Lounge entertainment in North America
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A
Bombay Club
‘Why yes Lord Snarkypants, I did indubitably have a very fine martini in the colonies.’ ‘Surely you jest, Sir Tweedybottom! Wherever did you find one?’ Right here, guys. In complete defiance of the Bourbon St jungle, Bombay is a study in Raj-era refinement, all overstuffed armchairs and candlelit tables. It’s about sipping and savoring, rather than guzzling by the gallon, although a few of these bad boys will get you as wild as anyone who’s detonated a Hand Grenade. The list of over 100 martini cocktails, bound in leather, includes all those deadly vodka concoctions that veil the alcohol in frivolous fruity flavors. Of course, you can also order a stiff Churchill model (g…
reviewed
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B
Saki
At first Saki’s basement lounge gives the impression of being a little like a psychiatric institution: low white ceilings, white walls, white floor and tables. But after a while your eyes adjust and you realize that creatively placed rectangular panels are bouncing constantly changing rainbows of light around the room, bathing the trendy couples sipping cocktails at the corner table in a wash of fire-engine red and dusty orange. Light shows aside, Saki is best known for its DJs. The space is small, but locals recommend it for the music, especially on Fridays when you get a mix of old-school funk and electro house. On other nights the DJ music ranges from acid rock to brok…
reviewed
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C
K-Doe’s Mother-in-Law Lounge
Ernie K-Doe was famous for writing the song ‘Mother-in-Law’ and frequently proclaiming his ‘Emperorship of ‘he Universe.’ The Mother-in-Law lounge carries on his surreal legacy, filled with life-sized statutes of the Emperor of the Universe, touching pictures of his empress (dearly departed wife, Antoinette) and lots of loyal customers. Note the hearse out front: Antoinette bought it before Katrina (because, hey, a hearse has storage space, right?) and staff apparently used the car to sneak back into the flooded city several times (because who’s going to stop a hearse?).
reviewed
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D
Den
Harlem for the stars: this sexy, jazzy lounge has welcomed plenty of big names – Spike Lee, Rosario Dawson – plus comics like Tracy Morgan and a rowdy karaoke Tuesday night. It’s a candlelit, dressed-up spot with local art on the walls and plenty of nouveau soul on the menu (including a $21 Sunday brunch). Cocktails are half off 6pm to 8pm Tuesday to Saturday.
reviewed
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E
Eighteenth Street Lounge
Chandeliers, velvet sofas, antique wallpaper and an attractive dance-loving crowd adorn this multifloored mansion. The DJs here – spinning funk, soul, Brazilian beats – are phenomenal, which is not surprising given Eric Hilton (of Thievery Corporation) is co-owner.
reviewed
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F
Marvin
Stylish but unpretentious, Marvin has a low-lit lounge with vaulted ceilings where DJs spin soul and rare grooves to a mixed 14th St crowd. The upstairs roof deck is a draw both on summer nights and in winter, when folks huddle under roaring heat lamps sipping cocktails and Belgian beers. Good bistro fare too.
reviewed
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G
Pov
The sky terrace of POV, which sits atop the W Hotel Washington is one of the best spots to watch the sunset on a hot summer night. From the rooftop the entire city stretches out in front of you, and the panoramic view is nothing short of spectacular. The actual drinks are great too (although do you ever pay for them) – there’s a healthy respect for mixology here, and you won’t find the sort of watered-down pre-mixes that occasionally rear their ugly heads in other bars around town.
reviewed
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H
Karu & Y
Karu smacks of an Atlanta hip-hop megaclub in ways good and sundry. Basically, it’s a bottle of iced-out Cristal given club form – there’s a Dale Chiluly chandelier in the entrance, waterfall out front and restaurant (Karu; Y is the lounge) that serves foie-gras lollipops. It’s all (literally) smack on the tracks that separate tatty but gentrifying downtown Miami (bling!) from Overtown’s worst projects (bang!). Come here to star in your personal MTV video, and expect to pay for the privilege.
reviewed
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White Room
Miami’s hipsters are so, well, Miami – artsy yet glam compared to their London and NYC counterparts. They flock here, where there’s the requisite weird movies playing on open-air projectors, Lawrence of Arabia tents curving around an exposed-industrial main-stage and, according to promoters, a shared design-aesthetic-lifestyle-blah blah blah. Hot hipsters get drunk and dance with other hot hipsters. You go, White Room. The very popular Poplife party goes off here Saturdays.
reviewed
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J
Hostel
The Hostel is a hip little space with a smooth slate bar, a modern American food menu and attractive staff serving up just a little more than a Miller. Instead, they mix some fine cocktails and keep a good stock of wine behind the bar, serving the above to a well-heeled, well-dressed crowd of tourists and locals who demand a little more out of their night than Jägermeister and beads. Not that you can’t find Jägermeister or beads here.
reviewed
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Violet Hour
This nouveau speakeasy isn’t marked, so look for the poster-covered, wood-panel building and the door topped by a yellow lightbulb (U2 found it for their recent record-release party). Inside, high-backed booths, chandeliers and long velvet drapes provide the backdrop to elaborately engineered cocktails in which homemade bitters are applied with an eyedropper over six varieties of ice. As highbrow as it sounds, it’s quite welcoming and accessible.
