Run away from the overcrowded bars replete with cheap cocktails, shouting hipsters and faux scenesters so glued to the bar you can’t wiggle in, to The Other Room, the West Village’s answer to folks seeking a chill post-dinner spot, or a sanctuary for those that just want to relax with a cold glass of imported beer or a Chilean merlot and good conversation. Inside, haunt one of the tables for two or acquire the entire back couch area while rocking out to the Gorillaz in this fab candlelit beer and wine bar that is high on sophistication.

If you loathe the kind of bar where your conversations amount to shouting matches to be heard, or people barking into their cellular phones, or you wince after your first sip of horrid, horrid wine, not only will you relish the toned down atmosphere filled with a nice mix of artists and corporate types, you’ll enjoy the vast selection of reds, whites (Italians, Californians, S. African, New Zealand are but some of the regions represented) but a fine list of beers on tap. And do sample the four other spots dotted about the city (as well as one in South Beach!) to savor the ambience.

An outside bench is divine for smokers or a crew seeking to enjoy warm summer nights, lamenting about fall and the inevitable chill it brings.

The Other Room
143 Perry Street (& Washington)
New York
212-645-9753
Subway: A/C/E to 14th Street

Scene | Email | Print | //

Who needs the Hamptons with overcrowded bars, all the people you don’t want to meet, the ellusive velvet rope attitude, and the Jitney – a bus where everyone shouts into their cell phones and ignores you for the three plus painful hours it takes to finally get to the Hamptons, when there is the swank rooftop bar at the Hotel Gansveoort and their counterpart, ONO Bar & Restaurant, located on the ground floor. Two sleek locales to definitely see and be seen.

[Read more →]

Fancy, Scene | Email | Print | //

On any given day, my home away from home is the sweet spot, 71 Irving, an intimate coffee shop that fashions itself much like a living room replete with soothing jazz music, illuminating table lamps, a makeshift fireplace and a faux landing with steps leading to an alleged second floor (there have been rumors, but nothing substantiated yet). Here you’ll find a motley mix of writers, artists, journalists, Gramercy gals with their strollers and corgis, business moguls keeping it casual in khakis – all sipping fresh, farm roasted estate grown coffee from their own farm, as well as a delectable assortment of rich pastries including berry tortes, brioches, marble cakes, sinfully tasty magic bars slathered in toasted coconut. And all the food here is organic, gals. All natural yogurts (some brands imported from Sweden), and homemade granola. For the lunch fare, savor one of their homemade sandwiches, paninis (hot off the panini press!) or a varied selection of soups, salads, cheese platters, and of course, the signature 71 Irving Waffle with your choice of simply maple syrup, or fresh strawberries – but why not be decadent and top your hot waffle with homemade vanilla bean ice-cream, nuts, berries?!

Whether you’re looking for a quick orange-spiced tea and some time with your favorite book (the cafe is incredibly European in the sense that nobody shoos you away, you can spend hours with your tea or your laptop, clicking away, indulging in their wireless internet service, gratis, of course), or you’re searching for the perfect cozy nook to share a glass of fine wine and conversation with a dear friend, then this stolen treat, tucked away in the posh Gramercy Park area, amidst corgis and million-dollar brownstones, is a divine gem.

TIP: Make sure you turn off your cellular phones/Blackberries, ladies, the mellow folks here don’t take kindly to loud gals screaming on their phones.

71 Irving
18th Street/Irving
New York
Subway: 4/5/6, N/R to Union Square

Famished, Scene | Email | Print | //