Marco’s Aims to Bring ‘More of That New York Feel’ Back to Bushwick

“It’s just a local bar and we have this amazing piece of history inside of it that we’re just psyched to show everybody,” says Bryan Quackenbush, co-owner of new Bushwick drinking hole, Marco’s. The piece of history he’s talking about is a solid oak and brass bar that was built in the ’50s. It not only fits in with the idea behind the place, which is a kind of old-school return to comfort, but also kind of steals the show.

Marco’s opened ten days ago and its name is an homage to the actual bar: hand-crafted by an old Italian restaurateur named Marco, it was found in upstate New York, where it was repurposed by contractors.

For Quackenbush, a native New Yorker, and his partner Greg Goldman, running a bar like the ones they saw on street corners while growing up has been a dream. The Marco’s neighborhood on Broadway seemed like the perfect fit, kind of classic and down-to-earth with an elevated train track right above. “My whole vibe for this place is sort of a rejection of this very clean, modern, ikea aesthetic,” says Quackenbush. He sees it as a way to “put more of that New York feel back into New York.”

Quackenbush isn’t new to the bar game: his first, Old Stanley’s, was designed with an old-timey aesthetic, replete with taxidermy birds on the walls. “People would come in all the time saying, ‘Oh, I’m from Milwaukee and this reminds me of the bar that my grandfather drank at,’ or, ‘Oh, I’m from California…’ so it’s not just centered to here, you know,” he says, implying that the homely feeling of a good ol’ local bar is universal.

Marco’s has a massive 2,000-square-foot backyard, and the eventual plan is to put in a food truck there. Until then, it’s an open space to kick back in if you get bored of the arcade games and jukebox inside. The last little bit of information: happy hour $2 off draught beer, well drinks and wine) runs every day from 4 to 9pm.

Marco’s, 1071 Broadway, Brooklyn; Open 4pm to 4am Monday through Friday and from 2pm Saturday and Sunday.