Stand Clear of the Closing Doors! Exclusive First Look at the New MTA Menu at Grand Army
Debuting Tomorrow at Grand Army Bar!
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The Grand Army Menu Is Always “On Theme”
Since Grand Army first opened their doors on the corner of Hoyt and State Streets in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, on May 5, 2015, the acclaimed corner bar has garnered a devoted fanbase who highly anticipate the latest reveal of their deep-dive, seasonal themed cocktail menus built around a sometimes quirky, and usually unexpected, concept. Here’s a look back at the full lineup of cocktail menu themes that have been featured since the beginning.
A Brief History of Grand Army’s Many Themed Cocktail Menus
Fall 2015: Trains and Railroads
Winter 2016: State Parks of Oklahoma
Spring 2016: Pink Drinks
Summer 2016: High-School Prom
Fall 2016: Political Scandals
Winter 2017: Scandinavian Black Metal Albums
Spring 2017: Gilmore Girls
Fall 2017: The Brothers Grimm
Spring 2018: My Little Pony
Fall 2018: Townes Van Zandt
Spring 2019: Space Cowgirls
Summer 2019: Gemstones
Fall 2019: Monster Trucks
Winter 2020: Sade
Spring/Summer 2020: *No Theme Due to Pandemic
Fall 2020/Winter 2021: Compilation of Greatest Hits
Spring/Summer 2021: Nicolas Cage
Fall 2021/Winter 2022: Famous Cats in History [Dedicated to Louis!]
Spring/Summer 2022: Spice Girls
Fall 2023/Winter 2022: Game Shows
Spring 2023: Greatest Hits
Summer 2023: Summer Camp
Fall 2023/Winter 2024: Mean Girls
Spring 2024/Summer 2024: Grand Ole Army
Fall 2024/Winter 2025: Astrology
[drumroll…]
And now, in a LAST CALL exclusive, we’re pleased to announce the theme of the new Spring/Summer 2025 menu launching tomorrow, Wednesday, April 30 is….
[CYMBAL CRASH]
MTA!
Grand Army Head Bartender Patty Dennison Breaks Down the New MTA Menu, Drink by Drink
LAST CALL’s four-game streak of exclusive first-look reveals of Grand Army’s popular and much-anticipated seasonal menu themes continues with this deep-dive sneak-peek at the all new MTA cocktail menu.
Yesterday I spent the afternoon at Grand Army with Head Bartender Patty Dennison to talk about, and taste through, the creative line-up of summer-ready drinks—10 Cocktails, 2 House Shots, 2 Non-Alcoholic Sodas—on the brand new MTA-themed menu, an urbane ode to the quirky highlights, lowlights, daily frustrations, sights, sounds, and smells of the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s love-it-and-hate-it subway system. The MTA theme also serves as a symbolic engineer’s hat tip to the inaugural Grand Army cocktail menu theme of "Trains and Railroads” a decade ago.
Patty walked me through each of the new drinks as she made them, breaking down all the ingredients and specs, sharing each drink’s origin story, its creator, and how it fits into the overall theme of the MTA menu. A few quick questions before we dive into the drinks
How did the MTA menu theme come about?
Patty: It was the classic scenario. We’ve been so busy with the popular “Astrology” menu and planning for our 10th Anniversary so we had a little trouble with this one. We thought of possibly doing “Grand Army Over the Decade” but Molly and Sam who connected the idea as a call-back to the original “Trains and Railroads” menu without necessarily doing the same thing. It took us a while but once we locked down the theme the ideas came flying.