Lakeside Lounge

Great memories of candlelit darkness, good music, vibes. Made me love Alphabet City during the college years!

Well, Lakeside Lounge is actually closing next weekend for good (sad face, some horrible hipster establishment will no doubt move in, serving overpriced cocktails with a snooty bartender who ironically ignores you), but I had the pleasure of hanging out here on Friday with my friends from Ohio. Ohio being key to this story — Lakeside Lounge is Very Midwestern. And if you know me, you know this is the biggest compliment of all.
It’s like being in any of the bars in Ohio that seem like they shoulda been on the Drew Carey Show, or in your uncle’s basement. Cozy, homey, named after a (non-​existent) Alphabet City lake (Great Lakes forever!!)… you get the picture. A dart board, a photo booth, a rock band playing a «rock show» (go ahead, make fun of me New York — I own my Midwesterness)… this really is all I could ask for.
The only downfall to my experience, and my friends from Ohio who have been patronizing this bar apparently every time they’re in New York (which is 1 – 2 times a year) for the last ten years — they confirmed that the night we were there was unusually crowded, was waiting so long to get a drink. I guess this is because they’re closing soon, but that kinda sucked. My friends said they have beer + shot buy one get ones though… how amazing is that?
Why you gotta close, Lakeside Lounge? Why does it always rain on me? (Is it because I lied when I was 17?)

Perhaps this is unusual for this small dive bar, but I came in for an incredible performance by a New Orleans jazz singer. The place was packed with a steady incoming stream of people. There was no space! But that’s not a complaint. I am overjoyed that this venue, but a few blocks from my apartment, hosted such an awesome event. The acoustics were wonderful and hope to come back in the near future.

Perhaps you’re no longer hive-​wired to every fashion and music trend before it hits. Perhaps the occasional silver hair now haunts your comb. Perhaps you’ve begun wondering where you can take older cronies for some zesty taps, spirited literary arguments and gruesome non sequiturs. I say, come to Lakeside, where no one will stare right through you or click their tongues.
Just now, I met a fellow editor in the open space that is Lakeside. No one shooshed us; the bartender from Little Rock, Arkansas even stopped to interject remarks («That sounds pretty surreal!») when not conversing in perfect sign language with a hearing-​impaired woman who strolled in after me.
When it was all over, and I realized I’d left my eReader there with several hundred people’s unpublished manuscripts on it, our ‘tender’s equally friendly replacement located and volunteered to hold it while I ran back. And when I got there, he offered me a Goose Island on the house just because I sounded (creak!) winded.
I could tell you I’ll be back again if I hadn’t been saying that already for the past ten years.

2 for 1 beers. i.e., $ 5 for a brook lag draft = $ 2.50. Mad ill.
Cute inked-​up bartender was affable and inked-​up patrons that looked like they haven’t showered in days were chillaxin up in here.
No annoying chicks in floral dresses and no d-​bags in oxford shirts and chinos to be found.
Stay outta here, you soulless yuppies.

pretty intimate music venue and chill bar. juke box!
tables.
relaxed vibe.
definitely a good place.

yaa yaa yaa!
they say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. so i brought the men some pastries. i hoped i’d get a cuddle party out of it, or at least a beer.
but they just gorged away and then i left. cold, and not as drunk as i had hoped.
i really liked this bar minus the fact that somebody took an insane shit in the ladies room and neglected to flush. it was fucking disgusting and the entire back room reeked. i mean… come ON, people! you’re not paying much for your drinks, happy hour is bomb… the LEAST you can do is flush. RUDE!
let’s go again. and take some more photo booth photos.

