Grub Maps

Where to Eat and Drink on Labor Day (With a Map!)

Maison Premiere hosts an oyster-eating competition.
Maison Premiere hosts an oyster-eating competition. Photo: Melissa Hom

Hard to believe, but this weekend marks our final hurrah with summer, a last chance to don our finest whites, slurp oysters alfresco with abandon, and let the berry juice run down our chins (well, maybe not while wearing white). If you haven’t managed plans for getting out of town, fear not: Grub’s got you covered with edible and potable fun, from crab boils to garden parties to “blunch.” Read on for ideas.


MexiQ Kitchen & Draught will combine breakfast and lunch favorites for a special “Blunch” menu on Labor Day; think French toast and MexiQ’s Hangover Cure paired with their signature burger. Make it a boozy Blunch for an extra $9, which will get you unlimited Bloody Marys, mimosas, and Mexican beers.

Pizza Roma, in the former Zito & Sons Bakery space, keeps a Zito tradition alive by offering discount bread on Labor Day ($1 bread and foccacia).

From noon to 8 p.m. this Labor Day, you can eat barbecue, drink specialty cocktails, and listen to house music at Maison Premiere. But the real draw is the Oyster Eating Competition, where competitors will challenge the current record holder for the Maison Premiere Championship belt (and serious bragging rights). $50 entry fee per person; RSVP before 4 p.m. on Saturday, September 3 to compete.

Start your Labor Day weekend early at Back Forty this Friday, September 2, for the last day of Crab Week 2011. Tickets are $40 per person, and will get you a pile of Blue Claw Crabs, sides like cornbread and potatoes, and pitchers of Sixpoint Crisp Lager.

Although Bark Hot Dogs Pier 6 concession will return to a weekend-only schedule at the end of the summer, the rooftop space will be open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Labor Day, serving food until 10 p.m. Toast to the extended hours with wine on tap from the Gotham Project or cans of Sixpoint beer. Bark Hot Dogs’ Bergen Street location will also be open on Monday, from noon to 10 p.m.

If you’re looking for a more low-key day off with some classic Labor Day grilling, make a trip to Dickson’s Farmstand Meats at Chelsea Market this weekend.

… or if you just want to sit back and let a pro do the grilling on Monday, head over to RUB in Chelsea or its recently opened Long Island outpost (2367 Hempstead Turnpike) for some ribs and fried Oreos.

Morrell Wine Bar & Café boasts a 2,000-bottle list and 100 by-the-glass selections, plus an outdoor terrace that will serve lunch until 3 p.m. on Labor Day.

Score an outdoor table at Wallsé this Monday, and enjoy alfresco dining and specials like chilled cucumber and sour cream soup with Arctic char tartar and mint before the summer’s end.

Trattoria Dopo Teatro will offer dinner specials featuring red snapper or grilled lamb chops this Labor Day, served with a complimentary glass of wine.

Don’t miss Fishtail’s “Last Call” three-course summer menu, available from Friday, September 2 through Monday, September 5. The $39 per person menu will feature East End Lobster, watermelon shooters, appetizers paired with sangria, and David Burke’s new BBQ Peach beer, among other summery offerings.

Where to Eat and Drink on Labor Day (With a Map!)