When I first walked up to Sammy’s Roadhouse, which opened about a month ago at 700 First Street, I was confused. I was expecting a rough-and-tumble cowboy’s watering hole at the edge of town, but what I found was a shiny, brand-new bar at the foot of the SkyClub luxury condos. Huh?

It was a Friday night, and my friend and I had walked all the way over from Washington Street to check out the new place. I peered in the window, and all looked quiet, but I was by the door, so I thought I might as well go in and see…

With dark wood floors, tin ceiling and exposed brick walls (not to mention the cow-print booths), Sammy’s certainly has the roadhouse look down, until you notice the brand new furniture, modern light fixtures and steely blue walls. That’s when you remember, oh yeah, I’m still in Hoboken.

So we sat down at the bar (along with a few beefy bearded fellows, two girls all dressed up to go out, and a couple making out on their date) and perused the drink menu. Beers are abut $3-8, ranging from Pabst in a can to craft brews on draft. I decided to try Ithica’s Apricot Wheat ($6), as one last goodbye to summer.

Sammy’s has an interesting cocktail menu, and I’ve made a mental note to return if only to try some of their strange concoctions. There’s one called Where’s The Tylenol?, which is made of Captain Morgan’s rum, Malibu and pineapple; The Peanut Butter Cup, with Bailey’s, Frangelico and Kahlua; and The Patsy Cline, made of vodka, lemonade and Sprite (which actually sounds like a drink I would make when I needed to clean out the fridge).

There’s also a menu for bar snacks, mostly flatbread sandwiches (a cowboy-style bar with vegetarian options!), although I should mention that my friend and I split an order of their sweet potato fries, and they were literally to die for. 

One thing that I will say was a little off was their choice of music. There were some modern rock and alternative songs at first, which is not too interesting, but nothing offensive. And I know it was a Friday night and all, but they brought in a DJ to just blast techno remixes of pop songs. Which is pretty standard fare in town, sure, but definitely not what I was expecting from a place with steer horns mounted on the wall.

The bartenders were really great at Sammy’s, though. Chris (which I think was his name?) was super friendly, giving us food and drink recommendations and cracking jokes. When a nearby bartender overheard my friend wondering where our fries were, she quickly got up to ask the kitchen staff how it was going. I feel like I have been to so many bars lately (and not just in Hoboken or anything), where I’ve been sitting at the bar waiting for a drink like I’m totally invisible, so these touches at Sammy’s were definitely not overlooked.

But also, the bar was just a lot of fun. At one point, one of the bartenders sent a round of free shots to everyone at the bar and we played a couple of friendly games of dice (there was no gambling, okay!) It was definitely a more enjoyable evening than sitting around a sports bar watching the Jets, or watching two meatheads vie for the attention of a sorority girl in a romper. I’m even hearing a rumor that Sammy’s is trying to get a mechanical bull installed.

In all, I had a really great evening at Sammy’s, despite what I may have first thought walking up to it. The bar is beautiful, the bartenders are warm and welcoming, and the menu is a little more inspired than most around town. They may still be smoothing out the kinks, and it may take awhile for the crowds to start coming out, but I have a good feeling about the place. I’ll award it eight out of ten frosty mugs, and I will definitely be back.

700 First Street; (201) 706-8550. Check out their Facebook page for the latest updates on specials and events.