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The fourth New York-area location of Alamo Drafthouse will officially open on Staten Island next week on July 22.
The venue takes over 44,726 square feet of the Boulevard Shopping Center at 2636 Hyland Boulevard and boasts nine screens featuring a total of 893 seats. During the soft opening period, which will run through July 27, visitors will receive 25% off food and non-alcoholic beverages "while staff trains and gets up to speed," according to an official press release about the news.
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Visitors be warned: don't expect a "traditional" cinema experience on Staten Island. In fact, the destination will also be home to Flying Guillotine, a kung fu-themed collaboration with Wu-Tang Clan founder RZA that is part bar and part martial art museum. How cool!
The space will feature posters and memorabilia spanning the history of Kung fu cinema. Don't forget that Shaolin, a branch of kung-fu martial arts, is Wu-Tang Clan's nickname for Staten Island.
"Bringing the coolest movie experience to 'Shaolin' with a bar designed with the aesthetics of the Wu-Tang vibe and an extensive collection of memorabilia, this location will surely be a place of many fun memories for Staten Islanders," said RZA in an official statement.
Inside, guests will get to order from a tap wall of 45 draft beers or browse through two cocktail menu sections: Shaolin, which lists a total of nine classic cocktails, and Wu-Tang, featuring nine original craft cocktails designed by bar manager Vincent Favella.
This newest Alamo Drafthouse location follows three others in the New York area: the very first one that opened in 2013 in Yonkers, the Downtown Brooklyn one that debuted in 2016 and the Lower Manhattan venue that's been operating since 2021. Just like Alamo Drafthouse Staten Island, the latter two cinemas are also home to "separate" businesses. In Brooklyn, visitors get to peruse through century-old wax exhibits at House of Wax while Lower Manhattan guests can look through the vast archive of over 60,000 letterpress film advertising plates adorning the on-site Press Room.
These days, going to the movies is clearly about much more than catching a flick.