Chef Ryan Poli's captivating small plates ooze with unmistakeable allegiance to Espana: Pork belly bocadillos, housemade pappardelle, and the lamb sausage are all inspired bursts of flavor.
The juicy fried housemade bologna sandwich is exquisite enough to hoist the underappreciated sausage into superstardom.
Must-Try Dish: Duck liver pâté spread thick on toasted bread painted with Cognac butter and topped with brandied tangerine wedges.
Try the carrot-whole-wheat pancakes from our 100 Best list: This cafe's changed the breakfast game with its tender, sweet and maybe (but probably not) healthy pancakes.
Try the roast carrot and avocado salad from our 100 Best list:Crunchy with seeds, redolent with spices and enhanced with crème fraîche, this is proof there is such a thing as salad evolution.
Try the calamari from our 100 Best list: Put this calamari stuffed with chicken and pork forcemeat and flavored with Korean chilies and peanuts squarely in that camp.
Try the uni avocado toast from our 100 Best list: Chef Ryan LaRoche’s unlikely combination of briny sea urchin, smooth avocado, Mangalica ham and bright capers exhibits a keen understanding of flavor.
Try the squid-ink gnocchi in carrot broth from our 100 Best list: Chef Giuseppe Tentori is first and foremost an Italian & where he really shines is with pastas such as this rich yet delicate gnocchi.
Try the In the Rocks from our 100 Best list: It's our favorite drink at this high-concept lounge, for how it seamlessly integrates tactile pleasure (“cracking” the rock) into a beautifully made drink.
Must-try cocktail: Cognac. Unfamiliar ingredients (tonka bean, quassia, smoked black pepper) delicately complement the queen of cordials.
Must-try cocktail: Four Points. Rye, Bénédictine, sherry, and sweet vermouth, elegantly accented with a walnut liqueur rinse.
Must-try cocktail: Carlisle. An abstract tribute to the Manhattan, with a base of applejack and delicate bittersweet vermouth and finished with peach bitters.
There’s a recession going on? Not in here. At the Elysian Hotel’s clubby bar, it might as well be Reagan’s ’80s—every texture is plush, every server is formal, and every drink is, um, about $15. Read more.
