Elite Event At Albert Hall Tavern With the Murder Mystery Co.

I have to admit, I love a good murder mystery, and when it comes with drinks, I’m sold! Having just moved to New York, I was looking forward to the opportunity to meet new Unilocalers, and boy did I!
I enjoyed the drinks, the Midtown best of all. I also happened to be dressed appropriately and confused for a character, since I was wearing a white fedora, and all of the characters were identified by hats. I did my best to weasel the lowdown out of all the characters to figure out just what happened at the «birthday gathering,» but in the end, it was a lot of information to remember for someone with several drinks in her (which may or may not be my own fault). I did meet some wonderful people including Benson Y., and Kristy R., who I have since hung out with outside of Elite events.
Oh, did I mention the food? The sliders were delicious, I dug the buffalo wings and the fries, and the server who was delivering them to my general area was amazing. He also made sure I didn’t wait in line for a drink and brought mine straight to me when it was ready, making sure I had enough time to chat with my new friends.
I had a great time here. Thanks, Unilocal

Bourbon was had.
Costumes were worn.
Strangers eyed each other cautiously and suspiciously in small a room.
Accusations were angrily shouted.
But enough about thanksgivings at my parents house.
This event was solid and it was great to meet some cool new folks and catch up with some not-​new folks. Big-​ups to Albert Hall, Unilocal and the evening’s players for tasty drinks, good company and close-​quarters entertainment.
The only real casualty that night was my 80s era white windbreaker I bought the week before (it was pimp as shit). I forgot it and the bar couldn’t find it :(

I was a fan of Albert Hall Tavern since my first visit a couple months ago, so when I saw the invite to this Elite Event, I knew I had to go! With apologies to my usual plus one, I headed in hoping to run into a friend or two and make some new ones.
After some happy hellos with Jane K. I headed into the tavern, which takes on an almost spooky but cool feel in the dim light of the evening. Real candles burn providing a wonderful amber light against the wallpaper of book pages. Quite different than lunch time!
The event was totally packed, and in a way that was a good thing. I got to meet a whole bunch of Unilocalers I had not known before including Josh K., Angeline P., Hana B. and Kristy R. We started off enjoying some nice Four Roses Bourbon drinks including a mint julep, a «white russian» variant and a third drink called the «Midtown» (though I confess its ingredients are forgotten by yours truly, but it was good!). We also got to sample many of Albert Hall’s treats including Ahi sliders, buffalo wings, fries (but alas, not the duck fat fries) and more. Albert Hall and Four Roses definitely stepped up!
The big sell of the night was a «murder mystery» where members of the Elite crew were picked to become characters. I became «Rat Finkel», an informant. I do enjoy a good mystery, but unfortunately it was a bit hard to keep track of everything. I think there were about a dozen characters altogether, and it was a bit tough to hear everything being said. I think in a much more quiet environment this mystery would have been much easier to get into. Still, the Muder Mystery Co. really put their all into it and gave solid performances. I give them a lot of credit, this is not easy work and they were dealing with fairly adverse conditions all crunched into a back room. Kudos to them!
I think Unilocal really thought outside the box with this event and I thank Jane K. and the crew for putting together something truly memorable and fun. Thank you guys!

I had no idea what to expect for this YEE except FUN.
Fun INDEED!
What a great night out.
I can totally understand why some Unilocalers were a little less than stoked about this. There werent many roles to fill and the people that got there early were selected at random to put on costumes and get into character.
After two very strong bourbons, i donned a sexy pair of red gloves and a feather boa and neglected all other opportunities to lessen the effects of the alcohol.
Julia B was kind enough to feed me perfect french fries. I hear they were cooked with duck fat and truffle oil. Oh la la.
I played Jenna Side, but if i told anyone that I had to kill them. So instead I told them i was Svetlana, the Spanish Tutor… but I was really a Russian hit woman. My alias raised a few eyebrows…
All in all, it was a great time!
I know for a fun night out, I can come to albert hall tavern for a murder mystery! The cast was fantastic and while i broke character several times to chuckle at Agatha Zar, it was a night i will always remember… or try to with all the bourbons floating in my empty stomach.
Jane, thanks for hosting a great night! So much fun!

