1 PIERROT BISTRO (28 Avenue B; 212-673-1999) has a charmingly ragtag outdoor patio tucked into a vacant Alphabet City parking lot. From 3 to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, a D.J. spins ambient
trip-hop.
2 Head back to the spacious Mediterranean-inspired garden at MOOZA (191 Orchard Street; 212-982-4770), snag a seat by the fountain, order a champagne cocktail – and glibly dismiss those who would have you believe the Lower East Side has become too trendy.
3 BISTROT MARGOT (26 Prince Street; 212-274-1027), in NoLIta, is a caboose of a restaurant with a pebble-floored backyard made extra-quaint by the presence of rusting antique advertising placards for French aperitifs you’ve never heard of. Only beer and wine are served here – a shortcoming quickly forgotten after a few kir royales.
4 BRAQUE (775 Washington Street; 212-255-0709), located beneath a West Village photography studio, is open only from May through September, and since it’s covered, but open-sided, it’s a perfect place to sip a margarita during a summer shower.
5 THE HUDSON (356 West 58th Street; 212-554-6000), with its elaborate rooftop garden – ersatz jungle vegetation and funky seats (if you can get one) – may be the swankest place in the city for outdoor imbibing. (And FYI, should you need a place to recuperate after an excessive evening: The Hudson now serves weekend brunch.)
6 The drinks at THE PEN-TOP BAR IN THE PENINSULA HOTEL (700 Fifth Avenue; 212-956-2888) will set you back a brisk $15 a pop, but the God’s-eye view of Manhattan will remind you why you’re not on the ramshackle front porch of some Delaware beach house.
7 YABBY (265 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn; 718-384-1664) is a Williamsburg hepcat watering hole inside a gutted auto-body shop. The concrete patio out front is spruced up with red-and-blue strobe lights and kitschy upholstery.
8 BOHEMIAN PARK (29-19 24th Avenue, Astoria; 718-274-4925) is a 91-year-old enclosed garden, shaded over with oak trees, with a stellar selection of $3.75 Bavarian brews.
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