Out of the Pocket: Award-Winning Bar Unzips Plans for New Hell’s Kitchen Location This Summer

Hell’s Kitchen’s award-winning Pocket Bar is expanding with a new location, Pocket Bar 57, this summer, promising more intimate, pocket-sized fun for the neighborhood.

Owner Suzy Darling, the mind behind Pocket Bar and Back Pocket Bar, told W42ST that plans are underway for a third location, Pocket Bar 57, which she hopes to open this summer on W57th Street between 9th and 10th Avenue in the space previously occupied by technical equipment and educational nonprofit the Loyalty Foundation (the organization is still up and running but has since moved away a brick-and-mortar model). Darling and the Pocket Bar(s) team, known for their signature rosé on tap and Gotham Wines, frozen Aperol spritz and free popcorn plan to build upon the fervent following and local enthusiasm for the brand — which bested the stiff competition to win W42ST’s Best of Awards 2022 for Best Bar at the annual reader awards. 

In fact, it was their victory at the community awards ceremony that sprung the opportunity for a new Pocket Bar, Suzy said. “The cool thing is that the gentleman from the Loyalty Foundation, David Neeman, saw us accept our award. He told me, ‘I don’t think that when Spain won the World Cup, they celebrated as much as you did.’ He wanted to know who these people were with this immense amount of excitement and passion for this place — so he came to us and offered us the space.”  

The reach-out was a serendipitous one — Darling had long wanted to expand Pocket Bar’s reach in the neighborhood but had yet to find the right kind of space for the cozy, intimate bar she wanted to create. “I had been looking at other spaces for at least a couple of years,” she told W42ST. “It has to be a very particular spot — we try to set up somewhat on the side street, with a square shape, which is hard to find,” she added. When they saw the W57th Street space, the stars aligned — giving Suzy the chance to expand north to a quickly evolving part of the neighborhood. “57th is such a great street,” she told us, adding: “we had been approached by a lot of people who live at The Max and VIA that are regulars at Pocket who said, ‘Please open something by us!” 

In addition to being convenient to Central Park and Columbus Circle, Darling also welcomes the opportunity to connect with the many performers she’s known from her years as a Radio City Rockette. “The Actors Fund building [The Dorothy Ross Friedman Residence] is next door, so I know a lot of the residents,” said Suzy. “I was over there for the demo and I kept running into people where I was like, “Oh my God, I didn’t know you lived here! I didn’t know you lived here! It’s so great to see performers at all stages of their lives and all stages of their careers who live right next door.” 

There will also be some familiar faces behind the bar at Pocket Bar 57, including fan favorites Monique, Matis, and “OG Pocket Bar” bartender Megan, said Suzy. “Megan is the backbone of our place — and her playlists are killer!” said Suzy. 

And while many of the bar’s much-loved menu items will be on the docket at W57th Street, there will be some new items exclusive to the brand’s newest outpost. In addition to potential piña coladas and “Wendy’s-style” frosties — “emphasis on style, I don’t want to get sued!” laughed Suzy — Pocket Bar 57 will open mid-morning for on-tap cold brew before cocktails. 

Suzy anticipates that Pocket Bar 57 will soon take on a life of its own, she told W42ST. “What’s so cool is that even between Back Pocket and Pocket Bar — which are only one short block apart — each has its own community and vibe,” she said. “We have ‘Pocket-hoppers’ who do go between both, but each bar really has its own feel. I’m excited to see what kind of vibe W57th Street gets, because it always takes on its own life.” 

For now, she’s looking forward to welcoming old and new friends to the next Pocket with their trademark eccentricity and style. “We’ve always had a teacup pig that people can hold and take a pictures with, and it will be back!” declared Suzy.

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And most of all, she’s happy to continue the legacy of community support and connection started by her predecessors. “We are going to have a beer on tap where a percentage of proceeds will go to the Loyalty Foundation,” said Suzy. “I’m very passionate about their program and we want to continue their amazing work!” 

Pocket Bar 57 will be located at 469 W57th Street and is slated to open later this summer — you can keep up with the progress on their Instagram!