33 Best Bars in New York City—For Perfect Martinis, Cheap Drafts, and Everything in Between

Few cities in the world tell a better story over a drink than New York. Just ask 10 New Yorkers to name their favorite bar, and you’re likely to hear at least as many answers. That’s because, on any given night, a thousand versions of New York are unfolding at once: artsy types are listening to a jazz trio in Bed-Stuy, while, across the river, a crowd of twenty-somethings spills onto the sidewalk outside a Manhattan nightclub. Just down the street are couples enjoying date night at a wine bar, debating between a skin contact bottle and a pinot. In Chelsea, ice cold martinis are being shaken for an eager group of girlfriends, while Japanese whisky cocktails are poured over hand-chipped ice in Greenpoint. It’s a city where a million people could be having entirely different nights, but still feel the same connective electric hum.
With so many options, it’s easy to get overwhelmed, albeit in the best possible way. That’s why we scoured the city to find its most exciting destination for drinks right now. These are the best bars in New York City.
Read our complete New York City travel guide here, which includes:
- The Best Restaurants in NYC
- The Best Sushi in NYC
- The Best Steakhouses in NYC
- The Best Jewish Food in NYC
How we choose the best bars in New York City
Every bar on this list has been selected independently by Condé Nast Traveler editors and reviewed by a local contributor who has visited that business. Our editors consider both high-end and affordable options, and weigh stand-out drinks, dishes, location, and service—as well as inclusivity and sustainability credentials. We update this list as new restaurants open and existing ones evolve. Additional reporting by Devra Ferst.
- Shannon Sturgis/Overstorybar
Overstory
$$$Located a whopping 64 floors up 70 Pine Street, Overstory can be found via its own dedicated elevator in Saga. Patrons are not playing—they're here for serious cocktails and great ambiance. Bar Director Harrison Ginsberg delivers cool boozy concoctions like the Easy Money, featuring vodka, coconut, yuzu, lime leaf, and soda; the Montego Slay with tequila, mango, husk cherry, lime, and apricot; and the aptly named In the Clouds, featuring whiskey, Earl Grey, vanilla, Champagne, and clarified milk. Brought to you by the Crown Shy team, the service at Overstory is almost unparalleled, with a keen eye for detail.
- Courtesy Dantebar
Dante
$$$This century-old watering hole is a welcome break from the comedy club-hawking flyer guys of Greenwich Village. Established in 1915, Dante snagged new owners almost a century later and quickly became a global cocktail destination. (A second outpost opened a half-mile away in the West Village in 2020.) The MacDougal Street original maintains a stylish vibe that conjures its famous regulars—Patti Smith, Hemingway, Anaïs Nin—of yore. There are aperitivi and Bellinis, obscure Amaro and bitters, and a 15-cocktail-long “Negroni Sessions” menu that’s available for $15 each between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. daily.
- Eric Medsker/Sip & Guzzlebar
Sip & Guzzle
Globe-trotting drinks innovators Shingo Gokan (formerly of Angel Share in New York, and proprietor of the SG Club in Tokyo) and Steve Schneider (Employee's Only in New York and Singapore) debuted this multi-concept cocktail and dining destination in the West Village in January of 2024. Gokan helms Sip, the sleek subterranean bar with a rotating cast of inventive cocktails. There's the Champagne-topped Grasshopper, crystal-clear Tomato Tree featuring Roku gin and tomato leaf, and the Mr. Miyagi, a heady mix of Scotch, shochu, Campari, and passionfruit. Schneider's ground-floor Guzzle is a livelier destination for highballs and riffs on classic cocktails like the Yuzu Margarita and Lychee Martini. Each floor has its own food menu, with some overlap. Bluefin tuna tartare and tea-smoked caviar are mainstays at Sip, while most tables at Guzzle order at least one plate of spicy fried "electric" chicken. Creamy soft serve and honey butter mochi are usually available at both.
- Don Riddle/Bemelmans Barbar
Bemelmans Bar
$$$At Bemelmans, Ludwig Bemelman's illustrations—you might remember them from the Madeline books—adorn the walls. In one panel, a bunny smokes a cigar in Central Park; in another, a man hands a boy a clutch of balloons. This is a bar where gawking is permissible. The cocktails here very much depend on who’s making them: an Old Fashioned might be a bit watery, a whiskey sour too tart. But often a dirty gin Martini is just perfectly executed. Everything is expensive—it’s clear why you’re here—so take the edge off that sensation by digging into the free, hearty snacks that float your way.
