Chandelier Room Breaks Bread with Brunch Series

If you were strolling along the waterfront Sunday afternoon and found yourself startled by loud music blasting from the W Hotel, take notice: the Chandelier Room just launched a new monthly brunch series.

About Town does its best work in the Chandelier Room, so we wondered how well the bar would do in a day time setting.

Would it still maintain its customary swank ambiance?

Who would come for the brunch, the usual modish twentysomethings, or would families attend with strollers in tow?

Where would the Chandelier Room actually serve food, since it normally doesn't have any tables?

And, most importantly, could we still we order Coors, or was this shindig mimosa only?

This time . The first thing we saw upon walking into the Chandelier Room, were some smooth legs shooting from the hem of a short dress. We knew then what to expect and that the brunch would be a success.

We saw ladies in tight Kelly Bundy dresses and dudes who looked like casting extras in Miami Vice. Girls who looked like they just flew in from Milan and dudes who looked like Swedish male models. Dudes in denim rocking the rockabilly look, and hipsters, quasi-hipsters and hipsterettes. Girls wearing springtime white and pastels and dudes exploding with fuchsia colored shirts. Everyone wearing big aviator sunglasses. There must have been $250,000 worth of wardrobe worn, including the shirt About Town wore which we bought at a Kohl's 2 for 1 sale six years ago.

Officially, the brunch series will run the third Sunday of the month through August. For $35 guests get a four-course meal. Alcohol is not included in the price. The Chandelier Room replaced its couches with enough tables and chairs to serve around sixty guests at a time.

About Town spoke with Darren Conway, the Chandelier Room's general manager. We asked why the lounge launched the brunch.

“Brunch is popular in general,” Conway said. “But we feel like there's a void to fill. We're looking for something upscale, that kills it, and that gives back to our local customers.”

The brunch killed it alright. The Chandelier Room is one of the crown jewels of the Hoboken nightlife set. It's one of the few places here that New York VIP's would feel comfortable entering.

And around 1 p.m. on Sunday, the club felt the same as it does at 1 a.m. on a Saturday. Conway said the Chandelier Room got the exact clientele it hoped would attend the brunch. “It's a fun, young, interactive, eclectic crowd,” he said. Hundreds of hip and attractive people packed the inside and spilled outside onto the balcony. About Town felt like the least attractive person there, which, no sweat to us, we say as a compliment to all the guests.

We also spotted our favorite bartender, the and who we later found also works at the Chandelier Room. Glad to confirm she really is smoking hot by seeing her in the daylight.

Who else was there? Chris Manzo and his brother Albie Manzo, sons of Caroline Manzo, one of the stars of the hit reality show The Real Housewives of New Jersey. The brothers recently moved to Hoboken, and rumors persist that they'll get their own show about two bachelors living and looking for love in the city.

About Town , and this time we spoke with Albie. He said he and his brother are regulars at the Chandelier Room.

“This is one of our favorite places to be,” Albie told About Town. “It's got that New York City feel, that New York Vibe.”

While we were talking to Albie a girl interrupted to take a photo with him. About Town gets it, she was just looking for someplace to stick her succubus claws. But after the photo Albie politely turned and finished talking to About Town. Having met both brothers now, we figure they're stand-up guys. More down-to-earth than perceived, and family-oriented too.

“We're going to go back to our apartment later,” Albie said. “Our Mom is coming over with lasagna.”

(Mom and Lasagna! Can you cook, clawed succubus chick?)

About Town had an interesting conversation with Shafi Khan, president of an entertainment management firm named Alexa. He told us that big name celebrities who come to New York often stay at the Hoboken W Hotel. He then mentioned that one of his brunch mates was Joumana Kidd, ex-wife of NBA star Jason Kidd and who now has her own career as a television reporter.

We also learned that at least four New Jersey Devils attended, including Henrik Tallimder, Andy Greene, Jamie Langenbrunner and Zach Parise (though shame on them for not making the playoffs).

Among notable Hobokenites, we saw Freeholder Anthony "Stick" Romano. Of course he was there! Where else is Stick going to be when there's a collection hotties somewhere in Hoboken? We saw him from afar chatting with several of them. Meanwhile, we also saw Dana Prigge, the Daily Fashionista and Hoboken resident who's a fixture on the New York socialite scene.

“It doesn't get much better than this,” she said. "The crowd here definitely knows how to dress-to-thrill.”

That crowd got down as New York DJ Lili Lamar spun songs and reggae legend Gary “Nesta” Pine performed. Lamar told About Town that she had visited the Chandelier Room several times before. “I've always wanted to play here,” she said.

Meanwhile, Pine, who sang with Bob Marley's band The Wailers, layered his dance beats with classic roots reggae chants, telling the crowd that, “this is the sound of freedom.”

“I love it, it's beautiful,” Pine told About Town after the show. “The crowd was the bomb.”

During the music people danced on chairs and tables, bobbing their heads, pumping their fists, chugging champagne from the bottle and pointing excitedly to their friends below. Even the bartenders danced atop the bar.

Outside people waved fiery sparklers. One dude in an expensive white suit crashed wide arm motions into a loud soul clap. Another guy kept the beat by slapping the bar. A girl wearing a short dress humped a ceiling column.

Towards the end of the evening we stepped into the mensroom for a release. A dude in the urinal next to About Town moaned, “someone give me some cocaine,” while two other dudes wrestled behind us. “Hold on, hug it out,” one said to the other, which a previous lack thereof probably caused the quarrel to begin with. Meanwhile a spent five-hour energy bottle littered the floor.

A lot of people probably needed an energy boost, after drinking for so many hours on a Sunday afternoon. About Town did get to order our Coors, so no mimosas for us. We actually had a quite a few drinks. In fact, we have to report that the smoking hot bartender now has some competition. Another smoking hot bartender asked us to do a shot with her and a third smoking hot bartender. About Town is loyal, but we also respect the power play, so maybe smoking hot bartender number two has seized the top spot?

We'll think it through while we tick the thirty-two days till the next brunch.

Alan Skontra was a big dork who never went anywhere. Then he started writing the About Town column for Patch, and now he's everywhere. Have a hot tip on an event in Hoboken? Send an invitation, questions and comments too, to alanskontra@hotmail.com. And if he gets enough followers he might actually post his first tweet @ twitter.com/alanskontra.