Lifestyle company Happy Munkey, which was previously known for throwing illegal weed-focused parties in NYC for advocates and industry for the past four years, threw its first legal party on 4/20. 

Its Farewell to Prohibition celebration at Bobby Van’s Steakhouse off Wall Street showcased how the state’s lounge-friendly legislation could change the way people hang out and party in the Big Apple, says Financial Advisor (via Bloomberg). 

Post-prohibition (post-COVID?) partying

It’s hard to imagine for some of us still in lockdown, but “The Munkey,” hosted around 400 members of the industry, artists and advocates to smoke weed, see DJs and hang with a psychic. While founders Vlad Bautista and Ramon Reyes say the party was a networking event designed to raise interest in investing in their planned cultivation facility, it also painted a picture of how cannabis could play a huge role in the party scene in the future.

Since cannabis can be smoked wherever smoking is legal (there’s a cigar room at Bobby Van’s), private clubs will likely be the sole indoor spot where weed-smoking happens, Bautista said — which will make for a very different atmosphere from previous coke- and/or booze-fuelled vibes of the past.

Intimate, upscale — and booze-free

According to Bautista, cannabis-focused parties are ideally more intimate, alcohol-free (“There won’t be sloppy drunk people running around”) and upscale. 

“We’re taking it to the next level,” Bautista told Bloomberg. “New Yorkers are good with those kinds of things.”

We can’t wait!