Where do all the cool kids in NYC Polka?

February 3, 2013 9:37 PM

I have a friend who grew up going to polka festivals and said she would be willing to teach me, so where can two people in their mid 20's go to polka in NYC without standing out like a sore thumb?

Are there dedicated polka bars? Just polka nights? I have no experience with this and don't even know what to look for. Ideally this would happen sometime during the weekend in either Manhattan or Brooklyn but would be willing to go to Queens or do something during the week. I am ok with dive bars and honestly I think it could be kind of funny if we were the only young people there as long as the record didn't scratch as soon as we walked through the door. Maybe there are even some really cool young polka joints, who knows, its NYC.

posted by Bengston to Food & Drink (3 answers total)

I don't know Polka specifically, but check out square dancing at Jalopy in Red Hook,Country Dance NY, and Village Contra. I guarantee that folks at some of those dances will know about the secret Polka scene.
posted by amandabee at 9:37 AM on February 4, 2013

I once attended an open rehearsal of the Polish-American Dance company. We did a lot of dances, all of which were unfamiliar to me, all very athletic, and I think one was polka. It was a little weird because I was part of an established company's rehearsal, but it was open to the public and no one seemed to mind. They should at least be able to point you in the right direction.
posted by Ollie at 10:38 AM on February 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Yeah it looks like they have rehearsals--which I think are open to the public--Friday nights in Greenpoint. If it's a bust or an embarrassing shambles I'm sure they could point you in the direction of a nearby bar :)
posted by Ollie at 10:42 AM on February 4, 2013