How the Warehouse District got its groove back

Happy Monday, Capital Region! Today we’re heading to Albany’s Warehouse District—home to the city’s hottest bars and its biggest eyesore. Yes, the Central Warehouse is still standing (somehow), but so are you, and you deserve a drink. Let’s gooooo!

—Phat X. Chiem & Karley Sullivan

Albany’s buzziest scene is in the Warehouse District

As some of you know, we run a highly rated Airbnb out of The 518 homebase—a beautifully maintained 1874 row house in Albany’s Mansion District.

Our out-of-town guests always want to know where to go to experience the best of Albany. We used to point them to Lark Street. Now we tell them to head to the Warehouse District.

There are signs everywhere that the hottest bar and dining scene in the city has migrated down to Broadway and surrounding streets.

Just a Bar opened at 438 N. Pearl St. a few weeks ago, the latest in a string of new drinking destinations that have landed in the neighborhood.

In May, The Real McCoy Beer Company opened its new Albany location in the Slip 12 complex at 21 Erie Blvd. 

Slip 12 itself is an $80 million sign of the times. The mixed-use redevelopment of the former Huck Finn’s Warehouse includes 274 beautifully designed industrial apartments, the PWR gym, Huck Finn Home, and ZONE 518, the Capital Region’s first virtual-reality theater.

“There’s a real vibrancy here,” says ZONE 518 co-owner Anna-Christina "Ace" Douglas. “They’re all young and hip professionals working in Albany. It’s just got a really cool energy. If I go out anywhere in the city—which is rare with four toddlers at home—it’s usually in the Warehouse District.”

Her favorite places to go out with her husband include Lost and Found Bar and Kitchen (which we also love), and Tanpopo Ramen and Sake Bar.

Ace says ZONE 518 has done well since it soft opened this summer (a ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for Sept. 18). Being located at Slip 12 is helping them to build buzz, and they expect even more visitors when the weather turns cold and they add fresh content this fall.

(Exclusively for our subscribers: Use promo code READTHE518 to get 10% off admission to ZONE 518!)

The Warehouse District really got going in the summer of 2023 when two anchor destinations opened within a few months and down the street from each other: Lionheart on the Green and Fidens Brewing Company. 

When we dropped into Lionheart a few weeks ago for a friend’s birthday party (heyyy Pheona), the place was packed with folks drinking draft beers and playing cornhole on the lawn.

Don’t forget other hotspots like Nine Pin, Druthers Brewing Company, Wolff's Biergarten, and The Copper Crow. Tucked away in an industrial section off Broadway, Thatcher St Pub is a hidden gem with a laidback, dive-y vibe.

Even the Central Warehouse is slated to come down next year, the surest sign yet that the neighborhood is on the up and up.

If we can’t have Lark Street (we know there are some folks trying really hard to make that corridor happen again), we can at least have the Warehouse District.

🧑‍🎓 On Wednesday, the Albany County Pine Hills Land Authority and its strategic redevelopment analyst will host the first of three “Reimagine Saint Rose” community visioning workshops, intended to gather public input and collaboratively chart a future for the shuttered campus. Location: Former Lally School of Education, 1009 Madison Ave. Time: 5-6:30p. Full details here.

📵 This is the first academic year that New York State’s cellphone ban will be implemented in most school districts. You can check your school’s smartphone policy at this website: ny.gov/phonefree. [WAMC]

🍦Here’s a scoop for you: Delmar is getting a new ice cream shop! Inspired by her time working at Jim’s Tastee Freez, Cara Bashant is opening up Delmar Scoop at Delmar’s Four Corners, 389 Kenwood Ave. The shop will serve up classic and creative hard ice cream flavors. Here’s the kicker: It’s going to be open year-round, including the winter months 🥶 

🌶️ To celebrate National Fajita Day today (who knew?), Las Margaritas in Slingerlands is offering a buy one fajita dish, get the 2nd half off special, plus get free churros all day. Also, Trivia Night is 7-9p tonight!

🎈Save the date: The Adirondack Balloon Festival is coming to Queensbury, Lake George, on Sept. 18-21.

A word from our sponsor

When New Scotland Spirits last released its bonded bourbon in 2022, it was an aged 5-year whiskey distilled from corn, wheat, and malted barley harvested in 2017. But after ratcheting up gold-medal recognition in the Beverage Testing Institute’s annual competition, New Scotland opted to give this spirit even more time to develop its award-winning profile.

Three years later, New Scotland Spirits is re-releasing its “Helderberg Bourbon, Bottled-in-Bond” — now as an aged 8-year whiskey, but still boasting the 100-proof ABV as legally mandated by its “bonded” distinction. 

Despite the high proof, Helderberg Bonded Bourbon is incomprehensibly smooth, with notes of caramel, toffee, and butterscotch. This extremely limited release is only available at the New Scotland Spirits Tasting Room and at the company’s booth at area farmers markets. So make your way down to Lark Street, or support your local farmers market!

Tucked along a quiet Nassau road in Rensselaer County, this meticulously updated 1800s farmhouse blends historic charm with modern craftsmanship. Arrive via mowed paths through wildflower meadows to a home featuring a DaVinci slate roof, copper gutters, and clapboard siding. Inside, light pours through new insulated windows, illuminating a chef’s kitchen with stone counters, dovetail cabinetry, and top-tier appliances. The open dining area, cozy living room with stone fireplace, and garden room overlooking stone patios offer both elegance and comfort. Upstairs, four bedrooms and smart built-ins maximize space. Nearly two acres of artfully designed gardens, stone walls, a potting shed, and a fire pit provide serene, private country living, all within 30 minutes from Albany, Chatham, and the Berkshires.

The deets: 3 bd, 2 ba, 2216 sf, 1.8 acres. Asking: $645,000. Days on market: 4. See the full listing here.

Our full weekend roundup publishes every Thursday. Be sure to check your inboxes!

🎨 On Wednesday, 518 Art Jam invites you to connect and co-create with other artists at its Art Jam Collab, at the Larkin Hi-Fi.

🎬️ Also Wednesday, Capitol Park After Dark Movie Series screens the cult classic, “The Princess Bride.”

🧑‍🚀 The Cohoes Public Library puts on Astronaut Summer Camp, a free event for ages 6+ on Wednesday. Registration is required.

🚴‍♂️ On Thursday, Beers, Bikes & Barges is your chance to tour downtown Troy by bike with the Erie Canal Museum and Hart Cluett Museum!

🍺 Also Thursday, The Arts Center of the Capital Region and Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce invite you to their End of Summer Sip, featuring craft food and beverage tastings, live music and plenty of networking.

📚️ On Friday, The Hive invites you to its Grow-Up Book Sale at Wolf Hollow Brewing Co.

🦉Also Friday, the Utica ZooMobile returns to the Arkell Museum and Canajoharie Library for a free event.

💃 The Albany Latin Festival takes over Washington Park on Saturday.

🖼️ Also Saturday, get to Mabee Farm for its Arts & Crafts Festival.

🎸 In Troy, the Powers Park Concert Series is putting on its season finale on Saturday with a special all-day event, which includes the Adirondack Muscle Car Show.

🐕️ Think your pup is runway ready? Bring them to the Dapper Dog: Pet Fashion & Talent Event at the Clinton Market Collective on Saturday.

🎸 The Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy puts on its first-ever Trail Tunes music festival at Bender Melon Farm Preserve in Slingerlands. It’s free!

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