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Toast and get toasty at festive pop-up bars
FORGET the holiday cheer. It’s all about holiday cheers. Watering holes are decking the halls for a new season of lively holiday pop-up bars. Select Big Apple boîtes have outfitted their spaces with jaw-dropping decorations and deliciously over-the-top specialty cocktails and snacks.
Read on for a list of our favorite spots, many of which offer outdoor seating.
The pour house
For many New Yorkers, there’s nothing more thrilling than sitting back with a drink in hand and watching tourists struggle. City Winery’s Rockefeller Center wine garden satisfies both of those desires with an outdoor bar you can belly up to, or personal igloos that seat up to eight ($150 to $250 minimum spend required, depending on the time of day). Sip a glass of sauvignon blanc ($13), a Rhône red blend ($15) or enjoy a local beer on tap ($10) while taking in views of the big tree and awkward out-of-towners. Food options include a charcuterie and cheese board ($24) and a mozzarella-pesto-tomato salad ($14).
Between 50th and 51st streets and Rockefeller Plaza and Fifth Avenue; 646751-6033, RockefellerCenter.com/Dine/ City-Winery
Tropic wonder
At Palm Holiday, the holiday pop-up at the new Ready Rooftop at Moxy East Village, the halls are decked with multiple lawn flamingos, palm trees and an array of tropical plants under string lights. “We wanted to make a splash,” said Nikki McCutcheon, Tao Group’s 30-year-old corporate beverage director, who crafted a drink menu to match the fun flair at the hangout, which has a retractable roof. A frozen hot chocolate ($20, left) has New Amsterdam Vodka, Mozart chocolate liqueur and RumChata liqueur topped with whipped cream. “Once people see them come out, they’re like, ‘I have to have it,’ ” she said.
Open through March 1. 112 E. 11th St.; 646908-2125, MoxyEastVillage.com
Bling it on
No need to leave the city to enjoy après ski. The Moxy Times Square’s Magic Hour rooftop is hosting the Pink Winter Lodge, a pop-up with a rosy alpine vibe and indoor and outdoor seating. There’s a frosted flower arch with pink antler chandeliers, a pink car and even a carousel with ski lift seats adorned with 25,000 crystals. Flashy sips and bites complement the sparkly decorations. The “Après Ski” cocktail ($18) blends New Amsterdam Vodka with Mozart white chocolate liqueur, soy milk, mini marshmallows and some pastry dye to keep things rosy. “It’s almost like a pink hot cocoa,” said Yvonne Najor, 35, the senior director of marketing for Tao Group Hospitality.
For a cooler option, go for the “Double Pink Diamond” ($20), which includes tequila and Red Bull and comes in a diamondshaped glass. To eat, there are “Pink Bling Donut Rings” ($14) — gluten-free strawberry doughnuts topped with pink frosting and gold glitter. “They’re super over the top, Instagrammable and, of course, delicious,” said Najor.
Open through April. 485 Seventh Ave.; 212-967-6699, MoxyTimesSquare.com
“It’s like an ’80s prom meeting Christmas. It’s a big glittery party,” said Ivy Mix of Sleyenda, the seasonal incarnation of her Brooklyn Latin bar and restaurant Leyenda. The indoor-only pop-up offers over-the-top decor and festive but subtle drinks ($14) that even your cocktail-snob friends will enjoy. “The Nutcracker Old Fashioned” ($14) features hazelnut-infused Wild Turkey Bourbon, pecaninfused Appleton Jamaica Rum, macadamia nut orgeat, maple syrup and aromatic bitters, while the “Partridge in a Pear Tree” has Lustau Spanish Brandy mixed with a pear shrub and sparkling wine. “People get to live a little this year now that they’re not stuck outside freezing,” Mix told The Post. “It feels great to be able to host again.”
Open through Dec. 26. 221 Smith St., Cobble Hill; 347987-3260, LeyendaBK.com
Three bars in the New York area have become an outpost of Miracle, a business that transforms bars around the world into Miracle-branded Christmas pop-ups. Thief in Williamsburg, the Cabinet on the Lower East Side and Franklin Social in Jersey City have all decked their halls and will serve signature Miracle cocktails ($16) like the “Bad Santa,” with aged Jamaican rum, velvet falernum and nutmeg. “We could all do with some holiday joy and celebration, so we did not hold back,” said John McNulty, the owner of Thief, where an 11-foottall Grinch has been installed by the door.
Thief pop-up runs through New Year’s Day: 595 Union Ave., Williamsburg; 917-909-1166, ThiefNYC.com. Cabinet pop-up runs through New Year’s Eve: 649 E. Ninth St.; 347-866-7739, TheCabinetNYC.com. Franklin Social pop-up runs through New Year’s Eve: 292 Barrow St., Jersey City; 201-413-1300, FranklinSocial.com
The South Street Seaport’s outdoor bar Watermark has turned into a winter wonderland. Spring for a heated glass enclosure that seats two to 12 ($50 to $250 for two hours) and overlooks the Brooklyn Bridge, East River and even Lady Liberty herself from the ground level of the pier. Or enjoy the same striking views for free from an outdoor picnic table. Guests can enjoy specialty cocktails like the “Cider-rita” ($16), which mixes apple cider and Casamigos tequila, and even make their own s’mores (from $28).
Open through March. 78 South St., at the end of Pier 15; 212-742-8200, WatermarkNY.com