We went to the U.S. with a clear agenda: time at the factory in New Jersey, alignment sessions with Krowne, and continued work around what this partnership will become long term. The schedule was structured around production walkthroughs, technical discussions and mapping the next steps together.
The work was important and focused.
But the real context always happens outside the meeting room.
Our days moved between New Jersey and Manhattan, between factory floors and bar counters, client visits and late dinners. In between conversations and walkthroughs, we observed. We watched teams in motion, paid attention to lighting and service flow, and experienced how different rooms carry energy across the night.
This is that side of the trip.
Across the week we moved through a wide cross-section of the city’s hospitality scene, balancing client visits with broader industry stops. At our client Len-Len, the bar anchors a high-energy room with a clear presence. At Undercote, lighting and material choices define the atmosphere. McSorley’s Old Ale House was simply cool to experience in person, a historic institution that still draws a full room. Schmuck reflects the current wave of concept-led bars with a sharp identity and confident direction.
At our client Coqodaq, one of the city’s most in-demand reservations and a dining room that rarely goes undocumented, the scale and energy were immediately clear, and we stepped into their secret karaoke room tucked behind the main space, which proved to be just as lively as expected. At Musaek, another recent project where we captured content for an upcoming feature, the focus shifts toward a more refined, seafood-driven menu paired with a clarified cocktail program. In between, we grabbed a slice at Joe’s Pizza, burgers at Hamburger America, breakfast at SoHo Diner, and found ourselves at La Esquina, moving through a discreet entrance and past the kitchen into a lively downstairs room with serious energy and food that fully delivered.
From historic pubs to contemporary dining rooms, from casual counters to high-profile openings, the range sits within a few blocks. That diversity, compressed into one city, is what makes New York such a strong reference point for our industry.
A mix of client visits, industry benchmarks and casual counters experienced during our time in the city.
The Thread Between It All
What stood out most was the range you can experience within a few subway stops. In a single day you move from historic, no frills service to highly considered contemporary rooms, from tight interiors with decades of wear to newly built spaces designed with precision, from counter bites to full tasting menus. The spectrum is wide, and somehow it all makes sense. That is part of the magic of New York.
This side of the trip matters as much as the meetings. Designing for bars means sitting at them and observing how guests lean in, how bartenders move, how orders flow. Building for service requires watching it in real time and noticing where pace accelerates or slows. Understanding scale comes from feeling how a room shifts from early evening to late night.
That is the real research.
We came back with clearer direction, stronger alignment and a sharper sense of how this industry operates at speed.
And yes, probably a few extra kilos.
The Spill is our online editorial where we discuss all things "bar" - from guidelines and favorite cocktails, to useful innovation and loose ideas.
Take me there
Every year, the Behind Bars team meets somewhere in the world to step out of the day-to-day and align on what’s ahead. This year, we returned to Oslo — where it all started — bringing the team together for a few days of shared perspective, discussion, and direction.
At Brother Louis in Stuttgart, Tobias Lindner, co-owner and operator alongside Uwe Heine, offers his own reading of where hospitality is heading. Not by stepping away from technique, but by placing it back in service of something simpler. The result is a space built around people first, where drinks follow rather than lead.