- William Abranowicz/Fifth Avenue Hotelbar
Sugar Monk
Slip through the unmarked door after ringing a doorbell to enter this Harlem cocktail sanctuary, and you’re immediately transported back to the jazz era. The vibe here is dark and moody, and the space being so tiny makes it feel very intimate. Stylish and low-key, with a mix of local creatives grabbing a drink after a show at the nearby Apollo Theatre and couples on a romantic date, make up the crowd here. The cocktail program here leans avant garde, with each menu entry reading as a chapter in a book, and incorporating housemade infusions, rare spirits, and herbal elements. Some cocktails even incorporate spirits from their own microdistillery, Atheras Spirits, in Industry City.
- Courtesy Joanna Linbar
Martiny's
In early 2022, Takuma Wantanabe, the Tokyo-born head bartender of cult cocktail den Angel's Share, opened this intimate spot in an 1800s townhouse. The elegant space has three floors of carefully crafted cocktails, including a lower-level private event venue. Martiny's pours intricate, often cerebral drinks with top-shelf ingredients and prices to match. One standout is the Caprese cocktail, a refreshing combination of tomato water, whiskey, grapefruit juice, basil, and milk that pours crystal-clear. No matter how busy the bar, the staff is unfailingly attentive. Want to sit alone with a fancy drink and stare blankly into your phone or the middle distance? They'll give you your space. Curious about a bottle of rare Japanese whisky or the makings of one of the more complicated cocktails? A bartender will gladly share the details.
- Courtesy Brent Herrigbar
Musette Wine Bar
This cozy wine bar and restaurant sits on a Central Harlem corner next to its sibling bottle shop, Pompette, a neighborhood favorite since 2015. The space has exposed brick walls, a slim bar, and fresh flowers on every table, making it equally popular among well-dressed locals, second dates, and wine geeks. In addition to beer and cocktails, the bar pours nearly 100 wines by the glass and bottle, and the list is organized not by region or grape, but rather by reds, whites, sparkling, orange, and "Black AF," or an array of Black-owned wine labels including New York City's own B.Stuyvesant. Expect to fall in love with your drinking companion, a well-priced glass of pet-nat, or both before you leave.
- Courtesy Emmanuel Rosariobar
Double Chicken Please
Named North America’s best bar in 2023, Double Chicken Please houses two distinct concepts in one snug space on an industrial-looking stretch of Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The walk-in-only front bar is modeled after the neighborhood’s early-20th-century soda shops and serves draft cocktails, called “taptails," as well as the excellent titular fried chicken sandwiches. Seats in the more formal rear bar, The Coop, can be reserved up to six days in advance, and are privy to a menu of pricier, made-to-order cocktails like Mango Sticky Rice, a beautifully balanced combination of Bacardi Reserva Ocho, mango, pu’erh tea, and coconut. The more formal food menu in back includes plates of chicken liver mousse and an array of fried chicken sandwiches, including one on an out-of-this-world spicy mochi donut.
- Al Rodriguezbar
The Long Island Bar
$$The lights over the booths are intimate and old-timey, and the decades-old bar itself—note the quadruple-paneled mirror by the cash register—is stunning. Folks throw on their nice pair of jeans, or some good earrings, to come here. Co-owner Toby Cecchini (who, incidentally, invented the Cosmo at The Odeon many years ago) has a following, and his cocktails are known around the city, so it’s a bit of a see-and-be-seen along the bar. The menu sports a short list of slightly twisted classics—a martini made with junmai daiginjo sake, a gimlet with ginger-lime cordial, a white negroni sbagliato. Pick one off the menu or list a mix of flavors you like; you’ll end up happy either way.
- Daniel Kriegerbar
Bar Goto
$$$A minimalist shelter from the storm of Lower East Side partiers, Bar Goto has sleek Japanese design, attentive service, excellent highballs and bar food. Kenta Goto, owner and barman, was once at the dearly departed Pegu Club, and has retained that famous bar’s warm service and exacting attention to detail. It shines in his highballs and the delicate coupe cocktails, such as one made with a rosy cherry blossom, sake, gin, and maraschino. The food here is not an afterthought. The okonomiyaki—that killer izakaya drinking standard of fried cabbage and kewpie mayo, dancing with bonito flakes and stuffed full of pork belly, rock shrimp, and squid that will transport you to Tokyo—is some of the best in town.
