Page 311 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - New York City

WHERE T O EA T AND DRINK  309

New York Bars

New York bars play a huge role in the life and culture of the The Meatpacking District is
city. Many New Yorkers spend the evening in a succession of lined with lively bars, inclu ding
bars, because each usually offers something more than just Cielo, a strobe-lit bar and club
alcohol. There may be additional inducements, such as excellent with potent cocktails and a
soundtrack with everything
food, live music, dancing, or a particularly large selection of from 1980s pop to hip-hop.
beers. Brew pubs, which serve meals and brew beer on the Hidden away in the trendy West
premises, are also popular. Bars suiting every taste and Village is Employees Only, a
budget are to be found on most corners. stylish hangout that has won
a cult-like following due to its
expert cocktails and intense
Rules and What to Drink waitstaff. Many of its staff depart
Conventions Mainstream bars serve standard to run cocktail programs around
Bars generally remain open beers from big producers, such the world. The bar’s famed
from around 11am until 2am. as Budweiser, Coors, and Miller, Bloody Mary mix can be
The majority stay open to 4am, as well as high-profile imports purchased at fine specialty
when they must close by law. including Becks, Heineken, and shops across the city. Tao Bar,
Many bars have a “happy hour,” draft Guinness. Old pubs and located in a former theater next
usually between 4 and 6pm, chic bars have a much wider to the Four Seasons Hotel, is
when they offer deals such as variety of beers, imported and spread over three floors: the top
two drinks for the price of one small domestics. These include two are devoted to pan-Asian
and free snacks. Bartenders can flavorful beers, usually based cuisine and overlook the bar
refuse to serve anyone they on traditional European styles, below. The nightlife in the
consider having had too much made by some of New York’s Lower East Side (LES) is growing
to drink. Smoking is banned microbreweries. The locally in leaps and bounds, with
and is only allowed outside or brewed Brooklyn Lager is numerous bars and clubs
in specially ventilated rooms. highly rated. opening their doors. Enjoy
The legal minimum drink ing Other popular drinks include cocktails and conversation at
age is 21; if the bartender “designer,” or “fusion,” cocktails, the lively Schiller’s Liquor Bar.
suspects you are younger, rum and coke, vodka and tonic, Formerly the Bowery Bar, the
you’ll be “carded,” or asked for gin and tonic, dry Martinis, and B-Bar still attracts a stylish
identification. Children aren’t Scotch or bourbon – either crowd, though some claim
usually allowed in. “straight up” (without ice) or its glory days are over. In the
It is common to “run a tab” “on the rocks” (with ice). The summer, the enormous outdoor
by giving the bartender a credit “Cosmopolitan” is very New space can’t be beaten. Sweet
card and paying your bill just York – vodka, cranberry juice, & Vicious is another favorite
before you leave. Tipping the triple sec, and lime. Most of in nearby NoLIta. The antique
bartender is expected – 15 per the bars serve a range of chandeliers, lots of wood
cent of the bill or at least Martinis made with vodka. and exposed brick create a
$1 per drink. Shots are not Wine is widely available at rustic chic vibe. The Odeon on
pre-measured, so if you want bars, and the “wine bar” con cept West Broadway captures the
a bigger drink, it can help to has made a comeback, with lively SoHo-TriBeCa scene.
“belly up” to the bar and tip options all over the city.
the bartender accordingly for Bars with Views
his or her generosity. You may
even be poured a free drink if Food The Rooftop Bar, on top of the
you tip handsomely. If you sit Some bars serve food such as Pod 39 hotel, offers sensational
at a table, you’ll be served there burgers, fries, salads, sandwiches, views of Lower Manhattan
and charged more. A round and spicy chicken wings and the Empire State. Also with
of drinks can be expensive. throughout the day. If you are great views are the Rooftop
Save money by buying a quart visiting the bar of a popular Bar and Lounge at the Empire
(95 cl) or a half-gallon (190 cl) restaurant, you can often order Hotel, Ascent Lounge in the
pitcher of beer. bar snacks. The majority of bar Time Warner Center, and,
Many bars have obtained kitchens stop serving food for views of the expanding
liquor licenses under an around midnight. World Trade Center skyline,
obscure cabaret law that the Living Room Terrace at the
prohibits dancing. Bars are W Downtown. In warm weather,
regularly closed down for Fashionable Bars Bryant Park Café is a popular
ignoring this rule, so if staff ask To get into a hip bar, you Midtown scene, or you can
you to refrain from dancing to might need to look glamorous sip cocktails and soak up the
music, they are serious and and be prepared to wait in dazzling views on 230 Fifth’s
should be obeyed. line, unless you arrive early. vast wrap-around terrace.

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