Bourbon
Wearing a wig
Bourbon
girls playing with said wig
Bourbon
Realizing you’re out numbered by pretty girls and
Bourbon
Knowing how many holes it takes to fill the albert hall
(anyone else expecting a trip to England ?)

This event was intense, especially for me because I got recruited as a character by the acting crew from Murder Mystery Co. that was there to rigidly enforce the fact that this was a night of CLUE, muthas!
But let’s rewind to set the scene. I got there all early, shuddering as I entered the radius of PABT and dodging through fat raindrops whose plip was worse than their plop.
Thank god Jane K was already there, or I wouldn’t have figured anything out; initially, the crowd at the bar was decidedly non-​Yelp, and one could hardly imagine that a night of Elite mystery was about to ensue. As I proceeded to the back, a member of the waitstaff attempted to stow my meager belongings up by a bunch of excess silverware on a high shelf, but the manager suggested I hide it under a one of the long, wooden pew styled benches lining the back room which was clearly to be the main area for the event. Luckily, the floor under the benches was whistle clean, so I had no problem hiding my crap there.
Prior to 7 p.m., the bartenders and other staff were already beleaguered by happy hourists. Uncharacteristically, all I wanted was water at this point after the dash across a few avenues from the N, Q, R train stop at 42^nd-​Times Square. It was tricky getting the guy’s attention through the wall of suits sitting at the bar, but I finally got my water and sipped it while staring at the red-​clothed tables of goodies (sunglasses! sticks of lip balm!!), compliments of Unilocal.At one point, I felt a sting of heat on my shoulder and looked up to see that there was a lantern of REAL flaming candles above my head that were dripping melted wax! Sweet!
When the clock hit 7, Unilocalers began filtering in, but not in the kind of droves that suffocated the steakhouse earlier this year. In fact, I felt like one of the more aggressive go-​getters when it came to having a Four Roses Bourbon drink. But hey, I’d had a long day in the office, whadya want. Started with the Julip, then progressed to two Midtowns and finally a Millstone (not too sweet or heavy, despite containing creams or «honey syrups.») All super smooth for being Bourbon based.
Food came out buffet style but also served on platters by a couple waiters making sporadic but diplomatic rounds with artichoke spread on crostini and juicy tuna or braised short rib sliders. Soon, the miniature plates were all dirtied up from Buffalo wings, so people were just grabbing rings of calamari and bunches of french fries with their graspy digits and double dipping it all into large tins of ketchup and tartar, but hey, we’re all famblay here, right?
Somewhere around this time, «Amanda Lay» forced a pink synthetic straw hat onto my pumpkin head, and put a binder of instructions into my arms. I was henceforth to be known as «Trish Fish,» one of a suite of Unilocalers blindsided into being a character for the evening’s session of Clue.
At first, I was disappointed, since all I’d wanted to do was lurk in the corners, hoovering my free drinks like a shade. As the night went on and I talked a bit more to my enthusiastic and clever teammates, however, I warmed up to the role and started truly appreciating the role of the main actors, who strained to keep straying Unilocalers focused on the scene at hand.
Most thrillingly, my girls and I WON! I don’t want to be too HARD ON «Eric Shuns,» but I knew that it was him from the moment I discovered that he was bonking «Lou Zar“‘s girl on the side! I arrested him with a pair of disconcertingly functional ‘cuffs, and felt that justice had been doubly done as my team and I were announced as winners (with no prize).
Afterwards, the awesome bartenders gently cautioned us that drinks weren’t free anymore, then proceeded to be very cool even after some of us got a wee bit defensive. I was done boozing for the night, but rehydrated with a handled mason jar that they kept filling with fresh water. One of their names was Jordan, and he told us to write about them, so I’ve done it. They deserve major accolades for keeping up with both the Clue event AND some other private party in the back backroom all night long, then dealing with some d’bag who spilled white wine and just sat there, then picked at his fish & chips, left his glasses, and tried to leave without paying.
So thank you Jordan and the heroic bartenders, thank you Clue acting crew, thank you kickass teamsters, and thank you Unilocal for a unique night that forced me to work for my drinks — and enjoy doing it, too.

