Some occasions—a celebration of a landmark birthday or anniversary, perhaps—call for a fine dining meal in a sophisticated setting with pomp and circumstance intact. But for everyday eating, most of us would rather forgo a parade of courses in favor of more approachable—and quite frankly, more affordable—dishes in an environment that leans relaxed.
Here’s where the two styles collide: a handful of New York’s bougiest restaurants have bars with a menu of a la carte dishes that don’t compromise on quality or taste but are casual in comparison to their upscale counterparts. Many of these possibilities are also fun to eat and easy to share.
The below five swanky spots are places where the bar dining scene is as appealing, if not more, than the main dining room experience. Stay for an hour or linger all night—the beauty of bar dining is the flexibility you have. And maybe better still, you don’t need a reservation to get in as walk-ins are welcome.
Chef Daniel Boulud collaborated with the French crystal house Lalique on the design of his sophisticated but approachable bar where the glittery stone is everywhere from the lighting to the door handles to the transparent panels at the entrance. Chef Boulud describes the bar as “the ultimate place for a rendezvous.” “You can come for a nightcap as many of the customers do, order just a dessert, or go for a whole prix-fixe,” he says.
The menu is expansive with highlights being the Maine peekytoe crab salad, Upstate New York foie gras with flambeed Cointreau and a Montauk black bass in a lemon thyme sauce. To drink, Chef Boulud advises guests to order one of the creative or seasonal cocktails such as The Antidote with bourbon, ginger, egg white and fall spices.
The Modern’s executive chef Thomas Allan describes The Bar Room as a high-energy space and neighborhood restaurant designed for everyday dining. “You can create your own experience whether that means coming in a t-shirt and jeans and having fried chicken with beer or dressing up and ordering three courses with caviar,” he says.
Separated from The Modern by a frosted glass wall, the restaurant within a restaurant features a 20-seat marble bar and a menu that reflects Chef Allan’s seasonal contemporary cooking. In addition to the aforementioned dishes, the menu includes caviar hot dogs with pickled shallots and dill, tarte flambee, pork belly with butternut squash and crispy salmon.
Although The Bar Room is lively all day, it’s especially buzzy in the early evenings during the week.
Bar dining at Major Food Group’s The Grill means sitting in the same storied space as the main dining area where high ceilings and a mid-century steakhouse aesthetic are fully in place. The more than half-dozen choices to nibble on include oysters and clams on ice, cured salmon, crudites with assorted dips and- our favorite- Nantucket Bay scallops with key lime. While you’re at it, be sure to imbibe on an ice-cold martini with vodka or gin and feel yourself going back in time.
This venerable seafood temple introduced its Lounge menu in 2011 when the restaurant debuted a major redesign. Unmistakably elegant with its soft color tones and clean furniture, the space is located off the main dining room and carries over the theme of making fish the focal point of practically every dish. Here that means a lobster roll with a black truffle bun, scallop ceviche and yellowfin tuna with foie gras.
Diners can also go for the three-course $90 City Harvest menu that sees $5 from every order donated to the namesake charity. The choices change weekly- a lobster bisque, salad or scallop followed by baked snapper or skate bookended with either a pistachio praline or ice cream is a recent example.
While tourists jockey for a reservation in the main dining room at the seasonal American Peak, located on the 101st floor of 30 Hudson Yards, insiders and New Yorkers head straight to the glamorous bar and lounge with city views in the background. Settle in for the long haul here, and kick off the visit with a cocktail, rare spirit or glass of wine.
The food menu is comprised of favorites served in the main dining room such as Atlantic scallops with sunchokes and a chopped salad with buttermilk dressing, but new options are also included such as mushrooms tarts with cheddar. “The bar is all about doing as you please,” says Beverage Director Zach Kameron. “If we’re not insanely busy, we will also offer our prix-fixe and regular menu dishes.“
