Fresh on the heels of their Austin, Texas, launch party earlier this week at South by Southwest, the Thrillist crew returned to NYC to celebrate St. Patty's day in grand fashion.
Settling up shop at ginormous Chelsea sports bar The Ainsworth and getting the festivities rolling at the sensible hour of 3 p.m., the man-guide offered a seven-hour(!) open bar of Bushmills and Guinness, tag-teaming DJs and even some good ol' Irish step dancing.
"St. Patrick's Day is a very Thrillist-style holiday," co-founder Ben Lerer said outside the venue, taking in the balmy night in a light corduroy blazer. "It's just a day to let loose and have a great time and we like that."
So do Thrillist's readers, friends and family apparently. While certainly acting more civilized than the legions of lushes who congested 6th Avenue earlier in the day, guests let loose inside. Outside, the party's line spanned nearly the entire block. Event planners had hoped that the marathon length of the party would accommodate two waves of revelers, but with ample booze, entertainment and a tight door policy that ensured the space never got overcrowded, most guests stayed for the long haul. Talk about commitment!
Considering the imbibing afoot, Thrillist had to enforce some mandatory timeouts for the safety of everyone's booze-greedy liver.
"We're taking breaks where they're shutting the bar down for 15 minutes every few hours to make sure people have enough time to drink some water and reestablish themselves as human beings," Lerer said.
With the amount of socializing they’ve been promoting lately, not to mention an ever-expanding empire (a London edition is set to launch soon), you’d think Thrillist basked in their own glory last night, but Lerer is already gearing up for summer.
“Big Hamptons party this summer. It'll be a pool party, It will be wild” the affable head honcho assured Niteside. Heck, we’re already packing our swimming trunks.
