The Long Island Bar is part of a series of tidbits from the chapters of my book Bars, Taverns and Dives New Yorkers Love, published by Rizzoli. You can order it from Powell’s, Amazon, Rizzoli, and Barnes & Noble. Signed prints of all the bars in the book are available here.

A Bit About the Long Island Bar From the Sidebar Chapter How We Found Our Local From My Book

Back in 2009, Colleen and I landed an apartment in Brooklyn Heights, a gorgeous old neighborhood on the East River, facing the southernmost part of Manhattan and the harbor. After a couple years of trying we found our local bar: Pete’s Waterfront Ale House on Atlantic Avenue, a perfect blend of bar and restaurant, a real tavern, loaded with after work drinkers at happy hour and the early dinner rush of parents with little kids. Pete’s had good food, free popcorn, good music and the vibe you hope for in a regulars joint: rowdy and boisterous, like a perfect cocktail party on retainer every weeknight at 6:00 p.m., and it was right there in our neighborhood.

Settling Into Pete’s

The key was the staff, of course. David Qassim, our favorite waiter, was our gateway to regulardom. He introduced us to the rest of the Ale House crew, including the bartenders. They got to know us by name and eventually we were part of “the club,” meeting other regulars, making friends, getting invited to parties, having some of the regulars over for dinner. It was the perfect scene. Then the boss sold the place. It closed for nearly a year for renovations and reopened as a totally respectable pizza place, losing the “regulars scene” vibe, and the crowd. The good news is, another place opened a block away. A hell of a place, too.

Enter the Long Island Bar

The Long Island Bar on Atlantic and Henry (see chapter) sat gathering dust for years then reopened as one of the best damn bars I’ve ever been to. Solid from top to bottom, cocktails and food, service and staff. We were charter members, showing up three times the first week they opened, getting to know the owners Toby Cecchini and Joel Tompkins, and at one point having the honor of “most regular regulars,” the record showing our credit card was used more that first year than any other. This seems like a dubious honor at a bar, but we usually only had one or two rounds per visit, and at a place like the Long Island Bar, a little goes a long way. The drinks are good, and meant to be savored, not gulped. What we lacked in depth per visit we made up for in frequency, and the staff now knows us pretty well, names and all. I never get the chorus of bellows Norm got on Cheers when I enter (which is fine, because I always found that a bit coarse anyway), but always a smile, greeting, handshake and, from bartender Phil Ward, a wisecrack (about my drink order, my facial hair, my shirt, etc.). I take that as an honor.

Next up:

Liedy’s Shore Inn of Staten Island: historic, rowdy, and another chapter of my book Bars, Taverns and Dives New Yorkers Love, which you can order right here. Limited-edition signed prints of the bars are available here.