Brooklyn bar, The Richardson, recently celebrated its 15th anniversary this month by hosting a night of drink specials and entertainment for all of the cheerful patrons in attendance.
Throughout the evening’s festivities, attendees indulged in celebratory $9 cocktail deals in honor of the milestone achievement.
While sipping down refreshing Manhattans and Negronis, guests were treated to a live musical performance from Brooklyn-based band, Luca & the Leftovers.
In addition to moving and grooving to the live entertainment, bar attendees also had the opportunity to break out the cues for a lively pool tournament in the bar’s Billiards room.
Established in 2008 in Greenpoint, The Richardson has become synonymous with date nights, weekends with friends and nightcaps within the community.
Back when Greenpoint was mainly an industrial space, The Richardson’s owner and manager, Joel Lee Kulp, said he had a vision as to the kind of bar he wanted to develop in the area.
“The Richardson was always to be a ‘Proper American Bar.’ It was born of a time of the trend of compartmentalization in bars — cocktails were served in 'cocktail bars,' beer in ‘beer bars’ and forget about trying to order a glass of wine if you were not in a ‘wine bar’ or a restaurant,” said Kulp.
“The Richardson was never about reinventing the wheel, but rather establishing a long-term neighborhood bar that could serve all, properly. Not done fancy, just done right — this has been our motto from day one.”
With 15 years under its belt, and plans for 15 more, what has been the key to The Richardson’s success? Well, Kulp says that he credits the bar’s accomplishments to the comradery and passion of his team, and sticking to the core values that were established in 2008.
“Most of what I do, most of the time that I put into The Richardson, is building and maintaining our team,” said Kulp.
“In an industry that can often feel transient, we have been lucky to maintain our working relationships for a very long time, with multiple bartenders putting in 10-plus years at The Richardson. Good people behind the bar ensure good people sitting in the barstools — the essence of a great bar community.”
