Lucky 13 Owners To Celebrate New Brooklyn Voodoo Lounge With Grand Opening Party On Friday
When Brooklyn Voodoo Lounge quietly opened a few weeks ago, it did so really quietly, in fact — which is a bit different from how the space’s predecessor, Lucky 13 Saloon, used to do things. So it might come to some surprise to neighbors in the area — some of whom complained about the rowdy crowd the former bar would attract — to know that the new New Orleans-inspired spot is actually run by the same owners.
Melody Henry, who opened Lucky 13 on 13th Street with Jeff Blanchard about 12 years ago before moving the heavy metal bar to Gowanus this past fall, tells us the new space in some ways reflects how she’s changed in that time.
“We’re trying to keep it quiet now — there’s no heavy metal,” Henry says of the new Voodoo Lounge. “This is like the adult version of Lucky 13. We opened Lucky 13 in 2003, and I’m a lot older now. I don’t really love dive bars anymore. When I go out I want to get a really nice, interesting, well-made cocktail. So this is the other side of us, the grown-up side.”
The bar has had more than just a makeover to its perspective. Inside, where Dixieland jazz plays over the speakers and purple and gold adorn most surfaces, the bar looks like a whole new space. Blanchard did most of the work by hand, from the booths to the roof over the bar, using wood left over from building the new Lucky 13. The men’s room (which Henry says was “the most disgusting bathroom on earth, even though we cleaned it regularly — men are just disgusting!”) was removed to add more cozy seating, the ceiling was broken down and opened up to reveal even more airy height, and the best seats in the house are next to a fake fireplace, which is indeed actually warm — a great spot for settling in with a cocktail on a frigid February night.
And you’ll certainly want to try one of the cocktails from their creative menu, all around $11-$13. There are the quintessential New Orleans drinks, the Sazerac and the Vieux Carré, plus Mai Tais served in tiki glasses, and one cocktail named in honor of the neighborhood: The South Slope.
They’ve also got some nice wines and interesting beers, including two by New Orleans’ Abita on draft, and one familiar liquor to Lucky 13 fans remains — Voodoo Lounge has an absinthe menu, and even lovely glass absinthe dripper up on the bar, which was something they had to avoid in the old space.
“We couldn’t do it at Lucky 13 because it would have gotten smashed,” says Henry, who, in addition to creating a much mellower version of the old space, has brought us a taste of a city that’s got a special place in her heart, as well.
“I love New Orleans,” she says. “I go there every year and have a lot of friends there. I would open a bar there if I didn’t know that there’s a lot of corruption, and really it would be impossible to run from here. So this was my way of kind of getting New Orleans in here without actually having to move to Louisiana.”
They’ll not only be celebrating the biggest New Orleans holiday, Mardi Gras, at the bar — be sure to keep tabs on their Facebook page for details — but they’re also hoping neighbors will stop by to check out the new space at a grand opening party this Friday, February 13. So swing by, escape to the south for a bit, and welcome the new space to the neighborhood!
Brooklyn Voodoo Lounge is located at 273 13th Street, just off 5th Avenue. They open at 5pm Monday-Friday, and 2pm Saturdays and Sundays.