Bar Talk: Prospect Bar & Grill On Their First South Slope Year

Congratulations are in order for Johnny Griffin, John Bermingham, Sean O’ Rourke, and Peter Egan, owners of Prospect Bar and Grill (545 5th Avenue, between 14th and 15th Street), as they mark the bar’s one year anniversary this week. We sat down with Johnny to talk about their first year in business, and (most importantly) the big party plans for this weekend.

SSN: First of all, tell me a bit about yourselves. Do you also live in South Slope?
JG: All four of us have been friends for a long time and we have been in the bar business for over 20 years, but this is our first project together. I’ve 2 other bar/restaurants in Manhattan (Souths and 11th Street Bar), and my partners have two in Williamsburg (Matt Torey’s and Harefield Road), but none of us live in South Slope.

Did you have your eyes set on a business in South Slope, or were you looking at other neighborhoods?
Yes, South Slope was on our looking list as was Prospect Heights, Clinton Hill, and Bed Stuy, but we’re real happy we found this place.

How did you come up with the name Prospect?
We were scratching our heads for a while regarding the name. We researched history, geography, etc of the neighborhood, and then one day my partner John said, ‘Why don’t you call it Prospect?.’ Once we opened we added ‘Bar & Grill.’

What was the opening like?
Opening night was great! Friends, family, and neighborhood people showed up and everyone got hammered.

We’re big fans of your brunch (and can’t wait to stop by for dinner). Did you guys know from the beginning that Prospect would be a bar and grill?
My partners own Harefield Road in Williamsburg and they have a very busy brunch at the weekends so we used the same menu. We soon realized that we needed to open for dinner as well, so after a few months we hired a young, energetic chef named Anthony Lanci. He put together a nicely rounded start-up menu, and so far most of the feedback has been very positive.

What does the future have in store for Prospect?
Like any business we would like to be around for a very long time serving good quality food and drinks, and being a good neighbor to the community in South Slope. It’s hard to believe that we have been open for a year already.

Tell us about the big anniversary party!
In conjunction with our anniversary (Saturday, July 13), Crys Duncan and DJ Ben Carlin will be hosting Cruel Summer ’80s thriller party. We will also be offering drink specials which include well drinks, draft beer, tap wine, and ’80s cocktails, and we will be serving a complimentary buffet (10pm -midnight).

Photo via Prospect Bar and Grill