This story is part of a series that explores the nightlife (and day life) of New York.
If you’ve ever spent a sunny day sitting in Prospect Park, you’ve certainly met Prince Lewis.
“Welcome to Prospect Park,” he often says when he approaches people on dates, parties or picnics and tries to coax them into buying a chestnut pie, a bottled cocktail often sold on the streets of New York City. “I am excited and delighted to be your waiter. Can I start it all off with a beautiful Caribbean cocktail on this beautiful spring afternoon? ”
Sometimes he’ll spice up his introduction to make people smile, throwing in a “praise!” or a compliment on how “lovely” people look. Certain lines are reserved for specific cases; “Adults only,” he often adds when toddlers or children are present. He can stroll people who are celebrating with “Happy Birthday” or even hand out free drinks.
“Sorry, smoking is not allowed in the park,” he sternly told several groups of smokers last Saturday, before flashing a magnetic smile. “Unless you are enjoying a good Caribbean cocktail!”
“That sounds dangerous and delicious,” said Maeve Cavadini, 30, as Mr. Lewis approached her as she sat covered in blankets. “I’ll probably need a couple of hours before I drive.”
“If you need to come to my house for a nap, I have you,” her friend Melissa Barna, 32, replied.
While the exact details vary depending on who you ask, most agree that nut shells were made in the highlands in the 1990s.
José Chu, who worked as a manager at 101st Street and the Broadway location of Flor de Mayo, a popular Chino-Latino restaurant credited with inventing the first hazelnut pie, said GrubStreet in 2019 that he came up with the name for the drink after seeing a New York City Ballet ad.
As restaurants and bars close in 2020, takeaway cocktails become the backbone of a socially distant life. And when the drink is okay ripping off June last year and then restored, it is unknown how many people is a fan of drinking move.
But nutcrackers, homemade beers that aren’t technically classified as takeout cocktails in New York, are still illegal, as is drinking in local parks and beaches.
Brother Lewis, 33, goes to the park to sell $15 worth of drinks year-round, but his peak seasons are spring and summer. On slower days – when it’s rainy, overcast or even snowy – he may only sell one or two. But on a sunny Saturday or Sunday, he can usually make $1,000.
Last Saturday, when the temperature in Brooklyn hit 90 degrees, he arrived at the park around 3pm carrying two rolling bags filled with frozen (but melting) drinks. He said he could fit 60 at most in each bag, but that day he carried about 90 with him.
Mr. Lewis, who has his own vodka made at a factory in Wisconsin, says it will probably cost him more than a dollar per drink. He cycles through different flavors depending on the day or week, but on that Saturday he was selling mango, mint lemonade, strawberry mint lemonade, and ginger pineapple blends mixed with vodka, along with bright red Caribbean rum.
Sometimes he’ll let people negotiate his price down to $10, but it’s usually unnecessary. Even when people tell him “no,” he still manages to make a joke or seduce them – which is often enough to change their mind.
“Worst case scenario, if you don’t leave them a drink, you will at least leave them with a smile,” he said as we walked around the park.
Brother Lewis, who grew up in Freeport, Grand Bahama, moved to Brooklyn in 2019. He said he was inspired to join his current job early on during the pandemic by Brooklyn Vagabond, a waiter wearing Masks and caps are selling drinks in Prospect Park.
Vagabond, in his 30s, has hidden his face and mentioned his name in articles for fear of getting into legal trouble. He says he started selling cocktails for $10 to $15 in the park in the summer of 2020 — after his restaurant temporarily closed — to support his family.
“No restaurants are open; the beaches have been closed,” he said. “The only places to go are people’s backyards or parks.”
He says that nutcrackers have traditionally been “a really sweet, very strong wine and it just gives you a buzz,” but many sellers have sought to rebrand and rock the colorful drinks. color during the pandemic.
Vagabond says he puts a lot of thought into his cocktails, using specific liqueurs and mixing them with herbs like mint and basil, which requires extra time and effort. .
Some people balk at the idea of spending $15 on a chestnut pie. But when Mr. Lewis joked about his drink, “I prefer the polite term – ‘craft cocktail’.”
He also said that in the nearly two years since he sold the drinks, he has never been stopped by the police.
“You know when I feel really good?” he say. “I saw these two blondes selling drinks in the park. I’ve heard of luxury residences, but luxury for a whole life hustle? That’s new to me.”
“I said to myself, ‘Okay, I feel good now,’ because the chance of the NYPD coming to this park and getting rid of these two blondes is 0.1%,” he continued. “So if they don’t deal with them, they definitely won’t deal with me. And even if they do, I will have a very strong case in court. ”
However, many drink sellers in New York’s parks are less open to their business. Vagabond says an article featuring him in 2020 left him uncomfortably exposed.
“Within days of this New York Post article appearing, the NYPD searched my Instagram,” he said. “My worst fear has come true. I was caught.”
After being warned, he decides selling in the park is not worth the high risk and effort. Now, he says, he mostly just delivers drinks – occasionally catering to events like birthdays and weddings.
“Some people think I just magically appeared in the park and I was just walking along,” he said. “I think people remember how difficult and demanding it was.”
Mr. Lewis also said that he hopes Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams will consider legalizing the work that chestnut sellers do around the city.
“Don’t criminalize this, incorporate this,” he said. “I would rather pay a $200 license fee than a $200 fine.”
He says he has a close relationship with other drinkers in Prospect Park — “there’s enough pie in New York City for everyone.”
The biggest obstacle he often faces, he said, is hauling heavy bags of drinks in the park.
But even after sunset, Mr. Lewis kept his energy up.
“Sorry, we’re so tired,” one woman told him around 7:30 p.m
“If I knew you were going to be here, I wouldn’t have bought all the drinks in this bag,” another said. “If you come back tomorrow, I’ll be right here in this exact spot.”
By 8:30 p.m. — less than six hours after arriving — Mr. Lewis had earned $560 via Venmo, $40 via Cash App, $51 via Zelle and $410 in cash.
With $1,061 in sales and tips, he passed his goal for the day, but he decided to stay about an hour longer to sell a few more drinks.
“At this point, I’m just happy,” he said. “Whatever happens, will happen. They’re still here, so let’s do it. ”
As he began with his final group of the night, he left them with his familiar parting words: “Think of me as a little dreamer, just let it go.”
