New York-Inspired Gaslamp Bar & Lounge Launching Next Week

Slated to open Thursday, July 27, Queensborough is the Gaslamp’s newest bar and eatery. Set inside a 1920s-era building on Fifth Avenue, the project is from group of industry vets who include nightlife pros Shane Brennan (Omnia, Searsucker) and Mike Vizcarra (Seven Grand Whiskey Bar, Bang Bang) and designer Matthew Ellis (Juniper & Ivy, Kettner Exchange).

The sleek 1,800-square-foot cocktail bar and dining area, which includes a marble bar and tabletops, a vintage phone booth, subway turnstiles and a floor studded with subway token, is the first element of Queensborough’s two-story downtown drinking and dining destination. The final component, 6,000-square-foot subterranean lounge that has been described as a “nightclub alternative”, is scheduled to be unveiled next month.

Executive chef Taylor Houseman (Común Kitchen & Tavern and Ironside Fish & Oyster) says his menu reflects the melting pot of New York City cuisine through casual, shareable plates ranging from smoked pig head meatballs with long grain rice, broth and mint crystals to surf and turf sliders that pair scallops with hanger steak that will be augmented with specials. Houseman predicts his burger will be a standout thanks to a freshly ground patty of chuck and tri tip. For dessert, there are warm cookies served with flavored milk spiked with booze. When the downstairs lounge opens, its patrons will also be able to order off this menu. Open starting at 4 p.m. daily, Queensborough’s craft cocktails include the The Big Apple, a mix of red apple-infused Elijah Craig, cinnamon and clove demerara syrup and Angostura bitters and the refreshing Matcha Julep made with Woodford Reserve Rye, matcha, syrup, mint and crushed ice.