Packed bars, sold-out gear and Knicks cookies: Long Island businesses cash in on NBA Finals run

On Monday night, The Main Event Restaurant & Sports Bar hit capacity, with hundreds of customers flocking to the Farmingdale establishment to watch the Knicks defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers and secure a spot in the NBA Finals. 

“There’s definitely been a huge uptick in business for sure,” said Steve Ringle, general manager of The Main Event. “Every game there are huge crowds unlike any teams we’ve seen in the past.”

Long Island business owners said the Knicks’ run to the NBA Finals has led to big spikes in business, not just for sports bars, but for apparel retailers, restaurants and even bakeries. Sports experts and business owners said Knicks fever has taken hold among customers and is leading to watch parties, curated food and drink specials and increased social media marketing.

“It has definitely helped any bar, restaurant, lounge, hotel, that takes advantage of this opportunity," said Dorothy Roberts, president of the Long Island Hospitality Association.

The Main Event, which has historically been closed on Memorial Day, opened its doors specifically to capitalize on the large crowds that have been gathering to watch the playoffs, Ringle said.

The restaurant and bar, which had around 300 to 400 patrons come out Monday to watch the game, brought in somewhere between “50% to 75%” more in sales than it normally does on a weeknight, said Ringle, adding sales during weekday Knicks playoff games this season have been double what The Main Event normally sees during the week.

The Spread Bar and Grill in Lindenhurst, a business geared toward mobile sports betting, has seen the relatively smaller bar hit capacity several times since the second round of the playoffs began earlier this month.

“It’s mostly the same people over and over, and they know you’re not going to get a seat if you don’t get here early,” said Shawn Fenton, co-owner of the sports bar, which opened in October 2024.

The Spread also opted to open on the holiday Monday to host die-hard fans, Fenton said. The bar planned to open at 6 p.m., but patrons had started lining up an hour earlier.

“If the Knicks are playing on a weeknight, we’re at least doubling what our typical sales would be,” he said.

Despite the big crowds, Fenton said the betting activity the bar is themed around usually takes a dive when the Knicks are playing.

“I don’t think people want to jinx it by betting,” Fenton said.

Getting in on the buzz

Sports business experts said standout performances on the court or field financially benefit both the franchise and businesses around the fan economy, like bars and merchandise retailers.

“All these factors certainly increase the enthusiasm, the excitement, the hype and that manifests itself in people being more apt to go to the local sports bar or buy more merchandise,” said Patrick Rishe, director of the sports business program at Washington University in St. Louis.

With tickets to Knicks finals games starting between $3,000 and $4,000, most Long Islanders will likely opt to watch games at home or at area bars. But while sports bars are among the businesses most impacted by the growing support of the Knicks, they aren't the only ones benefiting. 

At Dick’s Sporting Goods in Melville, Bonnie Furman triumphantly held five charcoal-grey Knicks T-shirts on hangers.

A lifelong “Knicks advocate,” she was buying shirts for herself, her sons, son-in-law and husband.

“Some people don’t want it, because they say it’s not good luck,” said Furman, 62, of Roslyn. “I don’t think like that.”

At Back of the Closet, a Huntington vintage shop, owner Andres Munoz said Knicks apparel has become difficult to keep in stock over the past two years amid the team's playoff success.

"Any time we get Knicks stuff they sell literally the same day or the following day," he said.

Even before the team secured its spot in the finals, one vintage Starter pullover jacket sold for $400, he said. 

A secondhand New York Knicks windbreaker from a collaboration between the clothing brand Kith and the Knicks, listed for $325, drew 14 inquiries in less than a day, Munoz said. Over the past month, the store gets calls daily about Knicks merchandise, he said.

Other businesses are also getting in on the buzz with special promotions.

Town Bagel in Plainview made about nine dozen of a Knicks-themed variation on black-and-white cookies over the weekend, owner Steven Cohen said. The shop started advertising that customers could get a free Knicks cookie with every purchase — and the cookies were gone by 1:30 p.m., Cohen said. 

An Instagram video showing a baker icing blue and orange cookies has garnered 1,462 likes and counting. 

Marvel Frozen Dairy, which has locations in Long Beach, Lido Beach and Astoria, Queens, is offering a blue-and-orange sprinkle mix for a limited time, according to a Monday Instagram post.

Sarbjit Singh, associate professor in the sport management department at Farmingdale State College, said excitement, and sales opportunities for businesses, are likely to continue into the finals and possibly beyond — especially if the team keeps winning. 

"They are giving us an opportunity to raise our arms and cheer," Singh said. "And with that comes spending."