reviewed
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Buck 15
Located in a loft above Miss Yip, B15 manages to blend everything we like about going out – kinda edgy but not scary graffiti chic, cast-off action figures, consistently awesome DJs (Did they just mix ‘Your Love’ by the Outfield into ‘Low’ by Flo Rida? Oh yes they did), free entry, a good mix of the hip and the hot and the drunk and the folks who just don’t care but definitely wave their hands in the air – into one shot of nightlife fun.
reviewed
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M
Chi-Cha Lounge
Slip through the double-sided mirror door, settle into a low settee and order up a hookah of fruit- flavored tobacco. Amid glowing candles and a backlit bar, the trendy clientele sip tropical cocktails and nosh on Andean-inspired tapas.
reviewed
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N
Therapy
This multileveled, airy and contemporary space was the first gay-man’s hot spot to draw throngs to Hell’s Kitchen. It presents nightly shows, from music to comedy, while the romantic 2nd-floor lounge has great fare (burgers, hummus, salads) served in front of a roaring fireplace. Drink monikers are wonderfully in keeping with the theme: Freudian Sip, Oral Fixation and Anorexic, to name a few.
reviewed
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O
Voodoo Lounge
The views from the patio are fab, but the Day-Glo décor and lounge bands are just for laughs. Baby boomers get drunk on exotic drinks, like the ‘Witchy Woman, ’ which comes in a bowl steaming with dry ice. Monday is a hot Latin libido frenzy, while VooDoo Risin’ on Thursday imports hip-hop and house DJs. Otherwise it’s not worth much of a wait to get in, let alone a cover charge. Quasi-strict dress code.
reviewed
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In Fine Spirits
For a cocktail lounge that shakes and stirs chichi artisanal drinks like the Tiki Bebado (with ‘fresh-cut Brazilian mountain cane’), In Fine Spirits is surprisingly low-key. And the drinks – all 30 of them, many made with locally sourced booze à la North Shore Gin from suburban Lake Bluff – kick ass. Wine and bourbon flights and a small menu of flatbreads and appetizers round out the offerings.
reviewed
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Q
Le Pharaon Lounge
The Tintin theme of its neighboring restaurant spills over into this small, laid-back, casual lounge. Like the nearby office workers who frequent it, you won’t come here for gimmicks, pickups or trendiness, but rather for a place to hang out with friends when all you really want is a drink while you chat or unwind at the end of the day. It often hosts jazz acts.
reviewed
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R
Prime Bar
Among all the area lounges with identical pedigrees – patio seats, creative cocktails, fancy french fries, tons of see-and-be-seens – the Prime Bar is a classy stand out. Maybe it’s the carved deer heads and wood paneling, lending it the feel of a post-modern hunting lodge, or a playlist mixing electronic patter with the Velvet Underground, but it simply works.
reviewed
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S
Tabaq Bistro
Ignore the restaurant downstairs and head for the top floors, all frosted glass, good views and a Middle Eastern/Asian/buppie (black professional) crowd getting down to R&B and stiff drinks. This author admits that he’s never been to a super-posh sky club in Beirut, but he imagines that they’d have the look and feel of this sexily swish spot.
reviewed
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Whiskey Café
Cuban cigars and fine whiskies are partners in crime at this classy joint, hidden near the industrial sector of the Mile End. The well-ventilated cigar lounge is separated from the main bar, which stocks 150 Scotch whiskies, plus wines, ports and tasting trios. Snacks range from foie gras to Belgian chocolates. Music is as sexy-smooth as the leather chairs.
reviewed
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Le Phare Bar
If you can make yourself heard over the thumping bass, you can wax poetic about this posh, candlelit, stone-floored Scandinavia-style bar to the beautiful people inside. Don’t worry; you’re still in New Orleans: brass bands have been known to tromp through and all the chic fashionista-ism on display here hasn’t translated into anything resembling snobbery.
reviewed
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V
Ritz
Gracing the western end of the city’s Restaurant Row, in the Theater District, the Ritz has a front bar that’s loud and abuzz, with a post-work, all-male crowd spilling onto the street in warm months. The upstairs space is a mellow retreat, while the downstairs back lounge, lined with banquettes, is often host to DJs or live vocal performers.
reviewed
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W
Circa 28
Miami can work its magic on anyone, even Wynwood’s angst-y artists. Like Cinderella touched by a fairy godmother (or a very good DJ), they become glamorous club kids in this two-story hepcat hotspot. Circa is as sexy and gorgeous as Miami gets, but with its modish library and (semi) literati clientele, it’s also intelligent enough to hold a conversation.
reviewed
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X
Corner Office
The cheery sensibility of this excellent retro-style lounge is demonstrated in the wall of clocks frozen at 5pm and waggish menu of cocktails (‘The Secretary’ comes with a rim of grape Kool-Aid powder). It’s perfect for a quick, sophisticated bite before the theater and the chicken and waffles are highlights of a killer brunch menu.
reviewed
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Y
Beacon Martini Sky-Bar
On top of the swank Beacon Hotel, this patio on the roof offers ample sky-high (well, for DC) city views and an opportunity to mingle with new friends over signature martinis. Events are often held here, and while it can get crowded, this is a cool spot to listen to a DJ spin while surveying the greater capital area like the pimp you are.
reviewed
