As kids, we had expectations about adulthood. We gathered data from TV, movies, and advertising like junior anthropologists. There would be checkered tablecloths and red vinyl booths, and big groups of good-looking friends, laughing and clinking martini glasses. Definitely burgers and fries. And it would be fun. Enough fun to make up for the indignities of homework, early bedtimes, and orthodontist appointments. Then we grew up, and that fantasy largely failed to materialize. Except at Bernie’s. This retro tavern on the border of Greenpoint and Williamsburg is like a TGI Fridays that the restaurant fairy turned into a real boy. You can eat a great meal here, off a kid-friendly menu of shrimp cocktail, mozzarella sticks, and a burger with pretty much perfect fries. But nostalgia is the daily special that keeps grownups coming back to play tic-tac-toe in crayon on the butcher paper covering every table. Dining at Bernie’s is like being in the studio audience of a sitcom from a different era. The decor could have been hand-picked by a team of prop stylists: a clock in the shape of a martini, a bobblehead of George Costanza riding a whale, and a signed photo of Bernie from Weekend at Bernie’s. The NYC skyline, Twin Towers included, gleams in mirror form on the wall. Red, pebbled plastic tumblers that were once standard in every suburban pizza joint bubble with fountain soda, and the beer comes in mugs frosted by a glass-chilling machine. But most people drink dirty martinis, garnished by an inexhaustible armory of plastic sword picks, skewered with olives. Bernie’s was a hit when it opened in 2018, and yet it’s never been harder to get a table. Social media (especially TikTok-famous servers Marty and Missy) has helped fuel the Bernaissance, and it’s like all that nostalgia has inspired nostalgia of its own. On weekends, if your party isn’t lined up half an hour before the restaurant opens, you’re in for an hours-long wait—possibly just for the bar. Though you can slink in solo on a weekday and be sipping a martini at the bar in under 15 minutes, Bernie’s is really best enjoyed with that big group of friends. There’s a lot of food you’ll want to share. And who else are you supposed to clink glasses with? For some serious burger talk, check out our podcast, Restaurant People.