By: Jerimiah Rivera
Halloween arrived early in the East Village when Beetle House, a Tim Burton themed bar opened on 308 East 6th Street. Beetle House is owned by Chris Neil and Brian Link who are also the duo responsible for opening Stay Class, a popular Will Ferrell themed bar that opened this past fall.
A banner with the description “An odd and unusual atmosphere draped in mystery and fun, cornered by devilish drinks and heavenly food,” welcomes guest who could not wait to enter Beetle House.
According to a statement on Beetle Bar’s official Facebook page, the bar was created as an homage to Tim Burton and his films.
“We are in no way affiliated with Tim Burton, Warner Brothers or any other affiliate of the movie studios, we are an independently owned and operated bar and restaurant run by some super fans of Tim Burton, Horror films and all things Halloween. We have USED our own artistic adaptation to create food and drinks that we believe are inspired by and inspire this type of art.”
The dishes are accompanied by a cocktail menu of 18 custom made “poisons, potions and elixirs.” Some cocktail names include the Headless Horseman which is made with Hendricks gin, Lillet blanc, Cointreau, absinthe, lemon. Another cocktail is named This Is Halloween! which is made with pumpkin, cinnamon and apple liqueurs, apple cider, ginger beer.
When it comes to food, guests are able to snag themselves the Edward Burger Hands, which includes, “organic ground bison, organic smoked bacon, pepper jack, quail egg, Sriracha cream, avocado tomato, honey garlic bun.” Or, you can pay homage to Beetlejuice and get the Beetle House Fish Bowl, which sounds like the meal from the movie when everyone sang “Day Oh!” The bowl comes with Creole style Shrimp, scallop clam and white fish, cooked in a spicy slightly sweet red broth served over rice with sautéed veggies and corn bread.”
“I had a great time,” said Danielle Trupiano-Rodriguez, a Brooklyn native. “Beetlejuice was an awesome host, running around the whole bar greeting everyone.”
Trupiano-Rodriguez went on to say that the themed drinks at Beetle House are pretty good in price range. She spent around $14 dollars on a drink called The Bio-Exorcism which is made up of cucumber lime and Gin.
“I suggest they should totally do a movie night in the future” she said.
Although reservations are required in order for guest to eat, the atmosphere of Beetle House has been described as friendly and welcoming. Guest are surrounded by Tim Burton fan art of all his movies throughout his career. A soundtrack consisting of music from Tim Burton’s films mixed with some 80’s pop and rock classics plays while guest socialize.
“I loved it,” said Karla Armaza, a Queens native. “The food and drinks are great. It was definitely worth the long wait.”
In its first week Beetle House allowed text reservations but due to the overwhelming excitement from fans, guest must now reserve their tables on Beetlehousenyc.com.
“The venue is beautiful, the staff is friendly and well dressed, and the food was tasty,” said Lady Zombie, a New York Goth Culture Examiner. “It’s not a cheap date place, but it’s worth a splurge for a fun themed night out for any Goth or Tim Burton fan.”
