Sunny's Bar

Last updated

Sunny's Bar
Sunny's Bar (47976384708).jpg
Sunny's Bar
Restaurant information
Established1890
OwnerTone Balzano Johansen
Location253 Conover St, New York City, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Coordinates 40°40′33″N74°01′01″W / 40.6757°N 74.0169°W / 40.6757; -74.0169
Website www.sunnysredhook.com

Sunny's Bar (often referred to as "Sunny's") is a historic bar in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York City. [1] Founded in 1890, it became a cultural hub under owner Antonio "Sunny" Balzano in the 1990s, and is known for live music and community gatherings. [2] [3] After closing due to damage from Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the bar reopened in 2013 and currently operates under Balzano's widow, Tone Balzano Johansen. [4] [5]

Contents

History

The business dates to 1890, when it opened in Red Hook as John’s Bar and Restaurant, serving sailors, stevedores, and other waterfront workers. It remained in the Balzano family for decades; Antonio “Sunny” Balzano was born and raised in the adjacent upstairs apartment. [2] [6]

As cargo operations left Red Hook in the late 20th century, the daytime bar drew fewer longshoremen and a growing number of artists and other newcomers; by the 1980s and early 1990s, it had become a meeting place for both long-time residents and recent arrivals. [6] [7]

After the death of his uncle in 1994, Balzano assumed control and limited hours to occasional nights, encouraging performances and informal gatherings. [2] In the later 1990s the bar operated as the "Red Hook Yacht and Kayak Club," in which patrons marked their own tabs and paid roughly $3 per drink as a "donation". [4] [6] [8] In 2001 authorities required the business to close over licensing issues; it obtained a new liquor license and formally reopened in 2002. [6] [8]

The bar sustained extensive flooding and structural damage during Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, leading to a lengthy closure and fundraising to repair the building. It reopened in September 2013. [4] [9]

Balzano died in 2016 at age 81. [2] [10] Following a legal and community fundraising effort to keep the property from being sold, his widow, Tone Balzano Johansen, secured control of the building in 2017, and the bar remained open. [11] [12] [13]

Operations and features

Sunny's hosts frequent live music in its back room, including bluegrass, folk, and jazz sessions. [6] [14] The bar has been noted for a weekly bluegrass jam associated with owner Tone Balzano Johansen and for its role as a gathering place for artists and neighbors. [7] [15] Food and drinks are limited and unelaborate, with coverage emphasizing the bar's memorabilia-filled interior, cash-only service, and informal atmosphere. [8] [14] [16]

Reception

New York Magazine includes Sunny's in its citywide bar guide, describing it as a "century-old" Red Hook mainstay and assigning it a high editors' score. [1] Condé Nast Traveler lists Sunny's among the best Brooklyn venues for live music. [15]

Writer Tim Sultan's memoir Sunny's Nights: Lost and Found at a Bar on the Edge of the World portrays the bar and its community. [17] [18] [19]

In 2023, media reported a documentary project about the bar by filmmaker Nick Fitzhugh. [20] [21]

In 2024, The New Yorker covered "The Wind and the Rain," a play set at Sunny's during Hurricane Sandy, staged on a nearby barge. [22]

References

  1. 1 2 "Sunny's". New York Magazine. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Sultan, Tim (March 15, 2016). "A Beloved Brooklyn Bartender Takes His Leave". The New Yorker. ISSN   0028-792X . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  3. ↑ Sultan, Tim (February 19, 2016). "Sunny's Bar, a Spiritual Holdout in Red Hook (Published 2016)". The New York Times . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 Del Signore, John (August 20, 2013). "Red Hook Bar Sunny's Finally Reopens Next Week, 10 Long Months After Sandy". Gothamist. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  5. ↑ Holtermann, Gabriele (June 11, 2025). "Sunny's Bar in Red Hook defies odds, recognized for inspiring disaster comeback". Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sunnys Bar (formerly Johns Bar)". City Lore. City Lore. April 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  7. 1 2 O'Neill, Natalie (November 10, 2011). "A tribute to the Sunny behind a great Red Hook bar". Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 McIntyre, Leslie. "Sunny's Bar". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  9. ↑ Evans, Lauren (April 18, 2013). "Sunny's Bar In Red Hook Has Sights Set On June Reopening". Gothamist. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  10. ↑ Dai, Serena (March 11, 2016). "Sunny Balzano of Beloved Red Hook Bar Sunny's Passes Away at 81". Eater NY. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  11. ↑ Colon, David (July 26, 2017). "Beloved Red Hook Bar Sunny's Is Officially Saved". Gothamist. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  12. ↑ Gill, Lauren (June 16, 2017). "Sunny's saved! Red Hook bar raises enough money to stay open". Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  13. ↑ Wetherall, Tyler (March 3, 2017). "Sunny Balzano's Widow is the One-Woman Force Keeping Sunny's Alive". BKMAG. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Sunny's - Review - Red Hook - New York". The Infatuation. January 21, 2022. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  15. 1 2 Carington, Francesca (September 12, 2022). "The 7 Best Bars for Live Music in Brooklyn". Condé Nast Traveler. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  16. ↑ Sultan, Tim (January 12, 2016). "Why Sunny's is Everyone's Favorite Brooklyn Fisherman's Dive Bar". Saveur. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  17. ↑ Sultan, Tim (2016). Sunny's Nights: Lost and Found at a Bar on the Edge of the World. New York: Random House. ISBN   978-1-4000-6727-5 . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  18. ↑ "Sunny's Nights: Lost and Found at a Bar on the Edge of the World by Tim Sultan". www.publishersweekly.com. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  19. ↑ Barry, Rebecca (February 23, 2016). "'Sunny's Nights,' by Tim Sultan (Published 2016)". The New York Times . Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  20. ↑ "Brooklyn filmmaker wants your memories of Sunny's Bar". Brooklyn Magazine. February 15, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  21. ↑ Sutherland-Namako, Amber (February 14, 2023). "Here's how to contribute to a documentary about one of NYC's most iconic bars". Time Out New York. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
  22. ↑ Soloski, Alexis (October 14, 2024). "A Play About a Bar, on a Barge Next to the Bar". The New Yorker. Retrieved September 19, 2025.
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