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Left picture: Gallow Green; Top right picture: Pod 39 Hotel; Bottom right picture: The Gorbals
Mid-August in NY, reading the umpteenth ranking of the best rooftops in the city: Le Bain at the Standard, Jimmy at the James, The Ides at the Wythe – the (very) classic summer ranking. You think you’ve tried every bar with a view in the city. And indeed there are very few rooftops in NY which stay truly confidential. But we like challenges and have put together a top 3 list of slightly less popular rooftops where you might not have ventured yet. 3 rooftops, 3 neighborhoods, 3 atmospheres:
Gallow Green – Chelsea
542 W 27th Street
This green paradise is nestled above the McKittrick Hotel which houses the now famous Sleep No More show. It is unclear why (maybe because you have to trek beyond 10th avenue among Chelsea’s warehouses), but the rooftop of the McKittrick Hotel still seems under the radar.
Get comfy in the foliage’s shade of the shrubs that have colonized the terrace, order a Manderley (Guyanese demerera rum and limes shaken with fresh red peppers and cilantro leaves) and enjoy the botanical charm of this NY roof.
Pod 39 rooftop – Midtown East
145 E 39th Street
It looks like an abandoned movie set. The imposing bare arches, outlining the Pod 39 roof terrace and framing the view of the Midtown skyline, are the vestiges of the historic building (The Allerton House, hotel and private club) built a century ago.
As if to enhance the theatricality of the place, the rooftop put on its most colorful adornment : we love the terracotta brick columns, the bar tables’ chartreuse green and the yellow twinkling of the garlands of light.
The Gorbals – Williamsburg, BK
98 N 6th Street
A more eco-friendly vibe at the Gorbals with canvas tents and wooden stump seating. Located above the eponymous restaurant and the Urban Outfitters store, this rooftop is the perfect spot to spend a Sunday afternoon after a shopping trip in Brooklyn.
The scoop: starting this week and running until the end of September, it’s the “Monday Murray” with a weekly outdoor screening of Bill Murray movies every Monday evening at 9pm. If you want to revisit classics such as Ghostbusters or Groundhog Day, rush to The Gorbals on Mondays!
Here’s the program:
8-17 The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
8-24 What About Bob?
8-31 Kingpin
9-7 Space Jam
9-14 Ghostbusters 1 & 2 (starts at 7pm)
9-21 The Royal Tennenbaums
9-28 Groundhog Day