The Blue Seats
157 Ludlow St., New York, NY
Finding quality sports bars in NYC isn’t easy, especially when you don’t run in the backwards/upside down visor wearing crowd that thinks Brother Jimmy’s is the greatest place on earth. We love our sports here at Immaculate Infatuation and hold the sports bar to the same high standards we expect from our favorite sports teams. We realize that food is not the top of the pecking order, but some solid pub grub isn’t asking too much.
Expectations are as follows: We expect flat screens, everywhere, all in HD. We expect ample seating and enough personal space in the bar area to breathe. We expect game audio during big games, not “Living on a Prayer” on full blast. We expect a just say yes attitude as opposed to just say no (Ever been to Croxley Ales? You now understand). In addition to these obvious parameters, a fun crowd (even if that crowd includes a couple Philly or Boston fans, good for shit talking), a nice selection of beers on tap and most importantly, memorable food is what we’re looking for. Hot bartenders/waitresses always a plus.
The Blue Seats thrives off their obsessive attention to detail. Cushy booths that you need to reserve ahead of time house five personal screens, perfect for following all your fantasy players on Sundays. The bar area doesn’t get overly packed and big screens consume every available inch of wall space. Their private back room and skybox make for excellent large group hangs in case any given Sunday just so happens to be a special one worth splurging for. What keeps me coming back aside from the fact that the Jets seem to fare pretty well every time I go? Magic Hat #9 on tap (thankfully, not that rare in NYC anymore) and their sesame glazed wings which are ridiculous.
Food Rundown:
Buffalo Wings
A Buffalo wing epidemic still plagues NYC. The Blue Seats isn’t here to save the day, but these are more than serviceable for now. Ten wings for an even ten bucks and you get your moneys worth. Plump and meaty in a basic hot sauce, these wings won’t win any kind of competition, but will satisfy a craving.
Sesame Glazed Wings
Easily our favorite thing on the menu, these are not your typical Buffalo wings. Big and burley just like the Buffalo wings above, these wings are covered in an addicting, dark sesame glaze. Job well done on applying a nice twist to a basic dish. The sauce is so good you’ll need to order up an extra side.
Slider Tasting Plate
A nice variety of angus beef that’ll stuff you stupid. For $14, you get a sampling of the three best burgers The Blue Seats has to offer: The Blue Seats, Carolina and Good Morning burgers.
The Blue Seats Burger
If this was a place famous for their burgers we wouldn’t be writing about it. The burgers aren’t bad at all; they’re just not amazing either. As a side to your sports, they’re just what the doctor ordered. Blue Seats burger comes served with blue cheese, smoked bacon and oven roasted tomato.
The Good Morning Burger
Served with fried egg, house pickled onions and melted American cheese, it all sounds a bit better than it actually is. The beef lacks flavor, but the onions and egg help cover that up. It’s good enough and we’ll happily take this down.
The Carolina Burger
Now we’re talking. What better way to cover up flavorless burger meat than smothering it in pulled pork belly, melted cheddar and homemade red slaw. This is one messy monstrosity, but worth all the extra napkins.
