Films, Food, & Fun at iPic Theaters in Fort Lee
This week I was fortunate to attend a media invite to the new iPic Theaters in Fort Lee. iPic Theaters is a upscale movie theater chain, and their Fort Lee location is the first in the Tri-State area.
We started the evening at City Perch, a restaurant and bar connected to the theater. This beautiful bar featured local NJ beer and cocktails using New Jersey liquor.
The drinks we tried at the bar included the “Afternoon Delight” (House Infused lemon berry vodka, Rare Tea lemon berry tea, Aperol, fresh lemonade, and mint), the “Applejack Margarita” (Laird’s 1780 applejack, apple cider, apple salsa, Azunia organic reposado tequila) and the “Norma Jean” (Three olives strawberry vodka, homemade strawberry lemonade). The Norma Jean and the Applejack Margarita can be found on the “Garden State Garden to Glass” portion of their impressive cocktail menu.
After cocktails and small bites at City Perch, we got a tour of the theater. iPic Theaters is a beautiful, romantic theater with plenty to look at. I personally loved their chandelier and their overall lighting scheme.
Their art work is something that stood out to me, and not something that would typically catch your eye at a movie theater. Artist Mike Stilkey created the beautiful book mural seen below. I’m told lots of people take selfies with it. The walls at iPic Theater are filled with beautiful art work in the hallways, and even the bathrooms.
Now for the movie experience!
We were very fortunate to see a presentation from innovative CEO of iPic Theaters, Hamid Hashemi, who wanted the movies to be a social destination with a luxury experience affordable to the general population. Not only do you get to see a movie with total comfort, but you can also order fine dining and cocktails to be had during the movie. Why go to dinner and a movie when you can have dinner IN the movie?
iPic offers two kinds of experiences: Premium and Premium Plus. Premium seat ticket holders can relax is plush leather seats and can order food and beverages from concessions to bring to their seat. Premium Plus can enjoy reclining sets, all you can eat popcorn, a call button for waiter service (who they call ninja waiters), a blanket, and pillow for total comfort during the movie. Premium Plus seating are in “Seating Pods” creating a level of intimacy. The pods also have their own cup holders and cubbyholes for belongings.
Seats are reserved in advance, so movie goers are strongly recommended to purchase tickets in advance especially for a Friday and Saturday night. The theater has it’s own free membership program that enables guests first right to purchase tickets to upcoming movies as well as other perks. They also offer a sapphire, gold, and platinum membership which has exclusive perks as well. The theater has it’s own app, that you can order seats from in advance as well as order off their menu when you’re in the theater.
iPic Theaters has their own award winning executive Chef, Sherry Yard, who created food on the menu that you would easily be able to eat in the dark. We got to enjoy fried chicken, a chicken Caesar salad boat, a pulled pork sandwich, and a ham and cheese biscuit.
Pictured in the phone above is Chardonnary, from iPic Theater’s own wine label “Cipi”. In addition to an executive chef, Adam R. Seger serves as the theater’s award winning corporate sommelier/executive bartender. All the amazing cocktails we had earlier were created by him, and he takes pride in created craft cocktails using local businesses.
After our presentation it was nice to sit back, relax and enjoy the movie! Considering I got to take my husband with me, it was the perfect date night.
Overall this was a unique movie experience that I look forward to doing again! The level of food, drinks, and comfort was something I had yet to experience in a movie theater. I highly recommend visiting and seeing it for yourself!
Additional Information on iPic Theaters in Fort Lee:
Address: 2023 Hudson St, Fort Lee, NJ
Phone: (201) 582-7100
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Press Release:
iPic Entertainment continues its remarkable expansion into the Northeast with its first New Jersey location–an eight-screen, 528-seat luxury movie theater and critically acclaimed Sherry Yard restaurant, City Perch Kitchen + Bar.
iPic Hudson Lights will officially open its doors to the public on Friday, August 5. Tickets are now available for purchase at www.ipic.com or via the iPic app for upcoming blockbusters including Suicide Squad, Bad Moms, Jason Bourne and Nine Lives. “As a token of our appreciation we are giving away a package of membership and free tickets worth $68 to all residents of New Jersey for welcoming us to the area,” says President and CEO of iPic Entertainment Hamid Hashemi.
