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Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden

2919 24th Avenue, at 29th Street Transit: N, W to Astoria Blvd.

www.bohemianhall.com (718) 274-4925

The Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden looks like a prison from the outside, but inside lurks the most fun a Czech can have in New York City (or Astoria, to be more precise). Ringed by tall stone walls, this palatial beer garden offers European beers to go along with beef stroganoff, beef goulash and perogies, as well as just about every other combination of onions, milk, potatoes and cow you can imagine.

Upon entry to the hall, you’ll first encounter the spartanly-furnished bar, which may have folk music playing and basketball or boxing on the TV. Further in is the dining area, which, chockablock with light-colored tables and chairs, looks like the showroom for an unpainted furniture warehouse. But the real action is outside, where, when the weather’s good, hundreds of young Queens go-getters lurk, likely attractive and probably sauced. Ladies sport oversized white sunglasses, guys smoke cigarettes and wear designer tennies, and everyone sits at picnic tables atop concrete and gravel, drinking large mugs of imported lagers, pilsners and hefeweizens. It’s a typical beer garden—not fancy, but familial. At the center sits a large bandstand where, if you’re lucky, you’ll see performances by folks outfitted in traditional Bohemian garb. Think bonnets and bodices.

The building’s upstairs houses a Czech and Slovak school, not to mention a full-on dance floor complete with disco ball. (If you play your cards right, you might get the opportunity to learn some folk steps from resident children’s dance group Limborá ek-Limborá ik.) The space also offers an entertainment schedule sure to please Czech nationals and outer borough indie-rockers alike, including jazz shows, ping pong tournaments, low budget films and one-man plays.

Run by the Bohemian Citizens’ Benevolent Society of Astoria, Bohemian Hall is a hundred years old, and bills itself as the “last original remaining Beer Garden” in the city. Consider it your role as amateur international goodwill ambassador, then, to order up an extra Hoegaarden.

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