New 'Mad Men' tour takes visitors on a boozy walk of Manhatt
foxnews | 2014-04-02 16:51

Those looking to channel their inner Don Draper or Joan Holloway need look no further than Midtown Manhattan.

Sidewalk Food Tours is now offering a new Mad Men Tour,  in which fans of the hit TV show can eat, drink and stumble around like their favorite characters.

The tour features New York's advertising landmarks and, of course, some of the city's most legendary watering holes.

Both a daytime and nighttime version of the tour is offered.  The two-hour early excursion is a full tour of Madison Avenue – including visits to eight locations depicted on “Mad Men” – and wrapping up with a 60’s-style drink at one of the cast’s favorite bars.

The evening tour is longer—but not because of more walking.  The night tour is all about drinking, as your Mad Men tour guide brings you to three watering holes frequented by the ad agency employees in the show. 

I went on the night tour, meeting up with a group of seven others, including our tour guide, Josh, by the clock in the center of Grand Central Terminal.

The tour’s website encourages you to dress up "Mad Men" style -- and many in the group did. In hindsight, I wish I did, too.  The fancy outfits really enhanced the experience and made me feel like I was actually at a night on the town.

Josh gave us a detailed history of Grand Central, where Don would have commuted into work every day from Westchester before he and Betty divorced.  Then, it was off to the first stop, the Oyster Bar in Grand Central, where Don and his colleague Roger Sterling went for an afternoon of drinking.

Josh brought along an iPad to play scenes from “Mad Men” where fictional scenes took place in each of the locations we visited.  As we enjoyed our Tom Collins and Old Fashioneds in the present day, we watched Don and Roger slurp oysters and get very intoxicated in the middle of their work day.

Next stop was the bar at the Roosevelt Hotel—another popular drinking spot for the employees of ad agency Sterling Cooper.

In between bars two and three, Josh stopped at 455 Madison Avenue.  In real life, the address belongs to the luxurious New York Palace Hotel, but in the show it’s the original location of Sterling Cooper.  Josh showed us an early scene of show where Roger is speaking by an office window, which overlooks the back of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.  In actuality, St. Patrick’s is across the street from the Palace.

We wrapped up our night with a drink at the fancy Monkey Bar at the Hotel Elysee.

The tour was a fun way to connect with fellow “Mad Men” fans and was an opportunity to try drinks you might not otherwise have.  But it’ll cost you.  A ticket for the night tour is $150. If you’re looking for a cheaper option, the day version is only $59.

The day tours are Monday and Wednesday at 3 p.m.  The night tours are on Thursday and Friday at 7 p.m. For more information, visit madmentour.com. You will never forget this night because everyone will get a package of vintage pictures of them and their dates enjoying the night.
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