Moviegoers can sign up for the iPic Sapphire membership program before August 10, 2016, a $29 value, and receive a premium ticket which can be redeemed towards any movie until October 6, 2016. Sapphire membership entitles the guest to another free ticket on their birthday, a free dessert on their anniversary and earned points for dollars spent that can be used towards future purchases along with a host of special events and programs tailored for iPic Sapphire Members.
iPic Theaters will serve as an anchor tenant for Tucker Development’s highly anticipated new retail and residential destination, Hudson Lights located in Fort Lee, New Jersey. This new, affluent mixed-use project is conveniently located at the crossroads of New Jersey and New York, situated near the entrance to the heavily traveled George Washington Bridge.
Priding itself on delivering an “affordable luxury experience” in the cinema marketplace with revolutionary seating, chef-driven culinary and farm to glass mixology, iPic Theaters will add to the attraction of the mixed-use development while serving as a destination unto itself.
“Hudson Lights is poised to become one of the region’s foremost destinations for entertainment, shopping, dining and luxury residential opportunities, and we are extremely pleased to have iPic Theaters, along with City Perch Kitchen + Bar restaurant, as the lead retail tenant for this dynamic and transformative mixed-use development,” adds Richard Tucker, CEO of Tucker Development Corporation, developer of Hudson Lights in partnership with Ares Management and Kushner Real Estate Group.
iPic Theaters at Hudson Lights will enable guests to enjoy their movie in ultimate comfort and style with intimate reclining Premium Plus seating pods, complete with courtesy pillows and blankets. At the push of a button, guests can summon ninja servers to deliver signature dishes and handcrafted cocktails from iPic’s in-theater dining concept, iPic Express.
Hudson Lights will also feature the critically acclaimed City Perch Kitchen + Bar, an independent restaurant concept by SVP of Culinary Brand Development for iPic Entertainment, Sherry Yard, an accomplished chef who has spent her extensive career making a mark on the culinary world.
City Perch Kitchen + Bar is a Seasonal American Dining experience that offers unique, playful dishes focusing on ingredients sourced from nearby farms and waters. Complementing the menu, a sophisticated beverage program designed by nationally lauded Corporate Sommelier/Executive Bartender Adam Seger, will offer handcrafted farm-to-glass cocktails, local beers and boutique wines.
iPic Hudson Lights will feature eight auditoriums with seating between 40 and 130 in an intimate setting and will offer the best in visuals and audio through employing 7.1 channel Dolby sound, utilizing the largest and best-proportioned screens, and harnessing the most advanced 3D technology available.
iPic also streamlines the entire guest experience through a proprietary iPic Theaters app that empowers guests to purchase tickets and select their in-theater dining options via their smartphones. iPic Fort Lee’s grand opening will mark the first time guests will be able to select their in-theater dining preferences as they purchase tickets from the comfort of their couch or in the theater via this new app upgrade . They can also access their membership information and receive rewards and special access to advance screenings of movies, along with tracking loyalty benefits earned for every dollar spent.
All seats may be reserved ahead of time on iPic’s proprietary reservation system by visiting iPic.com, or moviegoers can simply download the iPic app to their iPhones for a hassle-free, one-step transaction process. A membership program enables iPic members to cash in on discounted pricing, priority notification of tickets available for purchase to blockbuster movies, access to exclusive movie showings, free upgrades to Premium Plus seats and the ability to earn points toward iPic Member Reward programs. To become an iPic member or for more information, please visit www.ipic.com.
About iPic Entertainment
Established in 2006 and headquartered in Boca Raton, FL, iPic Entertainment is the fastest-growing affordable luxury theater brand in the nation. An industry leader, iPic Entertainment’s mission is to provide visionary entertainment escapes, presenting chef-driven culinary offerings and mixology in premium movie theaters and restaurants. iPic Theaters currently operates 13 locations with 97 screens in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin with locations planned for California, Texas, South Florida, Philadelphia and New York. Visit www.ipic.com.
About Hudson Lights
Hudson Lights covers approximately 143,000 square feet of retail space, which includes 276 luxury apartments and 864 parking stalls. The fully entitled second phase of Hudson Lights is approved to include an additional 201 residential units, approximately 50,000 square feet of retail space and parking, as well as a 175-room hotel. The zoning also affords the development the option for an office building of up to 430,000 square feet. Once completed, Hudson Lights will total approximately one million square feet of commercial and residential space. For more information about Hudson Lights, visit www.hudsonlightsnj.com
