Boardy Barn returning to NYC this summer as pop-up party
The Boardy Barn's summer Sunday afternoon parties were a mainstay in Hampton Bays from 1970 to 2021. Credit: James Carbone
If you’ve spent any of the past 50 summers partying in the Hamptons, you have been to the Boardy Barn, the raucous, rowdy, never-ending kegger that made summer Sundays on the East End a rite of passage, of sorts. Although the party of “friends from all over” ended in 2021, the nostalgia is being revived at a weekly pop-up party at Houston Hall in Manhattan.
Beginning Sunday, July 14 — and every Sunday through Labor Day — from 2 to 8 p.m., Houston Hall is recreating Boardy Barn's messy, sweaty, festive atmosphere. From beer served in plastic cups to the singalong renditions of “American Pie” and “Sweet Caroline” to the vibrant, yellow smiley-face stickers of yesteryear, the kitsch factor will be on full display.
“People are so passionate about this brand. One of our customers has a tattoo of our smiley face,” said Tommy Cannu, a former Boardy Barn employee who is organizing the throwback pop-up party.
Opened in 1970 in Hampton Bays by Tony Galgano Jr. and Mickey Shields, Boardy Barn was beloved for its no-frills, fun-loving Sunday afternoon soirees. Hearkening back to the simpler time before cellphones and social media, the venue's iconic smiley face stickers were a symbol of friendship and inclusion that patrons plastered all over their bodies. The tradition endured through the generations, from young Boomers to old Gen-Xers.
Houston Hall — a massive beer hall on Houston Street — will showcase “about 1,200 to 1,300 photos” from all five decades of the Barn’s parties on its walls, Cannu said. Consider it a visual scavenger hunt down Memory Lane. Can you spot your mom in a midriff-baring kerchief tank? Or maybe you’ll find your dad with ratty hair and an AC/DC shirt hitting on someone that’s, um … not your mom? Patrons can expect "cheap" beer and hot dogs, Cannu said. A cover charge for admission has not been finalized yet.
Cannu began working at the Barn when he was a kid, cleaning parking lots and bathrooms before becoming a bartender. Galgano, who died in 2021, “was like my other dad,” he said.
Boardy Barn Sundays at Houston Hall, 222 W. Houston St., Manhattan; 2 to 8 p.m. Sundays through Labor Day. Cover charge to be determined, boardybarn.com.
A global freelancer who has checked her suitcase to raise her young daughter on her native Long Island, Marie Elena will always make time for good mezcal, even better tacos and killer conversation. Preferably, in a corner bar seat. She can be found on Instagram at @mariesworldeats.
