Club Rooms Launch A Welcome Comeback

The nation is relishing a joyous rebound from Covid, and growing interest in rubbing shoulders at social gatherings is one telling manifestation. A degree of physical closeness verboten just 12 months ago is now eagerly embraced, often literally.

Just in time for this new era of in-person conviviality, the club room has enjoyed a celebrated return to popularity in some of New York City’s finest residential buildings.

The club rooms of this new generation are anything but nondescript. High design, comfy lounge seating, cutting-edge media sources and bar-style games are brought together in inviting settings reminiscent of the city’s private members-only establishments. That makes these club rooms perfect for unwinding with old friends, or making new ones.

Here’s a quick glimpse into a quartet of New York City’s most comfortable club rooms.

200 Amsterdam

The Upper West Side’s tallest residential skyscraper, 200 Amsterdam boasts a gracious, sophisticated club room, The Club, that serves as a home away from home for building residents. Rich leather and wood design elements, a bespoke billiards table and an outdoors terrace are blended in a setting as welcoming as it is sumptuous.

“Across the board we’ve seen an uptick in the demand for social- and entertainment-driven amenity spaces,” said Jill Mangone, sales director at Brown Harris Stevens, the exclusive sales and marketing firm behind luxury condominium 200 Amsterdam.

“Buyers on the hunt for a new home in the city want the ability to connect with family, hang out with friends or meet with colleagues in a dynamic, sophisticated space outside of their home that still feels safe and somewhat private. This has made The Club at 200 Amsterdam a major draw. It was specifically designed to offer an experience akin to New York’s private members’ clubs, as well as provide residents an elevated communal space just steps from their front door.”

20 East End Avenue

This Upper East Side structure, a contemporary take on classic pre-war style, offers a warm, pleasing setting called the Billiards Room. Here, residents find a relaxing respite from the frenetic pace of a typical Manhattan work day. Offering a custom billiards table and full wet bar stocked with Christofle lead-crystal glassware, the space features an adjoining card room for spirited poker games. French walnut-finished wainscot paneling and trim, tweed fabric wall coverings and softly-lit sconces are among handsome design touches conjuring images of the exclusive and refined club rooms of old Manhattan.

Saint Marks Place

More than 19,000 square feet of thoughtfully-crafted amenities are among the drawing cards of this 100-residence Brooklyn condominium development.

The Club, one of those amenities, offers a modern-day retelling of the city’s traditional social clubs. A curated collection of iconic modern and custom design furnishings, four distinct seating areas, communal fireplace, charming alabaster wall sconces and pinpoint overhead lighting combine to imbue the setting with the right ambience for kicking back. The space also includes an adjacent game room for catching a pro or college game or challenging friends in air hockey, foosball and billiards. An expansive lounge and private balcony overlooking a planted marquee complete the milieu.

“The library and club room have a direct connection to the building’s outdoor spaces and nature,” says Kaitlyn Thornton, who with Dorin Baul recently bought a residence in the building. “We can leave our apartment and power through 100 emails there, but still have a quiet, beautiful community space.”

Eleven Hancock Place

This Harlem building, designed by Isaac & Stern Architects with interiors by Lemay + Escobar, offers an array of communal spaces topped by a head-turning Residents Lounge. Within a room showcasing a contemporary aesthetic and ambient lighting, residents intent on lounging and luxuriating sink in to the plush seating to savor a glass of wine, enjoy televised sports or simply converse with friends and neighbors.

The room, along with the condominium’s rooftop lounge featuring cabanas and cozy nooks, is among prime selling points for those intent on putting the pandemic’s shackles behind them and authoring a return to zestful companionability.

This post first appeared on Forbes.com. To see the original, click here.