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49 W 27TH ST
NEW YORK NY 10001-6936

Patent Pending – The Lowdown

Serving nitro cold brew by day, and artisan cocktails by night, Patent Coffee acts as a front to Nomad’s science lab-themed speakeasy, Patent Pending. The brainchild of creative agency Simmer’s Ryan McKenzie, the space occupies the basement of the Radio Wave Building, where inventor and engineer Nikola Telsa conducted his experiments on electricity supply. Grab a bottle of CBD-infused coffee on your lunch break to enjoy the anti-inflammatory, analgesic and anti-anxiety properties of cannabis compound, cannabidiol, minus the weed high.

After 5P.M., guests are required to ring a buzzer outside, then pass through the café and cloaked door to access the 34-seat dimly-lit cave. With exposed bricks, retro emerald booths, and a diner-style bar, the crowd generally consists of a young, corporate crowd and out-of-towners looking for an authentic, “Manhattan” night out. Admission is selective – it’s worth trying your luck even if the frat bros in front of you get turned away because they’re allegedly, “at capacity.”

Cocktails are split into four Tesla-inspired categories: energy (clear, bright, and crisp), frequency (boozy and intense), vibration (inventive, with a Teslian twist on classics), and descent (dark and rich, for the adventurous). With a lineup devised by Harrison Ginsberg and Nick Rolin, from bars Dead Rabbit and BlackTail respectively, there’s no need to go off script. Worth trying is the Radio Waves, a blend of tequila, mezcal, Rhum Agricole, basil, Thai chile, cucumber and lime, while the Hit by a Taxi packs a punch, made from Japanese whisky, Armagnac, sweet vermouth, pu’erh tea, curacao and star anise.

Patent Pending is among the wave of bars to hit the neighborhood this year, which until recently was held court by the Ace Hotel’s lobby bar. Gibson & Luce is located a few blocks away downstairs underneath the Life Hotel.

Check-out Patent Pending’s menu.