Thank you Jane for hooking me and my boo up for this amazing event!
We got here right at 7, since this place is only a block away! We tasted their short rib burgers (I skipped on all the seafood), fries, and buffalo wings! Yummm. I just wish we had utensils from the beginning. Whatever, no need to be proper amongst other Unilocalers! Anyways, I loved how the servers were so quick with everything, and very fair in delivering food and drinks to everyone, no matter where they were sitting/​drinking. I had all 3 drinks of course, and bourbon is too strong for me, but the Mint Julep was good!
So Lou came to challenge my boo, and he challenged him right back. Therefore, my boo was named Mr. Eric Shuns, and was immediately given a hat, gun, and binder to play his part. And how well he played it! He won the BEST ACTOR award – AND he was Lou’s killer! A man who can multitask… ain’t that sexy?

This was one of my favorite Elite-​only Unilocal events. Everything from the bar/​bartenders and service, food, atmosphere, location, attendees to the alcohol sponsorship, this one had it all! We even saw some bloodshed. I mean who doesn’t like a little murder with their bourbon? This might just become my after-​work bar of choice, thanks to Corey and his tunes!
Tuna sliders + calamari salad = winning! And, I think I found my cocktail of choice for the winter too. Thank you Jane and NYC Unilocal for — yet again — a winning night!

So I normally give Unilocal Elite Events 5 stars. So why is this one 4 stars instead of the usual 5? Well, I’ll get to that.
After figuring out which room the event was being held in (I accidentally walked in on another party in the far back, go me!) I mingled and found my «team» for the night. Luckily, my team ended up being some really cool fellow-​Yelpers, which is always appreciated. The drinks started flowing soon after that. The bourbon was decent but not great. They made a drink similar to a White Russian which was much better than the Mint Julep one they were also offering. After that, they started setting up some food on a nearby table. Calamari (heard it was great but didn’t get the chance to try any), wings, and fries. After that, waiters came around with yummy sliders. One waiter in particular (those on my team remember his name) was super-​nice and attentive. We asked for a drink, he brought us a drink. We asked for more food, he brought us more food.
After everyone had some alcohol flowing through their system, the game began. The team I was on had one character, and there were a few others scattered around. The characters did a great job and the cast from the company was hysterical. I had Agatha (an older lady character) telling me to find her a young stud, we had Lou (another character) asking us if we needed to be pat down, overall a great case. The Unilocalers also did a great job living up to the characters that they were given. Very very funny to listen to and interact with.
Now this is why I deducted one star. While the game started out fun and the food and drinks were good, the night began to drag on. The event was supposed to end at 9 and at 9:15 the game wasn’t finished yet. The cast finally took all our papers and started handing out «awards» around 9:30 or so. By this point, several of us just wanted to see the game end so we could get out of there. The bar even started playing «Oscar music» to almost say «wrap it up!».
Overall, this event was a lot of fun and Albert Hall Tavern is a great place that I would love to check out again sometime, but the almost 3-​hour long game got pretty exhausting after awhile. But I did meet some awesome new friends and saw a few people I hadn’t seen in awhile!

Much thanks to the Unilocal crew for a fun evening!
There are a few reasons why I couldn’t give this event 5 stars, given the very high caliber of some of the recent Elite events. First, we were packed in like sardines (which wouldn’t have been as much the case had the 6 or 7 actors not been there). Second, the bar wasn’t reserved for Unilocal usage (i think I waited 15 minutes for that first drink). Third, the bartenders refused to serve us any wines (which contradicted what was printed on our the Unilocal event menu). Fourth, while the actors were funny and the murder mystery held my interest for the first hour, I think the event would have been better off without it – it dominated the entire evening, prevented us from mingling, and the actors got snippy with many a Unilocaler.
That being said, I had a plenty good time thanks to the drinks, food, and company. While I’m not a regular drinker of bourbon, I did enjoy the Julip concoction. I also appreciated the pleasant service from the waiters bringing us passed nibbles and drinks from the bar — those poor guys managed to dodge portly actors and the tightly-​packed crowds carrying trays of dainty glasses without spilling a drop. As for the finger foods, the ahi tuna sliders were my favorite — just the right amount of sear, a great aioli, all atop a nice potato bun — but the pulled pork sliders and truffle fries were great too. I took a little peek into the kitchen and the dishes being carried out to the sit-​down diners also looked pretty darn good (some tempting scallops and a drool-​worthy burger among them).
If I’m in this neck of the woods, I would definitely stop in Albert Hall again — just as long as there’s no chance of a gangland murder ;)

