Drinking Alone at the US Open! — A Girl's Guide to Drinking Alone

Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing

The Place: Day 3 of Fan Week at the US Open, one of my favorite places on earth.

The Time: Wednesday August 26, around 2pm. I am a major tennis head, and when the fourth and final grand slam of the year comes to town, I go all in. I love the energy of the Open, walking around the BJK Tennis Center, getting right up close to the action on the outer courts. I usually go during the first or second round, but this year, I’ll be traveling that week. Thankfully, Fan Week exists! For seven days before the official Open starts, grounds passes are completely free, where you can watch qualifying matches, see big-name players practice and a bunch of other weird shit like “Ball Crew Karaoke.” I’ve never been to Fan Week before so let the matches begin!

*The famous mistress herself, the Honey Deuce*

The Vibe: I’m a relatively skilled US Open attendee at this point so I’ve got some tips before even arriving in Flushing. Wear something easy and breezy, as well as comfy shoes. Bring a handheld fan of some kind, plenty of sunblock, a hat and sunglasses, and a portable phone charger, to start. (I guess if you’ve been to any sort of outdoor daytime sporting event, you know all this, but the first time I went to the Open, I wore a cute outfit that I sweated through instantly and my phone promptly died. The more you know.)

But truthfully, my main piece of advice is to grab a bite to eat before strolling the long boardwalk to the tennis center. Everything at the Open is horrifically expensive, and Queens is the most diverse culinary place on the planet. Since you pretty much have to take the 7 train anyway, it’s so easy to just get off at a different stop and treat yourself to something cheap and delicious. Chinese food in Flushing (shoutout Szechuan Mountain House!), Thai food in Elmhurst, and in Jackson Heights alone, there’s Nepali, Indian, Mexican, Colombian, Tibetan, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, the list goes on. I guess I’ve been in an “I Heart New York” phase lately but this truly is the best place to live. I stop for an enormous, super yummy bowl of vegetable biryani at Angel before hitting the courts and am genuinely devastated that I can’t take the leftovers in with me.

Wow ok yes, the US Open!!! Like I said, I love it here. It’s still crowded during Fan Week but way more manageable than when the Open is in full swing. I spend the first hour or so wandering around, getting a lay of the land, and just kinda match-hop: a set here, a game or two there. Because they’re qualifying matches, I don’t know too many of the players by name, but they’re all freakin’ incredible. Quickly I enter into a game of shade-hopping, and even though it’s not terribly hot, sitting directly in the sun on a plastic bleacher can get kinda brutal. (The real hard-core folks bring their own cushions and umbrellas, but that’s not me. Yet.)

The Bartender / The Drank: Soon I’m ready for a drink. There’s no lack of options, but it’s the US Open: I must get a Honey Deuce. You can get one of these pink drinks anywhere on the grounds, but I hit up a kiosk with no line, compared to the designated “Honey Deuce Express” bar that does not seem so express. The three folks working the kiosk are kind and efficient, and clearly there’s a little friendly competition between the outposts because when I tell them I think they’re more express than the express bar, one of the guys says loudly, in the express bar’s general direction: “that’s right that’s right that’s right!”

Here’s the thing about the Honey Deuce. It is fine. It’s basically a vodka lemonade with raspberry liqueur and three honeydew melon balls on a pick meant to look like tennis balls. It was invented 20 years ago and you can tell. (I hope that the brand ambassador who created it is getting some royalties because the US Open sells over half a million of these things per year, and at $23 each, you do the math.) Could the Honey Deuce be better? Yes. Do I still get one every year because I want the commemorative cup? Of course. (Remember to bring a plastic bag to wrap up your cup so you don’t get your bag all sticky! I’ve learned this the hard way!)

If the Honey Deuce doesn’t sound like your jam, there are one thousand other sponsors like Heineken and Dobel Tequila and Moët Champagne, and plenty of places to drink any of these things. While I could’ve gone to one of the official bars and reviewed that, I’m actually here to see tennis, so I’ll take my drink with me to the courts, thank you. I don’t need an excuse to return next year, but maybe I’ll come back and critique the Club du Bois Wine Lounge or the Heineken Red Star Patio Cafe or something. Twist my backhand, why don’t ya!?

Was I Hit On? / Did I Make Friends?: There are a ton of other solo attendees, so I’m sure I could chat up someone if I want to. But something I especially love about seeing smaller-name players on the outer courts is finding myself amidst a terrifically strong, cultural fan base. Watch a Brazilian player and everyone around you will be screaming “ole!” when they hit an ace. Witness a Belgian mount a comeback and suddenly you’re telling him to “allez!” like the rest of them. I spend time at a match between two British players with very British-sounding names and for that half hour, I’m basically at Wimbledon. Have I mentioned that I love it here?

Should You Drink Here Alone?: You should drink here alone, you should drink here with friends, you should come here if you don’t drink, going to the US Open is so fun. I know there’s been a real affordability crisis lately with the price of tickets going up exponentially this year, but if you buy them when they first go on sale (or with Amex presale), you should be able to get a grounds pass for around $100 or less—which is not cheap, but I’ve spent a hundred bucks on a whole lot worse. And of course, there’s Fan Week, which is totally free! Hope to see you on the courts next year, Honey Deuce in (fore)hand.