Checkmate

Can  you believe that one of the many things Washington Square Park is known for is chess? Believe is or not, tons of chess playing legends have sat in these same seats before and after they became legends.

Being one of the two most known parks in our beloved city,  Washington Square Park is a little under just ten acres of beautiful green things. Living in the city, it's always nice to go into the park and remember what grass looks like, right? 

The park in named after President George Washington, who was actually inaugurated nearby at Wall St. in 1789, back when NYC was the capital of the United States. It wasn't always a park though, in fact, back when it was actually a cemetery it was home to over 20,000 New Yorkers who are still buried there to this day. Talk about creepy, right?!

If you're not totally creeped out, maybe this will do the trick. The park was also an execution site and houses the world's oldest tree ever. Standing for 340 years now, the elm tree AKA The Hanging Tree has been the last sight for many people. People would come from all over to see people hanged from this 110 ft tall Elm tree. The last hanging was done in 1820 and the limb from which the hangings took place was removed in 1992. 

Whose wondering now if this park is possible haunted?

Fridays Featured Cocktail: Kalimotxo

The Kalimotxo- red wine mixed with Coca-Cola or white wine mixed with Sprite. Best served on the rocks. We found this gem in the east village at a Basque inspired Spanish restaurant called Huertas. This drink is very popular in Basque culture. It has a very unique flavor, so if you're feeling adventurous or have to find a wine to drink red wine without it being too dry, this is your best bet.

According to their website, "The name Huertas translates to orchards, or small gardens. These orchards dominate the landscape of northern Spain". 

One of the things this restaurant is known best for though, is their hot dogs window. Hot dogs made with chistorra sausage, a variety of pork sausage seasoned with paprika. These things are mouth watering and delicious. So start your weekend right and go check out Huertas, grab a Kalimotxo and a dog and pig out. 

Is This Tea or Is This...?

Happy Tipsy Tuesday! Thirsty? Just imagine how the people during the Prohibition felt! They were probably desperate for some libations. So much so that along with the Prohibition came the introduction of Speakeasies.  If you've downloaded our app, hopefully you'll understand why we're giving you this little history lesson.

The Tea Room in the village, owned by Henry and June Miller was one of the many speakeasies found in New York City. This one in particular was located in the basement of their home at 106 Perry St. in what is now known as the west village. It opened in September of 1925 but was out of business around December of that same year. Unfortunately, the not-so-happy couple drank all their profits. Seems they were pretty thirsty as well.

Cool, right? Well if you're itching to learn more about tea rooms or have worked up a thirst yourself, download our app from iTunes! We all know that there's tons of stuff to learn about NYC, but learning is always better with a few drinks along the way!

Download our app here: http://tinyurl.com/onzsscs

The White Horse Tavern

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The White Horse Tavern, located at 567 Hudson Street, is the 1st stop on the C&C’s Tour #1 of Greenwich Village.  It’s both a famous cocktail establishment and historical curiosity, so it’s the perfect place to begin the Cocktails & Curiosities journey. Opened in 1880, the tavern was popular with longshoreman and local Irish immigrants, many of whom were police officers and city workers.  It should come of no surprise that during Prohibition the tavern remained open, served plenty of booze, and was never raided.  The White Horse was also a favorite of Mayor Jimmy Walker, who lived a few blocks away and presumably kept it safe.

The tavern has a long history of famous customers, including the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas.  Do you recall the famous words “do not go gentle into that good night”?  If you don’t remember it from a college literature class, the poem was featured in the classic Rodney Dangerfield film “Back to School.”

In 1953, at the age of 39, Thomas got his drink on at “the Horse,” as he called it, for the last time.  He indulged in one too many whiskeys, fell down drunk and went into a coma.  The great poet died a few days later.  Many say his ghost still visits the White Horse, sitting at his favorite corner table in the back room.  The ghost rotates the table like Thomas did when he wrote his poetry.

Belushi_College

Other notable fans include Andy Warhol, Norman Mailer, and Jack Kerouac.  Kerouac visited often and was often kicked out.  Bob Dylan used to come to listen to music and John F. Kennedy Jr.stopped in for lunch while at NYU law school.  The tavern was also a favorite of John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, who would show up at closing time, ask the proprietor to lock the doors, and buy drinks for everyone in the building.

On the night that John Belushi died, Aykroyd visited the bar and bought a round for all to toast his lost friend.

Today the White Horse Tavern remains a great place to stop in for both a beverage and tasty “pub grub.” On nice days the sidewalk tables fill-up quickly, and stop by an ATM on the way because the Horse accepts cash only.

The White Horse Tavern is indeed the perfect spot to begin the first Cocktails & Curiosities tour.

Introducing Cocktails & Curiosities, the Bar Crawls for Smart People

NYC Walking Tours & NYC Bar Crawls just had a baby.

Cocktails & Curiosities is the latest brand from Christi Scofield and Ted Scofield; the dynamic duo who run Icebreaker Entertainment.

So what exactly is Cocktails & Curiosities, you ask?  Think of it as a combination of the best of history, art, architecture, literature, music and pop-culture walking tours with eclectic cocktail stops along the way.

Available now in ebook format for Kindle, Nook, iPhone, iPad and all devices that can run the free Kindle or Nook reader apps.

Thank you for checking out our blog.  Be sure to register for updates as we will be blogging about some awesome cocktails and unique curiosities from cities all around the world.