Very fun event! The murder mystery mini show fit in perfectly at Albert Hall Tavern. You could not have asked for a better stage. The atmosphere at this bar is really old school, think 1920s. And yet, it seems very clean and well kept.
I had a great time sipping rose bourbon, snacking on apps, and hanging with Mr. Eric Shuns and crew! I would def come back for happy hour sometime since I live pretty close. Bartenders and servers were on the ball! Bravo!
Also, thanks Jane for putting on an innovative fun event!
Unfortunately, I had to leave early and didn’t get to see the conclusion of the show. Who killed Boss Lou?

Huh… So it wasn’t Maggie that shot Mr. Burns. I guess TV can’t teach you everything. Despite our team winning the prize for the worst answer, I had a ton of fun. Where else but at Jane’s wonderful YEE would you see James F. in a blond wig with a rat-​tail speaking with an Austrian accent? A-​mazing! A special thanks has to go out to the actors who must have felt like they were herding cats trying to get a bunch of drunk Unilocalers to pay attention!
The food was good but I hardly had any time to eat between all the theatrics and drinking that had to be attended to. I did manage to get a couple bites since I strategically placed myself next to where the food would be served*. The tuna slider was very nice. The calamari salad was — as they say in California in the 90’s — Da Bomb! Crispy, herby, dressed perfectly. The hot wings were the best I’ve had… trust me, I’m the leading expert on hot wings; I’ve been to Hooters… twice! 4 Roses Bourbon + the friendly, fast, and knowledgeable bartender = trouble! Those Midtowns are dangerous!
So once again, thanks Jane for putting on a great event!
— — — -
* Totally by accident, actually. Had to say «Hi» to a familiar face… Hi Hana! Thanks for standing by the food!

Where is Phil. is all I was asking… where is PHIL!!! To me, he’s become staple in the Elite Events… can I say that? Just look at his Unilocal Elite Event list!!! I wasn’t the only person who walked in asking this!!! Yeah… this is a shout out to Phil… this is for you… HOLLA! We missed you while you are gambling away at some casino.
Quite a different event because of the Murder Mystery Co. How fun was that! Thanks Jane K!
It was LOUD in that little room. Alcohol, will do that. The bourbon drinks were much for me. I couldn’t handle the Julip or Midtown drinks. And the other drink had cream in it… most Chinese people are lactose intolerant so I didn’t touch it or I might be sick the whole night! But I sipped both drinks… MAN THEY WERE STRONG. YOUCH!
There was a secret room behind some curtains where you can have a private dinner. How cool is that!
It was great to see the charmant Chris M who was with a pretty girl so I didn’t want to bother him!!! ha, the quite hilarious and always bubbly Julia B, and the effervescent Monique and womanizing Rich W. as Scott Free ;) and the ever best event planner, Jane K. Very awesome what she does. Jando too for Queens. I haven’t met Peter yet but my goodness… it is awesome what they do. Just sayin. They have all this energy. I always wonder what kind of time they are having at these events. They have to be on top of everything.

