Head to North River Lobster Company for Booze With a View

Let’s go to Cape Cod, do a booze cruise, and eat egregious amounts of seafood.  Let’s also not leave New York City.  Located at Pier 81 off of the West Side Highway this boat with a feeling of the coast is North River Lobster Company, an underrated NYC waterside drinking alternative to Frying Pan and Grand Banks.

Also, this boat actually leaves the dock.  Don’t be scared though, it comes back after approximately forty five minutes on the Hudson.  The bane of some booze cruises is that you get trapped for three hours on an awkward boat with crap alcohol.  No worries of that on the North River Lobster Company boat.  It’s a super laid back environment and built to lounge with plenty of tables on multiples stories of both indoor and outdoor bars and seating.

Here are a couple of Thirsty pro tips to get the most out of the boat:

Take advantage of the sunset and sundown cruise.

They don’t kick you off after one outing.  If you get on right at sunset, you get the oranges and purples of the Manhattan sunset.  The boat comes back, docks for about 15-20 minutes, and then goes back out.  The city skyline at night gives you that whole other New York moment in a way a beautiful sunset can not.

Buy in bulk.

The bars get crowded at the times you are looking to level up with a drink, like before the boat departs and immediately after.  Going with the bottle of rosé, bucket of beers (they aren’t crappy beers), or pitchers of sangria is your best bet to start it off right. This way when you go back to the bar, the hubbub will have died down.

Once you have departed the bar tends to lighten up and you can indulge in a cocktail served in a charming mason jar and mildly excessive garnishes that you’ll still almost wish you had more of.  They are as sweet as they look, so just pick your neon color of choice and enjoy.

The Sweet Summer with  Conquistador tequila, watermelon, triple sec and fresh lime juice is pretty good.  You also can’t go wrong with the predictable refreshing – and sugary – Spiked Iced Tea ( you need to ask for the spike).

Whether you are looking to have a nautical girls’ night out, bro-out with the dudes, or enjoy a nice evening with your significant other, you will find a section of this vessel that was seemingly built out for each particular experience.  A polo, khaki, collar pop look is not essential and you won’t feel out place without one with this diverse crowd just looking for fun on the water.

North River Lobster Company Details