A Williamsburg biz re-brands dinner theater for the hip set

By Brendan Fitzgibbons

Combining the quintessential dinner-and-movie night into a singular, dynamic experience, Nitehawk Cinema in Williamsburg has formula-date-weary night owls seeing things in a new way.

In addition to screening first-run independent and mainstream films, the theater sports an eclectic dinner menu (along with brunch on Saturday and Sundays) that one staffer described as “concessions meets chiffonade,” along with a full bar and a list of handcrafted tap beers.

“We are in Brooklyn, so we have to keep it real,” explained Nitehawk general manager Jess Giesenkirchen.

Opened in June 2011, the business was initially not permitted to serve liquor because of a decades-old blue law banning movie houses from offering spirits, but founder Matthew Viragh actually hired a lobbyist to change the legislation, and the theater began serving in October of that year. It is the only movie theater in the city to offer alcohol, and despite this intoxicating distinction, customers have typically remained on their best behavior.

“It’s much different than being at a club doing shots,” Giesenkirchen said. “We’re a movie house, and people for the most part have acted accordingly.”

Nicole Spread

The cinema is located on the East River end of Metropolitan Avenue, and its space features a downstairs bar and café where anyone is welcomed to enjoy food and drink during regular dining hours. The homey upstairs bar is near the cinema’s three theaters (seating 92, 60, and 28 respectively).

Most movie patrons are content if the concession stand has fresh popcorn, but Nighthawk Cinema offers a menu ornamented with organic cheese plates, kosher hot dogs (served with homemade relish and fresh sauerkraut), a mushroom and leek puff pastry tart, short rib sandwich covered in pickled tomatillo and tamarind crema, and a Korean fried chicken with Asian slaw and sweet & spicy soy sauce.

Theaters are typically open 30 minutes prior to show time with each film having its own pre show footage jibing with the theme of the movie. Such footage for the Jason Bateman film Bad Words, for example, included a hilarious compilation of spelling bee- and quiz show-related scenes from TV and movies, along with vintage Bateman clips.

Once a patron chooses a seat for the screening, he or she is welcome to order off the menu. Each seat sports a piece of paper and pencil, so patrons can order throughout the film by placing slips into staff-monitored slots at the end of the tables. Checks are dropped 30 minutes before the film concludes, so servers don’t run the risk of interfering with the denouement.

“We want it to be a thoroughly difference experience than a typical multiplex chain,” said Giesenkirchen.

In fact, the only thing Nitehawk has in common with movie-theater chains is its roster of films, and even that similarity is strained. At any given time, the theater screens three to eight movies chosen by the in-house film booker. First-runs are projected every day, but the house also carefully chooses films that correspond with the month’s theme.

For May’s “Cheeky Monkeys” concept, the theater is screening American and British children’s films of the ’60s and early ’70s—Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Oliver! and The Phantom Tollbooth. And in a twisted nod to Mother’s Day, Nitehawk is showing films featuring among the creepiest maters of celluloid—Psycho, The Baby, and Friday the 13th.

Each is screened with a signature cocktail and food item. Bad Words featured the “Golden Quill” (a blend of Four Roses Bourbon, honey syrup, and lemon juice, with a orange twist) and the “Alphabet Cobb Salad”—a hefty combination of avocado, bacon, corn, dandelion, greens, egg, feta, and green onion—each ingredient coinciding with the first letters of the alphabet.

To Giesenkirchen, marrying the vision of Nitehawk with Williamsburg natives, “It has been a great relationship,” she said. “And we want to continue cater to the people here, while drawing in others from new neighborhoods in all five boroughs.”

 

Nitehawk Cinema
136 Metropolitan Ave.
718.384.3980 / nitehawkcinema.com