This was my very first Unilocal Elite event so I don’t have anything to compare it to but I had a blast! Unfortunately, I could not, for the life of me, figure out what was going on with the whole «Murder Mystery» thing. However, I hung out by the bar in the front room for the first part of the evening so that’s part of the reason why I didn’t have a clue. I got to the back room (where all of the action was going on) pretty late in the game and I think I was past the point of figuring out what had transpired by that point. The MC guy that was screaming on the microphone «like a Baptist minister» did not help matters much either. It might have been where I was standing but the distortion on the speakers caused by all of his yelling made what he was saying completely unintelligible.
I also partially blame my drinking those potent Four Roses Bourbon mint juleps on an empty stomach and the good company that was distracting me from getting the full picture on who killed who, with what, and where.
Shout outs to Vineet S., Erica L., Jane K., some other hilarious chick from Brooklyn that had me laughing my ass off, and all of the others I had the privilege of meeting. Sorry, I’m really bad with names and those cocktails kicked my ass!
Trap door to the alligators for the ahole that said he worked for the theater company and told myself and others that we weren’t allowed to talk and should leave while we were in a room full of people that were all talking loudly. If being quiet was one of the rules, they should have set the tone in the very beginning before it got way out of hand with the guy on the mic screaming to talk over the background noise and then the people adjusting their volume levels accordingly, in order to have their conversations heard over the screaming. I don’t know who the mystery buzz killer guy was but he was really rude and abrasive. For all I know he could have just been one of the drunk bar patrons trying to start drama. Didn’t let him spoil my night though.
Anyway… I can’t wait to attend another event now. I’m hooked! What’s next on the agenda? Looking forward to finding out…

Who killed Doug Graves?
What happened to the Russian femme fatale?
Who last saw Flowers?
Did Scott Free womanize?
Membership has its privileges indeed with Elite. A murder mystery night at Albert Hall Tavern among fellow New York Elites where opportunity sub-​come to indulge in Four Roses Bourbon complete in costume and clues with select wines. Thanks Jane K. for organizing a fun event. (AIJA, Halloween is too early). Our private party plastered the whole rear dinning area for mingling and playing detective as the whole bar was monster truck deafening loud.
Three Four Roses Bourbon drinks: The Millstone (Four Roses Bourbon, Simple and Honey Syrups, Cream); The Julip (Four Roses Bourbon, Lemon, Honey); The Midtown (Four Roses Bourbon, Sweet Vermouth, Dry Vermouth) were all extremely strong and easily intoxicating for an open invitation of a hangover. The drink wait and line were somewhat short amid only two bartenders serving our gargantuan private party but somewhat attentive without the brush and hostile rub to ignore my presence. For my rightful place by a believable, disrespectful liar (Tony P.) who invited me to his Orlando, FL timeshare was stolen by a insincere young girl (Peggy L.) for the time of their lives in New Orleans to abandon me left with great anguish, unable to taste Four Roses Bourbon yet Unilocal has brought me salvation.

What a great event! I had no idea before venturing into Albert Hall that the evening would be so much fun. It has the perfect setting for solving the Murder Mysteries which we all Unilocalers experienced yesterday. The place is actually big with a separate area designated for private parties in the back.
As soon as Unilocalers got in, the drama started unfolding for the rest of the evening. I must say all those people who were dressed as some characters like the old lady and gangster did a very good job. They made sure to involve all the Unilocalers in solving the murder mystery and I could see everybody was having a great time.
This event also offered a nice opportunity to mingle with the fellow Unilocalers. Met some great Unilocalers right from Bobbi B., Margaret T, Jia J and others. Hope to see you again at other upcoming events.
Now coming to the food and drinks. Food was great right from the sliders, wings, calamari salad and fries. I did taste the bourbon but I am not a big of it. Service was exceptional, Bartenders and servers made sure drinks and food kept coming again and again throughout the night.
Thank you to Jane K, Colleen and team for organizing such a nice event.

