Visceralist Does: People Lounge
We are very excited to announce this new weekly feature by fellow neighborhood scribe Visceralist. Each segment will review a random night spot in the Lower East Side.
This image has been archived or removed.
163 Allen St. (btw Rivington & Stanton)
New York, NY 10002
(212) 254-2668
Bathroom situation – Street level: two in the rear, one with urinals, one without. Both as plain as Jane’s plain brain game. Upper level: two single-person units around the corner from the bar, but one seems to be employees-only. The other one is spacious enough for you to bring a friend, and the walls are thick enough that people outside won’t be able to eavesdrop on the inevitable argument that erupts when your so-called friend gets all incensed that you asked her to do “that” in there.
Crowded on weekends? – this is People Lounge’s consistent claim to fame. As advertised, there be people. All in your grill.
Cost of Stella – apparently if you show up in some nice UniQlo attire and have a receding hairline (oh, btw they don’t allow baseball caps in here) you get charged one price, but if you show up in some been there, done that Bloomie’s bullshit you get a different, lower price. Rich get richer…
Guy:girl ratio – 50:50 ish, though you’ll sometimes be hard-pressed to tell which is which. “Strong in the face” is a phrase you’ll overhear more than once.
Space for dancing? – huzzah, People Lounge’s one saving grace. They actually have a “dance floor” on the upper level and the DJ actually plays songs with +120 bpm and syncopation. Granted, it’s usually so crowded that inadvertent bumping/grinding is a given, but the dopamine that (for once) is naturally released in your brain after Sean Paul’s “Get Busy” fades into Keri Hilson’s “Turnin Me On” will more than make up for it.
Recent Stories
‘Caribea’ Grill Readies Space Left Vacant by Domino’s on Allen Street
Ever since Domino’s ditched its decades-old Allen Street location three years ago, the commercial space has been a vacancy consistently peddled on the market. Now, a new concept is a-knockin. Caribea is as it sounds – a fast casual pan-Caribbean grill. The restaurant at 203 Allen will seat fourteen tables and a stand-up bar, for […]
The Projects Jockeying for the $20M Chinatown Revitalization Funds
Several months ago, Governor Hochul announced a $20 million grant in the form of the Downtown Revitalization initiative (DRI). Some forty sites around Chinatown were identified during the DRI process, which is led by a Local Planning Committee of community representatives and supported by State agency staff and a consultant team. That list was ultimately […]
Displaced Chinatown Business Returns Months After Devastating Fire
Four months after a deadly fire knocked out 78 Mulberry Street, one of its businesses returned to the scene. Ewa Trading Company reopened in its former Chinatown home earlier this week. The store had spent some of the interim displacement period selling from a shuttered Vietnamese restaurant a few paces north. The two-alarm fire broke […]
EDC Sues Essex Restaurant for Back Rent over Former Essex Market Lease
Three years removed from its relocation across Rivington Street, the city filed suit against the Essex restaurant for alleged unpaid rent. The Economic Development Corporation (EDC) sued Essex for nearly $60,000 in unpaid back rent on the former Essex Market building it previously occupied, according to the lawsuit filed Monday. The city entity claims that […]
Exile on Orchard Street: Tenement Museum Recreates Exhibits During Renovations
The Tenement Museum is amidst a preservation project at 97 Orchard Street, but will continue its programming with replicas not too far away. The 1863-era tenement this past Sunday embarked on “vital” restoration work to preserve its walls, floors, roof, as well as the installation of a new HVAC system that will provide improved climate […]