Photo booth inside. Beer. Sweaty people. Horrible live band where all the band members nag all their friends to «come check out their band.» Is probably the only gig they ever do before they realize that they are all terrible and should probably pursue other endeavors.
Maybe the keyboarder become an accountant, because that’s stable. And keyboarders just seem like they like stability. The singer probably goes on to a PR career. The drummer develops a drug problem and then dies early, because you know the drummers are the fucked up ones who like to bang on shit and fuck things up. The guitarist is the only talent in the band and eventually goes on to a life of mediocrity because he couldn’t bring himself to fully commit to the guitar. The bassist eventually gives up music because everyone knows playing the bass is just an easy way to get into a new band since it’s the guitar’s slightly easier cousin.
The drummer probably leaves a pregnant girlfriend somewhere and the bastard spawn becomes a real bonafide rock star. The guitarist has 4 kids but struggles with impotence later in life, eventually coping through alcohol in his later years. Yeah, guitarists are just tragic, man. The singer has a mid life crisis, divorces, and remarries a woman 20 years younger. And the bassist… oh, the bassist had it figured out from the beginning. He was fine.
But I digress.
I came in here to meet some friends, and their first words were, «Get me out of here.» Then, they took pictures in the photo booth, did a few shots, made fun of the band, and realized… «Hey, this place is perfectly ok! I wouldn’t come back here, but I’m glad I came once!»
And that’s all I have to say about that.

Came here last night for a UYE event with some fellow Unilocalers. Yes, it was a BNO (Boys Night Out) but the very cool Brianna showed up with a box of Veniero’s pastries to help break up the sausage fest. Good call Brianna!
Lakeside lounge is a very chill bar in Alphabet City. The kind of place that is hard to find anymore, as it has that old school type loungey feel that shows it’s real personality, and is not trying too hard to be hip and cool. Concrete floors, dimly lit, great jukebox, small seating area, cheap drinks. 2-​for-​1 happy hour is easy on the wallet. Guinness, Brooklyn, Stella, and even PBR on tap. Fun photo booth is also on the premises and is a big hit here. Also a table top Galaga game on hand which is a blast from the past. Even bathrooms here were not too bad, though Briana was warning everyone not to use the ladies room as there was some sort of horror movie scene that occurred in there this evening.
Definitely a good spot to meet up with friends for happy hour and shoot the breeze, or if you want a cheap night out with some live music to kick back to.
Very chill, and low key vibe here. The kind of place that if I was living in the area would become a second home to me.

There’s only three things I would like to mention about this Bar.
1) They have a photo booth that snaps classic black and white photos which can be used against you if it fell in the wrong hands.
2)The drinks are dirt cheap!!! Talk about a four dollar beer to a person who enjoys alcohol a bit too much, can be a dangerous combination!!!
3) The space between you and the band is NON Existent! Very intimate bar scene that tunnels the music straight into your ear shaft.
Note: this is a typical (Dive) bar nothing classy about this place excepts its beer selection.

Came to New York first as a kid at 10 in the late 70’s and back then Alphabet City was a place you steered clear of. Later in the 90’s when I came through while on tour, we were told A and B were pretty good now but stay away from C and D.
Luckily, Lakeside is on B because that’s where we were headed. Great, great dive bar! Easy going staff, great people, great drinks and excellent photo booth. We had a fantastic time there that night.
You know the bar is good when you’ve only been there once but you remember it for over a decade.

Lakeside Lounge will always have a special place in my heart because its where I had my first (legal) drink.
I remember it well*, it was a lemon drop**
But there’s really only one reason why I would set foot in LL again, and that’s that they have a awesome photobooth***. The bartender was rude as all hell, it smells VERY peculiar, the drinks were only so-​so, and the music pumping out of this place is usually pretty awful.
So, friends, if you have a fetish for antique photobooths and a band of merry mates, let this be just a quick stop on a night of debauchery, but certainly not a main attraction.
_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​_​
*Kind of
**It was my twin’s idea, swear.
***Throw a novelty like a photobooth into any bar and I’ll get weak in the knees with excitement.

Oh man. I got way too drunk at this place. For very, very cheap.
But, also, it’s really just another E. Vil dive.
Yay for no cover, though.

«Underpriced drinks and Music»
Yes, that’s correct. You won’t find a cheaper Martini in the city. For happy it was 2 for $ 9. Yes, that’s $ 4.50 per Martini. Dare you to find it cheaper.
Came here with a im so happy-​she-​is-​my-​former girlfriend and imbibed while seeing a live band. The music is comfortable when you want to hear some notes to soothe your soul. No A-​List bands here. And a very good jukebox. Not a date place if you want to impress. Place to chill with friends or the steady.

