LOWER MANHATTAN — An old-school taste of Cuba is on its way to Lower Manhattan.
Cocktail bar BlackTail, which has a Havana-circa-prohibition-era theme, is slated to open Friday on the second floor of the Pier A Harbor House — a three-level landmark at the tip of Manhattan that's now home to a massive lower floor bar, restaurants and catering hall, The New York Times reported.
The 2,000-square-foot space is being run by the owners of the Dead Rabbit, a Financial District bar with a turn-of-the century New York-inspired drink list — it was also named the best bar in the world by the Spirited Awards. BlackTail takes the place of a cocktail bar called The Harrison Room.
The new bar is designed to emulate what a bar in Havana might have looked like back in the roaring '20s. It pays homage to the numerous travelers, including Ernest Hemingway, who flew south to Havana in the 1920s when alcohol was banned in the US in order to indulge in alcohol legally. The name of the bar comes from a short-lived airline, which had black-painted fins, that shuttled passengers to the tropical nightlife hub, according to the Times.
Classic Cuban drinks — like the mojito and daiquiri — with rum as the star, will be on the menu, along with more than 40 other boozy concoctions.
BlackTail, at Pier A Harbor House, 22 Battery Place, is slated to open July 15.
