Barcade Brooklyn – one of my favourite places

I’ve been to New York plenty of times by now between leisure, work and events, so much so that I tend to avoid staying in Manhattan altogether now, or if I do I tend to stay in the south and as far away from Times Square as possible.

There’s nothing wrong with Times Square, it’s just incredibly busy and I’ve reached a point where the big tourist traps are all ‘been there, done that’.

One of the times I visited New York, I spent a week there and booked two hotels, well, one hotel in Manhattan, then to save some cash and explore nearby areas I booked an AirBNB in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Brooklyn is close enough that I can hop on the tube to Manhattan if I felt the need, but also offers some out of the major city experiences.

I actually love Williamsburg, and its where I would choose to stay any time I was visiting New York now. One of the reasons for this is Barcade.

Barcades are pretty common these days, you know the concept – Take a bar, add some arcade machines, fun for drinkers and nerds alike! This was the first iteration of that concept I’d come across at the time, and as such holds a special place in my heart. A lot of Barcade type things in the UK (a-hem NQ64) are incredibly dark and crowded and honestly, don’t offer the best selection of drinks.

Barcade Brooklyn stands out in the fact that it’s a genuine beer house with local and import beers and ales. They have a rotating menu so there’s always something new to try. It’s considerably more roomy than any other bar/arcade mix I’ve been to.

Williamsburg, to me, is what Manchester’s Northern Quarter is to Manchester, but to New York. It’s that little quieter, more unique and hipster area that’s currently undergoing rapid redevelopment and causing a bit of a hustle and bustle for itself. There’s a bunch of great little independent stores and restaurants to try.

If you ever find yourself in Brooklyn, seek this one out!