Meadows’ Embers Lounge offers new way to enjoy races
Trista Thurston/Observer-Reporter
Patrons mingle at the grand opening of Embers Lounge at The Meadows Racetrack & Casino Saturday evening.
Trista Thurston/Observer-Reporter
Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and signature drinks served Saturday evening at the grand opening of Embers Lounge at The Meadows Racetrack & Casino.
The Meadows Racetrack & Casino has opened a new outdoor space that offers a relaxing atmosphere for enjoying races.
The Embers Lounge opened this weekend. It sits alongside the racetrack and features seating around fire pits, food and a full bar.
“It’s an outdoor lounge. The design concept is around the fire elements. You’ve got these fire pits, and the fire coming out of these columns, and a fireplace … The food and the drinks are fire-inspired,” said Rahul Kaushik, The Meadows’ vice president of marketing.
The menu for the Embers lounge offers several signature cocktails, such as margaritas and an “espresso chocolate s’mores” drink that features chocolate liqueur, espresso and vanilla vodka.
The featured food includes “grown up” hot pockets, flatbreads, burgers and a shareable round of s’mores for four people.
“It’s more a modern take on classic food … and some really modern drinks,” Kaushik said. “This would be a place where we think people would want to hang out with friends.”
The Embers Lounge opening on Saturday coincided with the return of the Corks & Kegs Festival, and featured a live demonstration from celebrity chef Fabio Viviani.
The Embers Lounge will be open Thursday through Saturday, starting at noon, and Kaushik said the hours may be extended at some point.
“On Fridays and Saturdays we’ll have maybe DJs here and some music offerings so people can enjoy music and food,” Kaushik said.
Plans for the Embers Lounge had been put on hold because of COVID-19, but The Meadows was able to begin constructing the space a few months ago.
“As things started to come back, we put it back on development and got going with it,” Kaushik said.
As with the rest of the racetrack, all ages will be welcome at the Embers Lounge, but anyone under 18 will need to be accompanied by an adult.