• by Kelly Samardak , November 4, 2010

RadiumOne Ad:tech New York Party, Provacateur, New York
November 3, 2010

Still flicking at popcorn wedged in my teeth with my tongue, I wandered over to Provocateur from The Park NYC to party with RadiumOne, an adnetwork.  A more accurate statement would be that I walked up and down 9^th Avenue trying not to look like a lost tourist, checking Google maps again and again for confirmation that Provocateur was indeed on 9^th between 13^th and Little West 12^th.  Finally I sucked it up and asked a doorman who directed me toward the other side of the Gansevoort to the Hudson Street entrance.  Hudson.  Do you hear me, Google? Update your maps.

I was joking in my party summary about see-through lingerie.  Provocateur wasn't.  Branded Evolution's Dave Ford and I weren't at the party for more than 10 minutes before two slender creatures in fishnets, underroos, and cropped, belly-baring tops were released into the wild.  Some parties release doves, some parties release scantily clad women.  Their meaning wasn't clear and they could often be seen pecking at their phones.  How does one carry a phone without a bag or pockets?  Mysterious!

The bar was open and premium.  Sweet, I could use a nice pick-me-up in the form of my new buddy, Patron XO Café, which the fabulous people at adMarketplace introduced me to.  So warm, so smooth, so delicious.

I ran into a gaggle of Mediacom's partying best, including Travis Higgins, a media planner I had spotted a few weeks ago at the Meebo party as well.  I also found Adam Francisco Eldridge, previously of MediaVest, currently of Gaia Interactive.  You may recall I met him years ago on a Thrillist trip.  Also there from my Thrillist tripping past was James Kiernan, now Senior Director, Digital Strategy & Sales at ESPN.  He was talking with Jen Duddy from A&E, one of my favorite channels.

Provocateur is lovely for many reasons; it feels like a secret garden, there are cozy off-the-porch swings, there are group-friendly, rounded seating clusters everywhere, and at least last night, there was plenty of space to move around.

But you know what sucks about it?

Smoking.

I snapped my head around at the surprising sent of cancer dust nearby. "Dude! Do you smell CIGARETTE SMOKE?!" I barked incredulously at Dave Ford.  I was so confused to detect it in a bar atmosphere since it had been chased out of NYC bars, THANK GOODNESS.

I spotted a second smoker and went into rule czar mode.  When it comes to smoking or cell phone usage in theatres, I love to be the buzzkill.  I really do.  I feel supreme joy at shutting down barftastic behavior.

I chased down a busboy to confirm this blatant rule-breaking before I smashed the offending cig into the offender's face.  "You can't smoke in here, can you?" I asked a waiter as he tried to escape me with a feverish scurry.  "Yes you can," he said.  "BOOO!!!" I honked, inspiring the other waiter dude nearby to laugh at me.

I guess Provocateur somehow fits the bill as an outdoor space.  Thus, grossly, you can smoke.  The smell of smoke makes me want to hork.  I don't want it in my hair.  I don't want it in my nose.  I don't want to smell it on my ice cubes. I don't want it in my lungs. 

So I left, dragging Dave Ford's lungs with me.  And off we headed to party #3 for the night: the Syncapse Platform Launch party at Avenue Lounge, oddly right next door to the comScore party.

Photos are up!