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Business & Tech

Outdoor Café - and Renovations - Planned for NU Hotel

Summer fun at a local boutique hotel

Once the weather gets warm, Brooklyn folks are always on the lookout for . From seasonal bars like the Gowanus Yacht Club to the movie series at Brooklyn Bridge Park, there are varied opportunities to head out of your stuffy apartment and enjoy summer in the city.

Locals may have another venue to add to their list of outdoor escapes. The trendy Nu Hotel, on Smith Street and Atlantic Avenue, has applied for an outdoor café and bar license.

In addition to an "open-air indoor space with a sidewalk café that will comfortably sit 50 people," Javier Egipciaco, General Manager of the hotel, said the entire lobby, bar and lounge are also being renovated.

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The hotel is also launching a light fare menu created by Chef Jahangir Mehta, owner of Graffiti and Mehtaphor Restaurants in Manhattan.

The outdoor cafe must first be approved by Community Board 2. There is a public hearing on the issue on Monday night at 6 p.m. in the Jonas Board Room, Metcalfe Hall, Long Island University.

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All of these changes point to one thing: trendy hotels are in demand in Brooklyn, and they aren't only .

Egipciaco says they hope to attract neighborhood people as well.

“We are confident that the neighborhood residents and hotel guests alike will love the new feel of NU Bar and Lounge," he said.

Adding to the arty and unique vibe, this summer, the hotel’s lobby and rooms will feature artwork by the Lower East Side graffiti artist Dennis Archer.

Since July 2008, the NU Hotel has offered a boutique hotel experience on Smith Street. With suites that include a hammock and rooms with bunk beds, the hotel is affordable, but doesn’t have that feel of a standard chain hotel. The rooms have cork floors and there is a chalkboard in the bathrooms, so guests can create artwork in their room. The hotel takes photos of various guests chalk drawings and posts them on their Facebook page.

Out of town guests need not sleep on an air mattress -- locals get a 15 percent neighborhood resident discount!

Your guests can even head to your house on bike. The hotel offers free loaner bikes to guests. They also have a child’s bike safety seat and helmet for those traveling with little ones.

Of course, staying at a hotel within walking distance of a friend's apartment might seem a bit lavish, but having a cocktail or an iced coffee in the hotel’s outdoor café might just make the vacation feel more like a vacation.

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