Amtrak has opened a full-service bar in NYC Penn Station, stocked with comfortable lounge chairs and a selection of craft beers, wines and cocktails.
Photo: Amtrak
It is the latest attempt to make the bright and airy billion-dollar MoynihanTrain Hall more appealing to commuters waiting for trains along the busy Northeast Corridor between Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, DC, and beyond, and also for local office workers passing through via the 34th St. subway station.
With its location in the Times Square/Theater District, the new Metropolitan Lounge is also a destination for pre-theater or post-theater refreshments.
The lounge is serving wine, cocktails, and craft beers from local breweries including Five Boroughs Brewing and Brooklyn Brewery.
Throughout the day, La Colombe coffee, salads, sandwiches, and “complimentary snacks” will also be available.
The Metropolitan Lounge is open seven days a week - but only to higher-tier Amtrak customers, including those with first-class tickets, and customers who buy day passes to the lounge.
As NY Eater reports, it’s a far cry from the sad bags of chips and burnt coffee that travelers up and down the East Coast find in-transit on busy routes between cities like New York, Washington, D.C., and Boston.
In the two years since Moynihan Train Hall opened - in the refurbished Beaux Arts Farley Post Office Building across Eighth Avenue from Penn Station - it has drawn am interesting collection of vendors including outposts of Brooklyn Brewery and Magnolia Bakery.
One of the latest additions is smoked salmon sandwiches from NYC’s 50-year-old bagel legend H&H Bagels, which opened an outpost at the train hall in December.
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