Restaurant Review : The Last Word, a Speakeasy in Astoria

On opening night, August 16, Lewis and I went to a hardware store for cocktails.

Quite an impressive resume, isn't it?  Boro magazine gave me that tip-off of a new "hidden" speakeasy.  

Here is the external appearance of The Last Word, a bar!

     Below, I snapped this picture, as we approached the entrance (notice that even the signage says "Hardware")!  So much detail was given to create a "transporting experience".  In fact, as we waited to enter (a true speakeasy "feel"), a passerby actually asked them if they were still open... because he needed to buy some nails.  hahaha!

Despite their "store windows", they don't sell nails.

But, even as you enter, they have a vestibule that REALLY looks like a hardware store!  Replete with an antique cash register, tools, and the smell of sawdust...

they even have a display for making keys!

     Standing there, a man asked us, "How can I help you?"  It continued the speakeasy vibe, because he didn't acknowledge the existence of the bar.  It makes the customer explain that they've come for drinks.  Once we said the word "cocktails", he smirked and lifted a velvet curtain, showing us the "magic behind the curtain": a long vintage-looking space.

     A tin ceiling, exposed brick walls, wood-planked floor, vintage light bulbs.  Leather club chairs cluster around candlelit marble tables.  Against the opposite wall, tufted sofas & chairs surround banquettes on soft carpet.  A similar seating area exists at the back of the big space, too.  In the middle is the centerpiece: the bar!  Opposite the long marble-topped bar is a ledge, where drinkers can put their stemware and handbags.  Ambiance lighting falls from an illuminated china hutch.  Once again, such attention to detail.  Even the ceiling fans above the bar are antique-looking!

True craftsmen, the mixologists craft each order.  Even the vigorous way they shake drinks involves a rhythm.  Maybe it's inspired by a quote from a 1934 sleuth film, "The Thin Man":

In advance, they make their own fruit juices, aromatic "sprays", and garnishes.  They source creative/organic bitters and herbal flavorings from far-flung places.    

Below, the bar is stocked to the hilt with unique bottles: spirits that I've never seen before.  Such effort and thoughtfulness is given to share a unique experience for customers.

I took this picture of a page from their menu...

I ordered the Smoking Jacket, and discovered that the "peat rinse" was a smokey herbal infusion, sprayed from a pump-bottle over the rim of my glass.  Such a great feel across the palate.  

Lewis ordered a tequila item from another page, and he savored each sip!  In fact, it was the bartender who inquired what kind of flavor/mood Lewis was in, and helped him discover the right drink to enhance it.  Just like a custom perfume "nose" might create a fragrance for their client.

For my second drink, I ordered "16 Shells from a 30 ought 6" (seen in the picture above) because I liked the unique name... and its flavor complemented my previous drink.  The lapsang souchong tea is smokey, and it balanced with the citrus and mix of sherry & amontillado.  A pinched orange rind gave a precise squirt of flavor upon the rim of my glass.  Then it was time to imbibe!

They even chisel the ice cubes that they need: large cubes for old-fashioned glasses, long tubes of ice to sit inside highball glasses.  Amazing to watch!  Stemware is cleverly kept chilled inside refrigerators.  Each drink takes several minutes to create, which is why 4 men were on duty, in addition to Mr. O'Brian.

Padraig O'Brian, seen below, is one of the masterminds behind this speakeasy, and he approached Lewis and I four times to be sure everything was excellent.  

All the bartenders resemble a mustachioed, tattooed, vintage appearance.  The cocktail waitresses are young, short-skirted beauties of varied nationalities (such is Astoria).  The food runners delivered snacks (we ordered the Parmesan crisps), and I understand that a more detailed menu will arrive soon. Meanwhile, the drinks will be in the spotlight, as they should.

We will definitely be back, bringing many friends!  

We will sweep through their doorway faster than they will ever sell a broom.

*Update: I overestimated the people in Astoria.  The owners had to remove the faux facade because people couldn't identify the bar!  What a shame.  Also, people in Astoria didn't appreciate the well-crafted mixology, so the menu was discarded.  Desperate to pay its always-increasing NYC rent, the bar eventually abandoned its chic ideals and merely started serving hamburger sliders and easy-to-make cocktails, while it added twice as many tables (with less mystique).  Thanks to American/NYC culture, it now looks like every other place.  This is not the situation in other countries.