Two brothers’ laidback bar never goes out of style

Volume Number 1 Issue Number 1| September 29 - October 5, 2006

Chelsea Now photo by Jefferson Siegel

Mark and William Penza, co-owners of BillyMark’s West

By Lori Haught

They make no qualms about it being a dive bar. That’s why they love it.

Affordable drinks, amazing music and friendly service make BillyMark’s West, at 332 Ninth Ave. on the corner of 29th St., one of a dying breed in Manhattan — a neighborhood bar.

Co-owners and brothers, Billy and Mark Penza, have strived to make it such.
“In my wildest imagination, I never thought we’d last seven years,” Mark said. “It’s a testament to the people and the hard work of my brother and I.”

The two brothers have been bar owners since Sept. 16, 1980, when they opened the first BillyMark’s on College Point Boulevard in Queens. In 1997, they began talk about opening a bar in Manhattan, but staying true to the original’s values.

“Manhattan only has martini lounges and clubs,” Billy said. “Here, you can be sitting with artists, blue-collar workers or politicians and you can all be friends.”

Diversity and safety were two of the top priorities for the brothers, who wanted to make it a relaxed environment where everyone felt safe.

“One thing I hear from women a lot is that they never feel threatened here,” Mark said. “That’s important.” Many of the patrons commented that you know from the minute you walk into the bar that Billy and Mark would do whatever it took to protect you.

“If you had a few too many drinks, and you didn’t think you could make it safely home, if you tell Billy, he’ll make sure you get there safe,” Frank, one of the bar’s regulars said.

They aren’t tough; they don’t exude an air of authority to protect their patrons, just a certain level of down-home friendship that makes everyone feel like confrontation at BillyMark’s is just…out of place.

“This is one of the few bars in Chelsea that isn’t catered to gays, but is gay friendly,” Mike Lee, another of BillyMark’s regulars said. “You get all flavors here.”

The décor, described as a “tribute to American pop culture” by Mark, is as diverse and varied as the clientele.

The walls are decked out in movie posters, gold records, autographed cymbals and New York sports paraphernalia. The old-time register sits on the back of the bar, with the wide selection of liquor displayed neatly against the mirrors, while a tiny skeleton is virtually invisible underneath all the Mardi Gras beads draped around its neck.

The crowning glory of the bar, according to the bar owners and patrons alike, is the jukebox. With an entire link devoted to it on the pub’s Web site, BillyMarksWest.com, it is filled with everything from Michael Jackson to the Ramones and several mixes compiled by the brothers to ensure a variety of good music.

“Where can we go to hear some classic rock and roll?” someone asked one night.

“Right there,” one regular responded, yanking his thumb over his shoulder toward the jukebox.

The bar has a lot of regulars, but many people wander in before a night of club-hopping or a game at Madison Square Garden. BillyMark’s has drink specials before all the events at the Garden and the Hammerstein Ballroom.

The beauty of BillyMark’s is something that is hard to capture in words. According to Lee it’s the vibe of the place. The fact that everybody knows your name, “and the buybacks are good.”