«I am Doug Graves, of the Graves family, from Gravesend, Brooklyn… we deal mostly in waste management and union work.»
this was a fun event. a few quirks preventing me from giving it 5 stars, but it was still a great time.
I portrayed Don Doug Graves, a rival mob boss to Don Lou Zar. I ended up with this part as the original guy picked had to leave early — sorry bro! I went to town with this, and had a blast.
drinks kept flowing freely, and were strong and delicious; food I am not so sure of. with my schedule it is hard to squeeze in time to eat before most Unilocal events. I think I ate a few handfuls of fries, that was it. ah well… I grabbed some falafel after leaving.
atmosphere was dimly lit, old-​school, and chill.
so far as how the event went — it was a great thing that they got Unilocalers involved. however… it was hard to mingle, especially if you were supposed to stay in character. some people also seemed to not be too interested in playing along with the murder mystery game, so they were just chatting away… the actors seemed to be getting a little ticked off at times. still, they did a great job and people had fun.
also — Holly N and I finally met in person (we know a bunch of the same people IRL)! talk about WINNING!
what would’ve clinched this as a 5-​star?
1) have a brief food/​drinks session before the show started
2) some more time for Unilocalers to get in character, meet people, form teams, etc for the show
3) a bigger area to do the show in.
Jane, kudos to you for organizing this event. I had a fun time, this was a unique event that went off fairly well!

Note to self: do not wear high heels to an Elite event if you know you will be consuming multiple bourbon-​based drinks.
That being said, the mint julep was the BEST I’ve ever had. The other drinks were delightful as well, since I obviously had to try them all. The finger foods squelched my hunger; the tuna sliders and the french fries were particularly divine! I assume they were fried in duck fat and truffle oil as the restaurant’s menu stated. If so, I’ll gladly go back and consume more in the future; sometimes it’s okay to risk getting a heart attack.
I enjoyed the theatrics of the evening. I enjoyed the lovely new ladies (and one gentleman that had to leave us all a little too early to travel to Boston) that I engaged in genuinely good conversation with. I enjoyed the munchables. I enjoyed what I imbibed. I enjoyed the venue. I enjoyed the evening overall, indeed!
Okay…I did not enjoy the hair that I found in my little green salad at one point earlier in the evening, but I’ve moved on from that. Ha!
Once again, let’s hear it for Jane and the Unilocal crew! *clap clap clap clap clap*

I really literally live a block away from Albert Hall Tavern and I have yet to set foot into this bar. On this strip of hells kitchen, the cigar bars, dive bars, and poor reviews of Manganaros kind of shun me away from setting foot into any establishment near here.
But I have to say holy crap, awesomest event ever! since I got volunteered to play a part as the enforcer Eric Shuns (get it, Erections?) in the Murder Mistery Co play for the night.
I had no idea what was in store.
I ended up being the killer., which was even more awesome and to top it off, I was voted as top actor. The double entendres definitely helped keep the crowd laughing.
The drinks were great, the Four Roses bourbon with drinks such as the Midtown, Mint Julep, or Milk and honey were all pretty good and not too strong and easy to drink.
The servers were awesome and kept the drinks flowing and also dodged the folks camping out near the front. The food consisted of calimari, chicken wings, fries, and tuna and short rib sliders. All great stuff, and this is one event where you definitely need to listen to the advice to eat before arriving.
I would probably have to put this event high on my list since I got to play a part in the dinner show. I’d recommend the Murder Mystery Co if you’re trying to plan a special event with a large group of friends or coworkers. It’s definitely a fun night that involves everyone!

Finally! I got into a Manhattan Elite event! Thanks Jane and Unilocal team for letting me in!
Albert Hall Tavern is rather cool and a perfect setting for the Murder Mystery Co to do their thing and get us involved. I noticed way at the back was a curtained room with a long table — a perfect place for a private dinner party!
Murdery Mystery Co kept us laughing and guessing throughout the night. I don’t think they were used to a large rowdy group (who came to drinkand eat more than play the game) but I think they handled us well. Sure, some Unilocalers were not really into it and just wanted to mingle but it was fun and different, nevertheless.
I’m not a big fan of bourbon (Four Roses) but I did like the Mint Julep. The Midtown was a little too harsh for my liking but I was curious enough to have a sip or two of it. The bartender was fast in making the drinks and kept them strong. One of the servers noticed that I was trying to figure out how to carry 3 martini glasses and was ever so helpful in carrying two of them for me to give to Monique and Mike.
The food was impressive, as always — both the lamb shank and peppered tuna sliders were delicious. The fries came out thin, hot and crunchy. The calamari salad had a surprisingly spicy kick to it.
Overall, a great, fun humorous night!