Among the menu staples is co-owner Toby Cecchini’s take on the Boulevardier.
• Co-owner Toby Cecchini hails from Wisconsin, so don’t miss the fried cheese curds.
• Cecchini is also the creator of the Cosmo, but you won’t see it on the menu. (You can, however, request one.) In the summer, the frozen-drink machine—a pandemic-era acquisition—churns out a frosty take on the pink-hued sour.
• During football season, the back room airs Green Bay Packers games for the sports-inclined.
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One block away and kitty-corner, Montero Bar & Grill is a first-rate dive: plastic cups, 80 years’ worth of accumulated ephemera and karaoke on the weekends.
A little farther afield, but all within a 15-minute walk, are Grand Army, Clover Club, Gage & Tollner and Sunken Harbor Club, each worthy destinations in their own right for any cocktail lover.
NOTABLE AND NEARBY
Though it possesses all the makings of the platonic ideal of a neighborhood bar, The Long Island Bar is nevertheless destination-worthy. Originally opened in 1951, the space reopened in 2014 under the ownership of Toby Cecchini and Joel Tompkins with many of the original fixtures—diner booths, wraparound wooden bar and the beacon of a neon sign—still intact. With a staff of veteran bartenders grounded in classics, it’s a place where you can feel as confident ordering a drink from the menu as asking for a bartender’s choice. The drink menu itself consists of nine cocktails that rarely change—and for good reason. The Gimlet is served on the rocks and is one of the best in the city; the secret is in the lime cordial made with ginger for added kick. The White Negroni Sbagliato, meanwhile, is a simple mashup of the aperitivo staple and the modern classic that feels effortlessly timeless, just like the bar itself.
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From left: The White Negroni Sbagliato; fried cheese curds; the Gimlet, served on the rocks with a ginger-lime cordial.
Around the corner on Grand Street, Fresh Kills (from Richie Boccato) has been quietly serving some of the best cocktails in Brooklyn for nearly a decade.
NOTABLE AND NEARBY
• When outdoor seating is available, the wisteria-draped garden (book ahead on Resy) might fool you into thinking you’re somewhere between Louisiana and Provence.
• While Maison excels at the A-list classics, look closely and you’ll find lovingly executed takes on B-side hits, like the Yellow Parrot and the Obituary, that make the case for revival.
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Don’t miss the fried cheese curds.
Co-owner Toby Cecchini is the inventor of the Cosmo; it’s not on the menu, but you can request one.