Woodstock now has its own sports bar, The Clubhouse, thanks to an accidental encounter. It recently opened at the Woodstock Golf Club.
The Clubhouse offers light pub fare, beers and signature cocktails. It features large-screen televisions with most major sports packages and a game room with a full-size pool table and some classic arcade games. One can get a smash burger for $13 and a beer for $6 to $8. Well drinks are $10.
“And you can sit out by the creek and have a really beautiful day. Woodstock’s lovely, Woodstock’s a beautiful place,” said owner Mark Landsman. “But you don’t have to pay for the privilege of it.”
He also owns Small Talk at 1 Tinker Street, which he describes as a tiny, vibey cocktail bar.
“The way it started was that I bought a rug on Facebook Marketplace,” said Landsman. “One of the members of the golf club was selling the rug.”
That was in March.
“He encouraged me to reach out to them, [saying] that the golf course is just like looking for someone to open a sports bar here,” Landsman continued. “They have always wanted this place to be a sports bar for members and for the public — and just like a low-key casual place to hang out. I think it hasn’t always been that in the past, so we’re keeping it simple and fun. It was really nice. It was one of those really happy coincidences where when I started talking to the members of the golf course and the management, everyone’s interests here are aligned.”
The golf club wanted someone who would open a place quickly and provide a pleasant environment.
Landsman said The Clubhouse didn’t require much work except for painting and new light fixtures. A mill once operated where a deck now overlooks the Millstream, offering a view of the golf course.
Simplicity is key. There are no servers. You order at the bar and sit where you like.
“I think the idea is that it’s a place you can get drinks and food, but not feel like you’re pushed into a service setting where you have to sit down and eat your food and someone’s going to check in on you,” Landsman said. “If you want to have your dinner turn into the rest of your night here, great. Just keep hanging out. There’s no one to talk to about how long you’ve been at your table or whether you need to order more. I feel like in the Catskills in general that’s just not as available.”
Landsman noted the different types of people coming in and out of the space within the first week of opening.
“You’ve got golfers coming in, getting beers for their game, coming back afterwards and hanging out and talking about it,” he said. “The other day I had a few people come in and just shooting pool all afternoon. And then there were a couple of locals hanging out, having like wine and alcohol spritzes out in the sun.”
The Clubhouse has six televisions, including one with a 65-inch screen. During the day, one can see European soccer games, then basketball at night. An NFL package will allow viewing of every football game.
Landsman, who has a master’s in education, started after college as a waiter in New York City. “One of the things I like a lot about upstate coming from New York is that you have more bars that have a lot of different age groups and a lot of different types of people” he said. “I think in New York City, you go into a bar and it’s got 22-year-olds, and it’s probably only going to have 22-year-olds. And a bar that has 60-year-olds is probably going to just have 60-year-olds. It was one of the first things I noticed when I moved up here — bars and places that people hang out in are just much more welcoming and open. And I think it’s probably just partly a product of, there aren’t enough places.”
The Clubhouse is open Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday noon to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday noon to 11. Go to woodstockclubhouse.com or follow them on Instagram @woodstockclubhouse.
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