- Courtesy Nicholas Lee Ruiz/Dead Rabbitbar
The Dead Rabbit
$$$Sometimes, the beverage program at hyped bars starts to rest on its laurels. This is not the case at Dead Rabbit, a tri-level Financial District destination which offers an impressive mix of classic and house cocktails, a devoted list of Irish Whiskey drinks, draft beers, and non-alcoholic creations. Food menus vary by floor, with some overlap. Try Irish-accented pub grub like Guinness-braised burgers and chicken pot pie in the lower-level taproom, and smoked salmon deviled eggs and lamb chops in the upstairs Parlor Room.
- Evan Sungbar
Portrait Bar
It goes without saying that the city has its fair share of hotel bars, but Portrait Bar in the Fifth Avenue Hotel sets itself apart, thanks to an invitingly cozy atmosphere and a top tier cocktail list, among other superb attributes. Designed by Martin Brudnizki (the brain behind other handsome NYC spaces like Fouquet’s), the Flatiron-based space features dark wood paneling, red velvet seating, and, you guessed it: an array of portraits adorning the walls. Sidle up next to the fireplace to enjoy one of their internationally inspired beverages dreamt up by Bar Director Darryl Chan, from a rum and scotch clarified cocktail that nods to Cebu Island in the Philippines with notes of calamansi (a Southeast Asian citrus) and Bay Leaf, to a star anise and yuzu-infused take on a whiskey sour reminiscent of Kochi, Japan. A solid menu of Parlor Snacks—comté gougères, mini tuna tartare tacos, a fois gras tartine—seals the deal on Portrait Bar’s position as a perfect after-work, pre-dinner go-to, or perhaps a third date you really want to impress.
- Courtesy Death & Co.bar
Death & Co.
$$Unless you show up right when they open, you'll want to make a reservation, lest you end up on a very long wait list. Death & Co. cropped up on New Year’s Eve, 2007, and made one hell of a splash. The drinks were so precise, containing instant classics now mimicked nationwide (and now available nationwide, too), that it lured talent who have since opened their own famous bars. Look for riffs on classic cocktails like the Jungle Strut, which substitutes the traditional Jungle Bird’s rum, Campari, and pineapple juice for sotol, clairin, and watermelon. Things get much more esoteric than that, though, so flip through the huge book to see what you might want.
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LunÀtico
Ain’t the band swingin’? That’s what you’ll be asking your friends during an experience at Bed-Stuy’s LunÀtico, in a mid-Atlantic accent (of course), right after suddenly donning a pair of tiny round sunglasses and a pageboy cap. They’ll be startled, but will have to reply with resounding sounds of agreement. A jazz club, cocktail bar, and restaurant, LunÀtico is the kind of place that makes you feel like you’ve stepped back in time. Maybe it's the artfully weathered walls (and ceiling), or maybe it's the lively, unpretentious undercurrent of energy that only grows with the coaxing of a saxophone, bass guitar, and bacanora fizz—a take on the classic gin fizz with bacanora (a Mexican agave spirit), honey, lemon, orange cream citrate, orange blossom water and egg white. The space here is narrow and typically packed, and reservations don’t exist. Neither do cover fees, though they do suggest bringing a $10 cash donation for the band. If you want to guarantee yourself a spot, especially if you’re hungry for dinner and craving their roast chicken with a black pepper orange zest béchamel, plan on arriving on the early side.
- Courtesy No Barbar
No Bar
$$Angela Dimayuga, who blossomed into a darling of the culinary world back when she was running the kitchen at Mission Chinese New York, helped launch this queer bar at The Standard Hotel. The drinks list is short and full of swagger, and includes specialties like the Say Gay, a blend of vodka, aquavit, tangerine, and lemon; bar snacks include crispy artichokes with lemon herb aioli and sweet potato tots with miso mustard. Swing by for a date or a themed evening (like a screening of RuPaul’s Drag Race), or stay late for a DJ set beneath the glittering disco ball.
- Courtesy Maison Premierebar
Maison Premiere
The little round marble bar and a whiff of New Orleanian dishabille catch your attention first. This Williamsburg standby is renowned for its cocktail program, oyster happy hour, and general Southern Gothic vibe. The light is made for Instagram, and you’ll see brunchers taking full advantage of it. Absinthe addicts, attention: This is your bar. There’s a whole separate menu devoted to absinthe cocktails, a real vintage drip in-house, and barkeeps who know what they’re doing with it all. Brews are mostly locally sourced and tasty, and the non-absinthe drinks shine, too.