Photo booths are like crack, and Lakeside lounge rocks one. Not only are the drinks cheap, but they’re good and strong. Ms. Pacman kept my friend Brian from yacking (he mixed his booze), and they have Galaga! Their happy hour lasts until 8:00, and they have live music during the week!
It was definitely my favorite stop on our «hood hop». Please don’t go there thinking they’re known for their décor. Lakeside has a dark, older neighborhood bar charm. The bartenders, arcade games, and photo booth give it serious character.

Concrete floors, wooden chairs, LED Christmas lights hanging above the front window and wrapped around the column by the bar, dark. I like the divey, kitsch, cozy feeling of this place just North of Tompkins Sq. Park.
The bar has Hoegaarden and Sierra on tap, two of my favorite beers, and the 2 for 1 happy hour until 8 pm is sweet. There are two rooms, with the second one being devoted to live bands most days of the week.
An extra star for the tabletop Ms. Pacman/​Galaga, and for the photo booth.
Rough and solid.

Live
Music
And solid
Happy hour til
Eight that inspires overpriced photos.

As another stop for our «Bar-​Hop» night, we walked a bit to find and arrive at this place which could’ve easily been looked-​over if it wasn’t for its distinct sign. This place felt like a lounge with live music and a few drunk people dancing… that about covers itself in categories. But in all seriousness, Lakeside Lounge was a music venue when I came here, and it was nice and low-​key.
Lakeside lounge isn’t much for fancy décor and all, but what it has, it works. It’s a dimly lit room with some bar stools (with more seating as you go inside), a couple of teli, an old jukebox, and an extremely fun photo-​booth*. What caught our group’s eye was the coat hanger made out of hooves at the end of the bar. A party member said it even looked like a [explicit] (see coat-​hanger pic). Drink prices were great and cheap especially when coming in during their Specials hours. Bar staff were great; friendly as heck, easy to converse and mixes drinks well. One thing that caught me by surprise was the decently clean, well-​lit bathroom. I don’t know why it stood out and why I’m writing this here, but it did and I am.
*Sidenotes (which have been mentioned on previous reviews already)
Operating the Photo-​booth
1.) Take a Token from the bar staff, the booth doesn’t take any other currency.
2.) Before sliding in the token, have your poses ready. Once you drop the coin the first shot is taken almost to no delay (if you look at the film-​strip I posted, the first pic has an almost empty frame).
3.) If your party is greater than 3, be sure to squeeze in. I was the idiot who was left out on the side.

This place rocks — why? 2-​for-​1 beers from 4pm-​8pm, and they have a film photo booth here as well.
The bartenders are really nice too and the drink prices are reasonable. I’m not that familiar with the neighborhood but this place has a decent amount of space too and the fact that I was there twice during my very short visit has to say something…
Definitely a cool spot to hit if you want no frills and just to get your drink on, listen to some live music or the eclectic jukebox, and take a few drunken pix…

I had my first naked photo booth experience here. The thing is, I wasn’t in the photo booth… nor was I the naked one.
My boyfriend and I were standing by the photo booth, waiting for our pictures to dry, because we’re cute like that. A couple goes in, an (I’d be stretching the truth if I said) attractive girl goes in with her considerably older gentleman caller. Before the curtain was closed, it was dress over the head, no bra, no underwear. Both my boyfriend and I gasped and stepped back slowly until our backs hit the wall… but our photos hadn’t come out, what were we to do? Finally the booth spit our pictures out and they slid right over to us and we abruptly left.
That was actually pretty amusing and lightened up our night considerably. Besides an infrequent (or maybe frequent, what do I know) photo booth boob slip, Lakeside is pretty bare bones, but it works. It’s a big spaces, compared to a lot of the nook bars on Ave. B. There’s lots of space and seating. The bartenders are usually gems. It’s a great place to go with a bunch of your friends pretty much.
Buy one get one happy hour, and bar munchies. I love this place.