Opening Alert: East Village Dive The Holiday Lounge Rocks Again Tonight

Classic East Village dive bar The Holiday Lounge is opening its doors tonight for the first time in three years. Holiday 2.0, which is now owned by Pirate Booty founder Robert Ehrlich, will be a mix of what it once was (think grit, grunge, and rock 'n' roll) and a modern cocktail bar. The bar's old-school phone booth is still there, and so is some of the wall art and the maroon awning outside, but otherwise things have been cleaned up. The bar was once a hangout for musicians like Madonna, The Ramones, and Iggy Pop and writers like Allen Ginsberg. Ehrlich and business partner Barbara Sibley, who owns La Palapa next door, plan to bring live music back to the space, but no word on who will perform yet.

The Menu: The drink menu from bartenders and brothers Michael and Danny Neff includes inexpensive draft beers like Narragansett, along with a list of "Holiday originals" like the "Brooklyn babe" (gin, bitter, lime juice, raw honey syrup, and ginger beer), which appears on the menu with a quote from DeeDee Ramone: "How can I describe tie chick? Let's do some arithmetic." There's also a "research & development" category where the barkeeps will try out new cocktails. Those come in shot form along with a beer back. Both cocktails and bar snacks will involve "locally foraged" ingredients found in East Village shops – think everything from kielbasa and challah, to turmeric and shiso.

Drink Menu