The jewel of The Heron

Posted 8/21/12

NARROWSBURG, NY — The Heron restaurant has become a popular bastion of Main Street, offering regionally sourced New American fare in a rustic setting. When asked to describe their new space, The …

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The jewel of The Heron

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NARROWSBURG, NY — The Heron restaurant has become a popular bastion of Main Street, offering regionally sourced New American fare in a rustic setting. When asked to describe their new space, The Emerald Ballroom, Heron owners Paul Nanni and Marla Puccetti looked at each other with a sly smile. “The opposite of The Heron,” they said in unison.

The couple completely renovated a space underneath their restaurant and turned it into a glamorous (but unpretentious) event space dubbed “The Emerald Ballroom.” The result is an all-purpose gathering spot for everything from live music to private parties, as well as a bar and cocktail lounge with a small-plates menu. Nanni said, “It’s a community space for people to get together.”

Since its opening in October, Nanni and Puccetti have hosted Halloween and New Year’s Eve parties, catered private parties, and had musicians Mountain Wave and Kendy Gable perform on the small stage. The pièce de résistance could be said to be the bar—custom built by Brian Purcell, made out of wood with a granite top and brass binding. Vintage New York City subway sconces hang behind the bar, and a giant glitzy gold lighting fixture hangs above. The back of the bar came from now-closed legendary New York City restaurant, Jerry’s, salvaged in New Hampshire. To the side are booths acquired from an auction, which provide ample seating.

The Emerald Ballroom is named after a club in Detroit (Nanni’s provenance) of the same name, a big club with three floors that went out of business 10 years ago. They wanted their Emerald Ballroom to be an extension of The Heron, but still be on its own, like a younger sibling carving their own path. Contrary to the name, the event space is not an actual ballroom, but rather is an intimate setting (but that’s not to say dancing doesn’t occur!)

The space was previously a sectioned-off part of the sprawling storage area underground, and before that was a bait-and-tackle shop. There was a concrete slab that the owners knew would be a stage. The first step was planning the bar and seating. They knew the décor would be inspired by both the color and shape of emeralds, and went for a 1920s vibe. While The Heron has lots of wood accessories and wood-paneled walls, they wanted the Emerald to be painted and used a combination of colors and textures. There is art by Brandi Merolla, and the bathroom features custom-made wallpaper of ladies and gents in ‘20s attire.

While Nanni is still working on solidifying the menu, so far it has included oysters, a variety of French bread pizzas, using Beach Lake Bakery bread, and The Heron’s famous deviled eggs and fried chicken. Nanni wants to create a New Orleans-inspired menu with a really good burger. The bar offers a special cocktail menu, New York state liquors and Catskill Brewery beers on tap.

There isn’t a regular schedule yet, but they hope to be open regularly in the summer, and will soon create a calendar of events. There will be a Valentine’s duets-only karaoke party on February 13. They also hope it will be a space where diners at The Heron can wait before they are seated, or grab an after-dinner drink. As Nanni says, “Live music and food, what’s better than that?”

Visit www.emeraldnarrowsburg.com, and find them on Facebook.

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