CLEMENTE BAR
THE LOOK: This art-themed bar, overlooking the dining room of three-Michelin-starred vegan restaurant Eleven Madison Park, is a partnership between chef Daniel Humm and Italian neo-expressionist painter Francesco Clemente. The artist’s work lines the walls of the clubby space, with a huge dreamlike piece hanging above the bar.
THE DRINKS: Innovative spins on classic cocktails are listed under “fresh,” “carbonated,” “clarified,” “whipped,” “bold,” and “zero proof” categories. Try the “clarified” Negroni Colada, with a hint of pineapple and coconut rum, or the must-order “bold” Clemente Martini, combining gin and vodka with subtle hints of saffron and green curry.
THE FOOD: Black truffle tarte flambée ($65), vegan tofu hot dog showered in shaved truffles.
THE TWIST: Next door at The Studio, guests—seated at a 9-seat counter—can experience five courses of cocktails paired with plant-based dishes. (Non-alcoholic menu available.)
KING COLE BAR
THE LOOK: New York-based Champalimaud Design gave the 120-year-old, Beaux-Arts St. Regis hotel a complete refresh recently, including its iconic King Cole Bar. They kept the famous Maxfield Parrish King Cole mural behind the bar (commissioned by John Jacob Astor IV over a century ago), along with the dark-wood paneling, but added a new soft green ceiling and inviting scalloped banquettes.
THE DRINKS: Choose from one of five versions of the classic Bloody Mary—the Red Snapper, Shogun Mary, Harry’s Texas Bloody Mary, Capitol Mary, and Mary Terranean—or a specialty cocktail made with a top-of-the-line luxury spirit, like the Volcan Espresso Martini ($60) made with Volcan de Mi Tierra X.A. tequila or a Negroni ($47) made with Monkey 47 gin.
THE FOOD: Jumbo wild caught shrimp cocktail, Middle Eastern mezze platter, lobster cobb salad.
THE TWIST: In 1934, bartender Fernand Petiot invented the Bloody Mary here, originally listing the spicy vodka and tomato juice concoction under another name, the Red Snapper.
SIP & GUZZLE
THE LOOK: A two-bars-in-one destination, Guzzle, on the ground floor, is a bustling brick-walled New York tavern run by barman Steve Schneider (formerly of Employees Only), while the subterranean Sip, run by Shingo Gokan (who also owns the SG Club in Tokyo), is a serene Japanese cocktail den with dark wood walls.
THE DRINKS: Guzzle serves up Tokyo highballs as well as innovative riffs on classic drinks, while Sip’s cocktails are more complex, with many ingredients and unusual garnishes. Downstairs, try the Wagyu Old Fashioned, infused with peanut butter and garnished with Wagyu beef; upstairs, try the Miami Vice Negroni made with strawberry gin.
THE FOOD: At Guzzle: the fiery “Electric Chicken,” the “Bikini” ($41), aka the “world’s thinnest sandwich” with comté, jamon, and black truffles. At Sip: the big-ticket “Royale with Cheese,” a classic katsu sandwich made with premium A5 Wagyu beef ($150).
THE TWIST: All the food here is from Mike Bagale, former executive chef at Chicago’s 3-star Michelin Alinea. He’ll add 10 grams of golden Osetra caviar to any dish at $50 a pop.
53 A.D.
THE LOOK: This high-ceilinged industrial space in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn pops with bold works of art, with big sculptures and baroque chandeliers dripping in feathers and crystals. The bar is the tasting room, essentially, for the Empirical Distillery next door, an innovative spirits producer, founded by the former head of the test kitchen at Noma in Copenhagen.
THE DRINKS: Expect mad mixology here, in drinks like the “Always Darling,” a Martini-Margarita hybrid made with Empirical Cilantro spirit, Cynar, and chocolate liqueur, and garnished with a chocolate dipped olive, or the Bellini-like “Always Demure,” featuring peach iced tea.
THE FOOD: Grilled cheese sandwich with Pasilla chili dipping sauce, tofu with chestnuts, sardines with smoked miso and porcini mayonnaise.
THE TWIST: Taste through Empirical’s uncategorizable, limited-edition small batch spirits in an intimate hour-long guided tasting ($48), including the outlandish Nacho-cheese flavored Doritos spirit.
TY BAR
THE LOOK: New York’s flagship Four Seasons hotel reopened in November after being closed for a multi-year overhaul. Its flagship cocktail den, the Ty Bar, flanks the left side of the hotel’s Art Deco-inspired lobby, and features a soaring ceiling and an enormous screen broadcasting scenes of classic New York.
THE DRINKS: Drinks are listed under eras of New York cocktail history from the Gilded Age to the swinging ’60s to the unapologetic-excess of the 1980s. Don’t miss the Ty Manhattan ($43) made with Highland Park 25-year-old single malt or The Three Martini Lunch ($41), an homage to the business lunches of the Madmen era featuring a flight of three miniature Martinis (dry, dirty, and espresso). The 57 Martini, featuring Belvedere 10, caviar-stuffed olives, and gold dust, will cost you—you guessed it—$57 a pop.
THE FOOD: Oysters Rockefeller, Beef Wellington with shaved truffles, Crab Louie topped with caviar.
THE TWIST: Celebrate ’80s New York with “Ode to the Big Apple,” a foie gras parfait in the shape of an apple covered with bright red glaze.
PEN TOP BAR
THE LOOK: Previously called Salon de Ning and modeled after a 1930s Shanghai lounge, the Pen Top on the 23rd floor of the Peninsula hotel’s iconic 1905 landmark building has gone contemporary after a complete redesign. The bar now resembles a windowed loft, with large wraparound terraces offering marvelous views of the Manhattan skyline, shrouded in copious plants and flowers.
THE DRINKS: Cocktails are listed under “classics,” “drinks of the moment,” “Martinis,” “esteemed selection,” and “zero proof.” Try the ’88 Vesper ($32), made with Tanqueray gin, Belvedere vodka, and Italicus Bergamot liqueur, or the booze-free Strawberry Fields Forever made with Seedlip Citrus Grove 42 (the teetotaler’s favorite non-alcohol base).
THE FOOD: Spanish charcuterie with Marcona almonds, burrata with heirloom tomatoes.
THE TWIST: The “Esteemed Selection” list includes ultra-premium cocktails like a Barrel-aged Manhattan ($55), a Fifth Avenue Margarita ($65) made with Maestro Dobel 50 Tequila, and an ultimate Royal Sidecar made with Remy Martin XO and Dom Perignon ($99).
