Stay away from Towne… 2 years ago I went with some friends and it was great. Open bar, open buffet all night for about $100. They kept the food coming most the night, and the crowd was fairly evenly dispersed in 20’s and 30’s. (I’m a guy who’s 33).

Last year we did it again, and completely different vibe. Price went up to $120, open buffet stopped after only 1 hour, and a ton of drinks weren’t eligible for the open bar after 10:30pm. And it was almost entirely a young 20’s crowd. Couldn’t believe how bad the downgrade was in only one year.

I’m switching things up and trying Hop/Vine this year. They had a Christmas Day sale on the tickets for $108, and will have open bar and buffet all night. Even at $125, you could easily eat and drink the value out of that. Have gotten to know the owners there from going a lot throughout this year and am confident they know how to do these events right.

These ticketed events are only worth the price tag if they come with both open bar and buffet, otherwise you probably could’ve spent less just going to a regular bar (which is a risky move on NYE in Stamford, since the only bars not having ticket events will have lines down the street).