Pony Bar

I have mentioned a whole bunch here that I like to organize happy hours for Midtown Lunch forum readers.  Admittedly, they’ve become more and more just the same people over and over – people I’ve come to really know and consider friends over the past year – and less new people joining us, which is a damn shame, since we’re all super nice and friendly people… Well, I am, anyway.  No vouching for the others.  In any case, if you haven’t come to a Midtown Lunch Happy Hour yet, what are you waiting for?  Seriously, it’s good fun. 

Case in point: we recently headed to Pony Bar for some craft beers, or something.  Yes, we hit Daisy May’s first for grub, but then we headed a block away to Pony Bar, where the beer selection seems extensive – I’m sure Beer Boor will chime in with his thoughts.  I was driving that night, so I kept my drink to diet Pepsi… which was a bad idea because somehow, by the end of the night, I’d had about 5 of them and my caffeine levels were so high that I didn’t sleep a wink.  Boo. 

The place is festooned with kitschy and quirky sayings and whatnot.  This one was right above our heads, next to the door.  A minor drawback was being there on some sort of event night, so there were a lot of extra people around that were just wasting space (read: people who were being annoying about their beverages and talking loudly and condescendingly about stuff, I don’t know, I didn’t understand it, but if that was my friend, I’d punch them in the face and stop being their friend).  A MAJOR drawback was – and you all KNOW how I ADORE my dog – some dipster brought his dog into the bar.  It was dark brown and on the small side, so I don’t think anyone working there noticed, but I assure you that it is unsanitary and illegal to do so (because the bar serves food).  Initially the dog was sitting on the floor next to the owner as he stood in the middle of the bar, but when he got a seat at a table, the dog was sitting on the bench seat next to him.  That’s just disgusting – the dog was been walking around outside on his bare paws, and now he’s sitting at a table where people eat.  Filthy. 

And after lots more alcohol for everyone but me, the munchies hit and we girls wanted something to nibble on.  So we ordered pretzels.  $3 and you get two fairly large ones.  Not a bad price, but the pretzels smelled faintly sweet – like pancake batter – and the salt was so caked on that I had trouble eating my first bite.  Of course, like any good New Yorker, I know you’re supposed to brush some salt off – just like a street pretzel – but I totally forgot since it’s been ages since I had a street pretzel.  The pretzel was only okay, though, and the mustard tasted a bit weird too.  I like the idea of being able to get a street pretzel at a bar, but I’m not sure I liked their execution.  However, I saw lots of other people eating food that looked super tasty, so next time, I’ll skip Daisy May’s and go straight to the bar for some pub grub…

Yvo says: A great option for happy hours, though they don’t seem to have any specials worth noting ($1 off beer from 4:20 – 5:20 isn’t exactly a deal).  I would love to go back and try some more from the menu – and maybe on a night when there aren’t so many beer-centric folk are milling about, so the place can be a little emptier and give us more breathing room…
recommended – must try more food & some crafty beers