- Gettybar
Jimmy's Corner
$That a bar in the heart of Times Square is so tourist-free is one of many mysteries at Jimmy’s, a boxing memorabilia-saturated spot once dominated by the Midtown media set. In one snapshot, the late longtime owner and former boxing trainer Jimmy Glenn poses with the late Muhammad Ali. Especially if you have visiting out-of-towners in tow who, bless their hearts, really only want to see Times Square. It’s a way to sneak them a little bit of Real New York. They’ll be grateful.
- Harlem Hopsbar
Harlem Hops
In 2018, three HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) grads and craft beer lovers opened this cozy beer bar in a Harlem storefront with a twinkling backyard. Longtime neighborhood denizens, young professionals meeting for happy hours, and craft beer pilgrims from all five boroughs convene to drink from any of sixteen taps that offer everything from IPAs to pilsners to sours and beyond, with a focus on beers made by Black and POC brewers. There's also canned beers and ciders starting at $5 each, and a full bar for cocktails like the Uncle Nearest Old Fashioned, made with Uncle Nearest Tennessee Whiskey. The best menu items are the three bratwursts (one vegan), which are perfectly snappy and served on pretzel buns alongside handfuls of kettle chips.
- Gentl & Hyers/Le Rockbar
Le Rock
In 2022, when the owners of downtown’s perennially packed Frenchette restaurant opened Le Rock, it brought a much-needed jolt of energy to Midtown’s Rockefeller Center. Tables in Le Rock’s dining room remain among one of the hottest tickets in town, but the Art Deco-style bar posseses a buzzy scene all its own. The glittering space has the flattering sort of lighting that makes everyone look like they just got back from a week on St. Barths (many of the patrons likely did),and a 200-bottle wine list that skews French and natural. Creative cocktails like the strawberry-scented, sparkling rosé topped Chambery Spritz and a riff on the often overlooked Martini variation L'Alaska (dry gin, yellow Chartreuse) are perfect for happy hour people-watching (is that a Vogue editor, or just someone who looks like one?).
- Melissa Homactivity
Threes Brewing
$$Gowanus's Threes Brewing is one of those rare New York City taprooms that can please almost everyone. There are booths, a stellar backyard, a large bar, and beers that will impress hops nerds as well as folks who simply want a glass of something cold on a hot summer day. As the name implies, it's a functioning brewery, and the menu shows off not only the house-made beers but a rotating cast of brews from producers like Allagash, Suarez Family Brewery, and Other Half, a Brooklyn favorite. Each is listed beside its flavor profile, and many come in a range of pour sizes. There’s a small list of wines and cocktails, too.
- Eric Medsker/Tigrebar
Tigre
Reserve in advance to visit this swank Lower East Side cocktail lounge. Brought to you by the team behind Maison Premiere (another of our other favorite bars in NYC), there's a compulsory but complimentary coat check and dress-to-impress door policy, neither of which hampers the high spirits in the space. New York's bright young things fill the candlelit tables and banquettes and eight-person, U-shaped bar, requesting custom combinations off of the "Martini by Ratio" menu. The Cigarette Martini, made with Truman vodka and a juniper spirit from Copenhagen's Empirical, is among the most popular. Tigre also pours wine, spirits, and a tightly curated selection of retro and modern cocktails, with 1970s throwbacks like the Screwdriver alongside inventive drinks like the Mister Softee, named for the ice cream trucks that roam city streets in the summertime and made with Singhani, the Bolivian eau-de-vie.
- Makani Kirwin/Sunken Harbor Clubbar
Sunken Harbor Club
Tucked into the second floor of a landmark Brooklyn building, above the swish Gage & Tollner dining room, this nautically themed bar feels simultaneously transportive and deeply grounded in New York cocktail culture. Stylish Brooklynites and quite a few who made the trek over from Manhattan fill the nooks and crannies of the dimly-lit space. Some are longtime friends and fans of co-owner St. John Frizell, who introduced the bar concept as a pop up at his now-shuttered Fort Defiance, a Red Hook cocktail institution. Sip the shiso-infused Special Daiquiri, an impressive array of tropical non-alcoholic concoctions, or find a friend to share the large-format Shattered Skull, a two-person affair made with Barbadian and Jamaican rums. There's also a short but smart selection of wine and beer.
