Grasping at summer straws
I always get a bit depressed when September comes around. It’s not as if I haven’t been working full time all summer or have to go back to school. But that sinking feeling comes every year around this time.
I decided to ward off the feeling in a place that always feels like summer. That’s right: The Beer Garden. Possibly my favorite bar in New York. I had a house guest from Australia staying with me, so I had to show off the local hangout. My favorite part of introducing others to the Beer Garden is seeing their face when they step out the bar door into the courtyard. That look of wonder.
Of course, the bar was packed as usual. Even though it was a Wednesday. It’s the unfortunate byproduct of the Beer Garden’s growing popularity. Now even Manhattanites make the trip out to Astoria (all ten minutes) to participate in the outdoor drunken merriment that is the Beer Garden. Meaning all summer, lines wrapped around the block. My Australian friend declared that there must be dozens of other Australians there, since it just seems like the sort of place Australians would be. We enjoyed a dinner of kielbasa and (for me, the vegetarian) barbecued portobello mushroom and fries. You really can’t go wrong with a huge courtyard, barbeque, and alcohol.
But as we were enjoying the drinks and food of the outdoor courtyard, something sad happened. I got cold. Yes, summer is over. Well, at least that means October Fest is on the way!
September 27th, 2006 at 12:30 pm
Sigh… I feel the same sadness descend upon me at the end of summer. It’s not exactly that I am upset for fall and all the wonderful things that it brings (mmm….pumpkin spice coffee is back!) but there is something bittersweet about the end of summer. More than any other time of year, I realize that it is one more year gone- Did I do enough fun stuff this summer? Spend enough time outdoors while it was warm? Go camping enough times? See all the friends I wanted to see? And invariablely the answer is no, so I get a little sad…
October 29th, 2006 at 9:20 am
I never made it to The Beer Garden this summer at all sadly. Every time a group of friends thought of going there it was always extremely crowded. I think that definitely speaks for how cool the place is, but too bad we missed out all summer long because of its popularity.