Where to Drink and Dine on Labor Day 2016

It’s easy to get enthused about Memorial Day, the booze and barbecue-stoked unofficial kick-off to summer.  Labor Day, however, is another story; it’s exceedingly more difficult to whip up excitement about the season’s abrupt end. But if you can’t stem the tide of time, at least you can engage in a final, unbridled hurrah at the following parties and events.

Salvation Taco: Make Labor Day last all weekend with a rooftop party at April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman’s taqueria and cantina, atop the Pod 39 hotel. Taking place on Sunday, September 4th from 2-6pm, Vinyl record champion, DJ Prestige will provide entertainment, while guests enjoy dishes such as Tomato Salad with cilantro and lime, and drink specials like the “Baby Watermelon” with basil, gin and black peppercorns.

The Mermaid Inn: Enjoy a taste of New England in the middle of NYC, during The Mermaid Inn’s three-day Lobsterpalooza Extravaganza.  Running from Saturday through Monday, $28 purchases a 1 ½ pound lobster, plus corn on the cob and roasted red bliss potatoes, which can be supplemented during Happy Hour with a variety of specials, including $1 East Coast oysters, $5 beers, $7 wines and $8 cocktails.

Bubby’s Five & Dime: Bubby’s series of finer diners are all about nostalgia. Which is why the Tribeca and High Line locations recently debuted a Five & Dime Happy Hour — from 4-7pm on Monday, you’ll be able to snag alcoholic beverages and food items for only $5 (you don’t think they’d actually sell for a nickel during this day and age, right?)  So take a wistful look back at summer while you feast on velveeta and pickle-topped burgers and plates of jerk chicken, accompanied by glasses of “Spiritual Punch,” imbued with lemon juice, spices and sparkling wine.

Frankie’s 457: Why should all of your summertime fun come to a full stop after Labor Day?  Extend your seasonal revelry to Wednesday, at least, during a final Crab Boil hosted in Frankie’s 457’s bucolic Brooklyn garden.  For $84 per person, patrons can indulge in an array of warm weather hors d’oeuvres, as well as bottles of rosé, classic accompaniments like corn and sausage, and all the crabs you can eat (or crack).

Social Food and Drink: This recently opened rooftop terrace restaurant and bar in Hell’s Kitchen is offering an Israeli-inspired brunch on Labor Day, featuring the Complete Malawach Sandwich — flaky fried Yemenite bread, encasing an egg simmered with tea and spices, with hummus, tahini, and preserved lemon aioli on the side — as well as a sweet Moroccan Crepe with pomegranate, mint, yogurt, granola and honey, served with a complimentary Watermelon Bellini for just $18.

La Marina: This 75,000-square foot Hudson River-adjacent complex is closing out the season with a Brunch n’ Beats Summer Finale, featuring sets by DJ First Choice and Asia Shabazz, eats like Gravlax Benedict, Mission Fig French Toast and Beef Brisket Hash, cocktails such as Passion Fruit, Peach, or Rose and Orange Blossom Sangria, and freshly shucked options from a raw bar, located in a wooden schooner named Geppetto.