East Village's Kingsley Opens Build-Your-Own Bloody Mary Bar

EAST VILLAGE, NY — If you're sick of a wilted piece of celery stuck in your Bloody Mary, Kingsley in the East Village has a new option — a few dozen new options, in fact.

The restaurant, which opened eight months ago at 190 Avenue B on the corner of East 12th Street, is introducing a build-your-own Bloody Mary bar.

"I'm from Chicago, the Bloody Mary is bigger in the Midwest," Roxanne Spruance, chef and owner of Kingsley, told Patch. "I implemented it at another place years ago [in Chicago], but nobody really does it here. In Milwaukee, you can get a burger on top of your Bloody Mary."

For $14, you'll be given a full pint, the bar's unique Bloody Mary concoction and let loose on the bar.

The build-your-own Bloody Mary bar will feature 30 to 40 toppings, including bacon, homemade pretzels, pickles, cheeses, shrimp and octopus. Yes, there will be celery as well, but who needs celery when you have an array of charcuterie.

Spruance, who appeared on and won an episode of "Chopped" in 2013, opened Cafe Tallulah on the Upper West Side in 2013 and also served as executive chef for Alison Eighteen in the Flatiron District.

Photo Credit: Kingsley