“Everything old becomes new again.”
Shawn O’Connor has taken this familiar adage to heart (and to the public) with his “pop”-ular venue where you can party like it’s 1999…literally.
O’Connor owns Nostalgia, a themed bar located in Bethpage, New York, that is heavily steeped in celebrating ’90s/early ’00s pop culture touchstones. If you enjoyed properties like Friends, Toy Story, Saved By The Bell, Nick Toons, and the like, Nostalgia truly is “da bomb” and ready to welcome you back to this bygone era.
Immersive Design
Every inch of Nostalgia’s 1,200-square foot interior, from floor to ceiling, is a “time capsule” of ’90s/early ’00s memorabilia and décor—autographed celebrity photos, movie posters, neon and grunge color schemes, then-trendy wall patterns, and Day-Glo chalkboard drawings. This even extends to the restrooms—the walls of one plastered with covers and pages from comic books of the era, and actual compact discs and accompanying booklets decorating the other.
O’Connor and his business partner, Tom Angenbroich, are responsible for a lot of the memorabilia on display. Much of it comes straight from the personal collection they’ve compiled over the years. However, some pieces were picked up at nearby conventions, while others were donated by visiting artists and celebrities and even their regular crowd.
It’s a totally rad experience! This full immersion is meant to tap into patrons' fondest memories of that time period and keep them coming back via this sentimentality.
A photo booth projects patrons into 50-plus movie scenes and TV shows from the era. Meanwhile, claw machines, holograms built into hollowed-out tube TVs, arcade machines, video game consoles connected to multiple TVs, customized tap handles, and more are interspersed throughout. “We wanted to recreate that feeling where, when you walk into [Nostalgia], it stays with you even after you leave,” says O’Connor.
Photo ops are a big draw throughout Nostalgia—none more so than the pieces stationed out on their fenced-in, 400-square-foot back patio. There, patrons will find a six-foot-tall Game Boy handheld game console, a four-foot-tall Tamagotchi virtual pet, and a “life-sized” two-story Barbie Dream House front façade—all custom built out of plywood and lumber.
O’Connor is very DIY with these projects. He sketches out ideas then assembles and paints these structures in-house with the support of his partners and staff. “It’s something I truly enjoy doing, although I’m far from the greatest builder or craftsman,” he says. “I do believe it gives our place a more authentic feel.”
Food & Beverage Menu
Another item impressively built by O’Connor and his staff is Nostalgia’s menu, which takes center stage as soon as someone sits down at the bar. Their one-of-a-kind cocktails not only feature unique ingredients and boastful garnishes, but their catchy names are creatively concocted from the greatest songs and shows straight out of the ’90/’00s, particularly those featured regularly on TRL and Nickelodeon—“Semi-Charmed Kind of Ice,” “Mambo #5,” and “Are Your Afraid of the Dark,” for examples. Meanwhile, snacks such as “Tommy’s Fried Pickles,” “Totally Retro Fries,” and “New Wings on the Block” can be ordered with sauces billed as “Flavor Flavs.”
O’Connor believes the unique ingredients separate Nostalgia from other area hot spots, while the presentations and garnishes make for great photos and social sharing. “This combination generates happy repeating guests, as well as outlets for people to see our cocktails outside of our network—truly making them one of a kind,” he says
There are six staple cocktail menus at Nostalgia, each with their own ’90s-era theme. Skimming the top of their complete “Liquid Library” for a few examples are the Nick-inspired “Slime Menu” (featuring green, oozy cocktails—including one that even glows); the “Throwback Menu” priding itself on the exact taste kids of the ’90s remember (Zima, Squeez-its, Capri-Sun, etc.); and a rotating seasonal menu of eccentric, “picture worthy” cocktails, such as the SpongeBob SquarePants-inspired “Glove World Wumbo Rum” (shining from blue luster dust in a tall glass topped with cotton candy and sprinkles).
So which came first—the signature drinks and food items or their cleverly developed names? The answer is a little bit of Column A and a little bit of Column B.
“We almost always pick the food items we want for the seasonal menu then craft their names afterwards,” says O’Connor. “For most of the cocktails, though, I like to craft the name first. It’s the first thing the customer sees—and I want it to catch their eye and connect with them. From there, I'll mess around with ingredients and try my best to make the cocktail match the name.”
Staff Training
As the menu grows, O’Connor avoids reusing names and repurposing previous ideas. Employing this level of “cranking the brain” creativity on a weekly basis while simultaneously running a bar might seem challenging, but O’Connor is up to the “Double Dare” challenge. “Being able to bounce ideas and measurements off our incredible staff, we are able to perfect our signature cocktails,” he says.
Speaking of his staff, O’Connor requires each one of them to undergo a full day of training sifting through each menu item and working hands-on in being able to understand and craft the cocktails. They even must pass a test on them before starting work. This is done to ensure the experience is consistent for all patrons.
O’Connor has even put together an “employee handbook” that’s always within reach behind the counter. This “reference” book is filled with full ingredients, measuring tools, and detailed build and pour instructions to ensure everything is served responsibly. “It prevents over pouring and spaces out customer consumption,” says O’Connor. “We keep spill logs and incidents in place, as well as bookmark and store video footage of each incident.”
