In just a few months, Exit 33 at Turning Stone will be offering a new experience to their nightlife by mixing sophisticated, modern and sports-social features all in one place.
“You know, four bars soon to be five, all in one space, it’s like indoor bar hopping,” Shawnna Popluhar, manager of NY Rec and Social Club.
Popluhar has been a part of Turning Stone’s nightlife since 2013 when they started Exit 33. She is now managing NY Rec and Social Club, which will be opening its doors on Dec. 6.
“It’s a sports book, you know, lounge area with a gastropub-style food menu,” Popluhar said. We have adult-friendly games like pool and foosball and darts and all that. We have a ton of beers on draft, we have great cocktails [and] we’ll have live entertainment. So there’s a lot going on in this newest space.”
This newest edition is the first part of Turning Stone’s 30-year, $370 million evolution that was announced back in July, generating a $616 million one-time economic impact.
“I think it gives up a sense of pride as team members that we get to be a part of something like that, especially for NY Rec and Social Club being the first ones to be able to do that,” she said.
Popluhar says opening open a new venue like this one takes a lot of planning, meetings and team effort. To help them provide a high-quality experience for their guests, they will be hosting a hiring event for every position.
“This upcoming Tuesday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., right here in the Exit 33 Atrium, we are hosting our first hiring event for NY Rec and Social Club,” Popluhar said.
Now that they are just a couple months away from their grand opening, she says they are in crunch mode.
“Early November we’ll start training so even if we’re hiring people now, we get to get them in and trained and used to the turning stone culture before we open up,” Popluhar said.
Even though Turning Stone is in a small town, she says they are a big part of Central New York.
“People come here and you know they can gamble, they can come to the clubs, they can go out to eat, they can go to the spa and stay at a hotel. So this new feature of New York and Social Club is really just going to enhance that experience for each guest,” Popluhar said.