- Courtesy Attaboybar
Attaboy
$$Inside the former Milk & Honey space where the modern cocktail revival began, the speakeasy vibe remains, and the bespoke cocktails served today would make Sasha Petraske proud. If there’s a beer or wine list at Attaboy, it’s irrelevant. Everyone has a cocktail in hand—a pricey one. This is a menu-free environment, so bring your inner cocktail nerd and any questions you might have. Sam Ross, founding co-owner, invented the Penicillin, and if you haven’t tried that combo of ginger, lemon, and Scotch before, let today be the day.
- Sydney Butler/Talea Beer Co.bar
TALEA Beer Co.
Hailed as New York City's first female- and veteran-operated brewery, TALEA is named for its owners, Tara Hankinson and LeAnn Darland. The two former homebrewers opened this 9,000-square-foot space in 2021 and now have three other taprooms across the city. Locals fill the tables at the airy Williamsburg flagship, meeting for birthday parties, afternoon hangs, or the chance to try one of the new drafts on the sours-heavy rotating tap list. TALEA is best known for its sour beers, like the pleasantly briny Watermelon Splash and Fan Fan Tart Deco, a sour IPA named for beloved Brooklyn bakery Fan Fan Donuts. There are also light lagers, pilsners, hazy IPAs, and non-alcoholic beers, as well as wine and cocktails from a full bar.
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Sunny’s
$Since 1890, this unapologetically quirky institution has been serving drinks near Brooklyn's windswept Red Hook waterfront. It became Sunny's in the 1990s and has since cultivated a loyal community of people who self-identify as poets, teamsters, painters, or all of the above. Expect friendly banter among the locals and various performers who come to play live music every night except Mondays. While this isn't the place to go for an elaborate custom cocktail, the full bar serves skillfully-made Negronis, Manhattans, and other classics, as well as an array of craft and macro beers, natural wine, and non-alcoholic drinks.
- John Shyloski/Superbuenobar
Superbueno
This Mexican American cocktail destination on a busy corner of Manhattan's East Village always feels like a party. Its warm energy and creative drinks are hallmarks of co-owner Ignacio "Nacho" Jimenez, formerly of ground-breaking agave bar Ghost Donkey. Its tables and barstools are almost always packed with local loyalists, cocktail nerds, well-dressed people on second dates, and raucous groups whose happy hours inevitably turn into late nights. The free-wheeling drinks menu has a culinary bent and includes everything from a mezcal margarita and green mango martini to a large-format tepache cocktail made with shochu, yuzu, and chile de Arbol. Non-alcoholic drinks, like the guajillo-infused Chamoy y Soda, are similarly impressive, as is the bar food (Ensada-style fish tacos, potato flautas, and a crowd-pleasing birria grilled cheese to name a few.)
- schmuck.bar
schmuck.
The fancy cocktail bar format can quickly feel repetitive, but East Village’s Schmuck presents something a bit different. Rather than two tops galore and moody lighting, the space functions as a sort of cocktail house party—separated into two rooms referred to as The Living Room and The Kitchen Table. Groups are sat together, or stand in mingle-friendly areas while sipping cocktails and listening to the upbeat house music that blares from the speakers overhead. The design here feels eclectic and playful, like your coolest friend who lives in Williamsburg (even though Williamsburg isn’t cool anymore). Their cocktail elements are eyebrow-raising as well, with elements such as parmesan cheese in the clarified Strawberry & Cheese, and toasted oats that lend themself to a Muesli cocktail alongside bourbon, honey, and raspberry. Don’t be intimated, though, as the finished products are surprisingly approachable. Pair one or two with a dish from Shmuck’s curated menu of “Lobb Food,” from a satisfyingly cheesy white bean cacio e pepe to a puff pastry pizza.
- Joanna Lin/Midnight Bluebar
Midnight Blue
A Japanese-inspired jazz and cocktail bar in Gramercy Park from the team behind Martiny’s? The description alone is more than enough to sell it. Another selling point: its approachability. Firstly, walk-ins are encouraged, and the space itself feels distinctly lived-in despite having opened summer 2024. There’s also the fact that Midnight Blue doesn’t charge a cover fee to enjoy their nightly jazz performances (7, 8:45, 10:15) on Tuesdays through Thursdays, though you’ll have to hand over a Jackson per person on Fridays and Saturdays. Cabaret-style tables dot the area in front of the stage, but the bar is the place to be if you’re only coming with one other person, or solo. Not only can you (kind of) still hear your companion, but you also get to chat with the skilled bartenders and witness them at work as they craft.