Marketing & Pop-Ups
Ever since opening the doors to Nostalgia in 2022, O’Connor strategically builds awareness and word of mouth about it through major news outlets and social media influencers as well as setting up at local charitable events. They always utilize every pun and pop culture reference to drive home the relativity of their name to others. Think of it as their version of a more coherent Bulky Brick Phone Game.
“[Our] revenue growth and consistently increasing guest count show we were on the right path accomplishing what we set out to do,” says O’Connor.
The frequent limited-time, custom pop-up experiences (transforming the interior of Nostalgia to fit a ’90s theme) are built and installed by O’Connor and his staff and proving popular. “They’re my favorite pieces to create,” he says.
Examples of some “pretty fly” pop-ups include:
- “Slime Time” – a ’90s Nick-themed pop-up complete with signature orange couch, custom wall panels, and a bubble haze machine focused under green lighting that provided a real, yet safe, slime-like atmosphere in their photo op area;
- “The SquarePants Experience” – an overnight transformation of the entire venue into Bikini Bottom from the SpongeBob SquarePants animated series complete with blue water lights flooding the room, a Sandys Tree dome hang-out, wall graphics and standees, and a meet-and-greet with performers dressed as some of the characters; and
- “Sugar Rush” – a Candyland Wonderland photo op filled with giant candy decor, inflatables, detailed 12-by-12-foot wall murals of sugary treats, and a candy block road installed up and down the bar.
O’Connor is especially proud of their recent “Block-Bar-Ster,” probably their most interactive pop-up yet. This experience replicated the feeling of hanging out at a ’90s-era video rental store. In addition to dozens of movie posters, trivia and finish-the-quote games, and free popcorn, an eight-foot projector screen blasted trailers of popular movies from the era. “Guests were able to ‘Rewind and Unwind,’ selecting their food and drinks directly off the shelves by picking VHS cases and ‘checking them out’ with the bartender to create their selections,” he says. “The big crowd favorite was a competition where guests used VHS tapes to build monstrous displays to win prizes.”
Speaking of entertaining, Nostalgia has, over the last three years, welcomed quite a few ’90s-era celebrities from the film, TV, and music worlds through its doors.
His business partner, Angenbroich, has been instrumental in setting these opportunities up, utilizing his decades’ worth of work and relationship-building in the talent-buying industry. These visits included actors such as Thomas Ian (American Pie), Nicholas and Danny Cooksey (Salute Your Shorts), as well as musicians like O-Town’s Trevor Penick, Taking Back Sunday’s Fred Mascherino, and O.A.R.’s MikelParis, to name a few.
“Our first celebrity guest was Danny Tamberelli (The Adventures of Pete & Pete),” says O’Connor. “He hosted our one-year anniversary. [Tamberelli] was our biggest supporter prior to opening, so it was only fitting.”
Even if you can’t place menu item names like “Moe’s Pub Pretzel Sticks,” “Rescue Rangers Chips N’ Dips,” and “The Sherminator,” Nostalgia still proves an enjoyable experience. In fact, O’Connor has been thrilled with the wide range of ages coming through his doors.
“There are patrons our age, in their 30s and 40s, who [grew up with] the cartoons, toys, movies, and music of this era,” he says. “Yet we also have people over 40 who fondly remember the time and truly appreciate the effort we put into this ‘time machine’ we call ‘home.’
“And then there are those in their early 20s who weren’t even alive then yet are still able to connect with and enjoy our space.”
Thanks to Nostalgia’s intimate setting, popular events like karaoke nights and pop culture-themed trivia games mixed with live music are major draws. “The live music aspect attracts guests who may not even care about our décor but just enjoy the vast variety of music from local and national acts in a fun, inviting atmosphere aided by our amazing staff,” he says. “In fact, we just celebrated our 500th show this past October.”
Adaptability & Reinvention
While there might be a worry lurking in the back of other managers’ minds about being too niche and a venue fading fast after an initial “honeymoon period,” O’Connor is still going strong with Nostalgia some three years after opening.
Are there secrets to this slam-“Dunkaroo” success? It helps that Nostalgia is a passion project for O’Connor. He is already a big fan of the pop culture of this era. While working with Angenbroich at a music hall back in 2012, he envisioned successfully opening a venue of this type. He just had to wait for the right moment.
Another is frequent reinvention. “No two visits to Nostalgia are the same—both experience-wise and décor-wise,” says O’Connor. “The best way to solve any problem is to have (and utilize) the ability to adapt.”
This adaptability at Nostalgia has really paid off. In the Bethpage/Four Leaf Federal Credit Unions’ “Best of Long Island” Awards, they have been voted number one in the “Live Music” category two years in a row.
O’Connor and his partner and staff have really tapped into the ’90s surge to successfully offer a memorable experience that keeps their appreciative patrons of all types of ages entertained and returning for a long, long time to come. Cowabunga, dudes!
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