New York City Nightlife Tips by heryanta

Porter's: Cozy small bar Porter's Review

Porter's is really a restaurant, but I only had one appetizers so I can't really write about the food. I did however have a lot of drinks so let me write about the bar :)

Located in Chelsea it is a restaurant with a cozy bar. It is very casual- barternder will ask what cd he should put on, and friendly. The crowd is made up by people from the neighbourhood and couples on dates. I particularly enjoy just the fact that you can have a relaxed chat with the other patrons and the staff; very different from the other hipper places in Manhattan.

I did have the coconut mango shrimp appetizer and I absolutely recommend that you try that!

Address: 216 7th Avenue

Directions: Between 22nd and 23rd

Phone: (212) 229-2878

Theme: Eating and Drinking

Banc: Artsy and Cozy

My friends who live in Midtown East took me here after dinner. It's a cozy, trendy and artsy establishment with young professionals (early 30's) and grad students making up the majority of the patrons.
Lounge Jazzy music is played - not too loud so you don't have to shout to be heard and reasonable prices. It gets really busy though in the weekends so be prepared to give up some personal space :)

Dress Code: Nice going out clothes preferred if you don't want to look out of place

Address: 435 3rd Ave

Directions: 3rd & E 30th

Phone: (212) 252-0146

Theme: Eating and Drinking

Website: http://www.banccafe.com

Mandarin Oriental Lounge: Martini in the sky

Located at the sky lobby on the 35th floor of one of the finest hotels in New York, the Mandarin Oriental lounge gives a pristine view of Central Park.

As you sink into the sofa or plush chair you will appreciate the fine furnishing of the lounge. It's not cheap for sure but if you are going to do Manhattan the right way you need to have a martini here and watch the sun go down while the lights in the city come on.

We didn't have any food so I can't write a review about that but we did have dessert and I can recommend the chocolate cake :)

Dress Code: Not sure what the official dress code is but everyone whom we saw there was dressed up so you will look out of place in t-shirts or shorts

Address: 80 Columbus Avenue

Directions: Located at the Colombus circle

Phone: (866) 801-8880

Theme: Eating and Drinking

Website: http://www.mandarinoriental.com/newyork/

Rooftop at Gansevoort: Fashionable, hip and a pristine view of... Gansevoort Review

The rooftop bar at hotel Gansevoort, located in the meat packing district is a very hip and trendy. They also have an outdoor patio that gives a pristine view of ... Jersey! Whaaat? yes, Jersey kind of look nice after dark :) The outdoor patio also gives you the opportunity to smoke cigars, something that they have outlawed in indoor bars.

The main draw of the bar besides the view is that this is a great place to watch the younger fashionable crowd of Manhattan; from successful bankers to fashion models.

The place gets very busy during the weekends so you need to make a reservation.

Dress Code: It is advisable to wear nice clubbing clothes if you decide to check it out :)

Address: 18 9th Avenue

Directions: on W13th st

Phone: (212) 206-6700

Theme: Eating and Drinking

Website: http://www.hotelgansevoort.com/

Dizzy's Club: Jazz in style Dizzy's Club Review

Located in the glitzy Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle; Dizzy's Club is a good looking small club with a great view of the Central Park.

There are two sets per evening and we went to see the early one at 7pm. Cover charge is $30 per person and they start seating us for dinner at 6pm.
Overall the club has very good atmosphere, even though I prefer to have gone to the later set, as I enjoy live Jazz performance more from sitting comfortably in a lounge rather than on a dining table setting.

One of the benefits of going to the earlier setting however is the fact that behind the stage the club has a large floor to ceiling glass windows, which means we got to enjoy the lights of Manhattan's skyscrapers coming on one at a time.

Dress Code: People dress rather smartly so you will be out of place with t-shirts; best to wear a nice 'going out' outfit.

Address: 33 W 60th St, New York

Directions: Columbus Circle on Central Park

Phone: 212 258-9595

Theme: Live Music

Website: http://www.jalc.org/dccc/index.asp