- The Swan Roombar
Swan Room
Part time swanky lobby bar, part time historic architectural marvel, Swan Room at Nine Orchard in the Lower East Side (a sub-area some now refer to as Dimes Square) is truly something to behold. Neo-Renaissance details, from vaulted ceilings featuring intricate crown moulding to walls clad in pink Tennessee marble, set the scene for a martini- and negroni-dominant cocktail menu that includes inventive riffs on the classics—an Evergreen Martini with Chartreuse and pickled kumquat, a mushroom gin “Umami” negroni with white soy, as well as a large format Martini Service that sets a group of 3-5 back $125. Martini and negroni haters need not despair, for Swan Room also offers a selection of signature cocktails, as well as a refreshingly extensive non-alcoholic menu. Those coming hungry can enjoy a Nine Orchard Burger or nosh on a selection of elegant small bites and desserts.
- Noah Fecks/Paradise Lostbar
Paradise Lost
Any cocktail bar that markets itself as a “tropical hellscape” is immediate grounds for a visit, and the pure kitsch that is Paradise Lost fortunately delivers on that off-the-wall promise. The experience starts in East Village with a doorbell to ring, and quickly leads to a faux-foliage-filled madcap descent (figurative, not literal) into a tiki bar decked out head to toe in wood paneling and artfully placed trinkets. Cocktails here are split into three categories: The Ancients (tiki classics), New Acolytes (creative concoctions with spooky names), and Behemoths (scorpion bowls). For a cocktail with a show, try Lilith’s Bacchanal, a spicy sipper which combines rum with coconut gin, carrot, buzz button peppers, and the piece de resistance—a flaming lime on top. Besides the sneaky strength of the cocktails, heed this warning about the “press me” buttons in the bathroom stalls. All we will say is that those who are afraid of the dark (or glowing skulls) should pass on the offer.
- Annie Schlechter/Hotel Chelseabar
Lobby Bar at The Hotel Chelsea
It's hard to imagine the elegant space that houses Lobby Bar as mere storage, but that is exactly what it functioned as until 2022, when an 11-year remodel of the historic Hotel Chelsea finally ended. Today, the multi-room cocktail bar and lounge is the perfect reflection of the timeless bohemian spirit of the Chelsea—filled with character, from the ketchup and mustard checkered tile in the solarium to vintage chandeliers and lamps, which illuminate an inlaid ceiling and velvet sofas in the bar room and beyond. There are no reservations here, so landing a seat is the first hurdle you’ll have to jump, with the second challenge presenting as what to order from their extensive (and expensive) cocktail list. They are perhaps best known for an 1884 Martini, which nods to the year the building was constructed, with gin, lemon, vetiver, and olive oil, but there are unique ingredients to be found across the board—like fig leaf and pecan in their Cowboy Mouth 3.0, or Oakmoss and a Rhubarb Amaro, which feature in a drink called Naked Lunch.
- Eavesdropbar
Eavesdrop
For those not yet indoctrinated into the world of the listening bar, Eavesdrop might just be your gateway drug. The concept of a listening bar is far from new (it first took root in post-World War II Japan), the format of an intimate, vinyl record-spinning watering hole has been experiencing a modern revival in New York and beyond. At Eavesdrop in Greenpoint, they take their sound just as seriously as they take their cocktails, but that doesn’t mean a thumping bass or a raucous crowd. Instead, it’s more a blonde wood-filled place for audiophiles and high minded imbibers to enjoy Japanese-inspired libations such as the Mr. Plum, with Hakuto Matsui gin, umeshu (Japanese plum liqueur), umeboshi (salted Japanese plums), ginger, honey and citrus, while a DJ spins R&B records in the background. Eavesdrop also has dinner, and it’s quite good, with fusion-style dishes that fortunately don’t feel gimmick-y.
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Aldo Sohm Wine Bar
Le Bernardin sommelier extraordinaire Aldo Sohm opened this chic wine bar in 2014, and it maintains one of the best wine lists in Midtown Manhattan. A respite from the corporate-leaning restaurants on its surrounding blocks, the space has low-slung sofas, graphic art, and glittering pendant lamps. The effect is akin to drinking in a very elegant friend's living room. Expect a mix of wine professionals and deep-pocketed executives from nearby Midtown offices, many of whom can rattle of the names of preferred vintages and intricacies of vineyard classification systems like their own phone numbers. There are 40 wines by the glass and 200 bottles on offer at any given time, spanning $15 pours of approachable Southern Italian white wines and expense-account-worthy cult bottles of Burgundy.
This gallery has been updated since its original publish date.