I'll suggest a "Ferry Crawl" to a few friends. I'd guess that three or four round trips should be sufficient!
But Bud?
BLEH!!!!
BEER boy! Better beer! Bye buy Bud Buddy!
Bohemian Beer Garden in Astoria. It's cheap, quality beer. I suppose you could drink $2 pints of reingold, but then you'd be drinking reingold.
I literally missed the boat on a ferry crawl. My friends who caught the ferry said they did get cheap beer, but the bartender made fun of them.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks