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Cozy and Hip Downtown Lounge NYC

A tourist from mainland China might raise a curious eyebrow at the line of this Lower East Side bar on any given Saturday night. After all, to a Cantonese speaker, it's clear that the establishment advertised on the awning is not a cocktail lounge, but an erotic massage parlor. The owner consciously plays upon the nostalgia of this vanishing piece of New York nightlife to set the atmosphere for this popular nightspot.

Immediately after entering, from the smoky glass doors to the moody lighting, one feels as if they have walked into a remnant of New York's seedier, more unapologetic past. Other allusions to this sordid history abound, a closed-circuit television plays an endless loop featuring the parlor's former madam as she leads faceless customers, who may be power-brokers, neighborhood regulars, or even local politicians, to their rooms. Seconds later, a waif-like and business minded masseuse slips into the room after him and we are left only imagining what went on behind those doors.

But beyond the playful homage, this bar and lounge is serious about its devotion to the lounge ideal. The upstairs is reminiscent of Sinatra's favorite, the Hidden Tree Lounge, with set-in red velvet booths offering just the right amount of privacy to engage in a little intimacy, yet public enough to hold court among an endearing crowd. The long back-lit bar is meant to appeal to the cocktail connoisseur and boasts scrupulously true martinis and homemade flavor-infused liqueurs, all prepared by bartenders who can spin a good tale, while mixing fine drinks with aplomb and style.

If the upstairs space represents the sophisticated seasonings of lounge arcana, the downstairs is its more garish alter-ego. The DJ downstairs sets a much more up-tempo beat, spinning wicked tracks for the pleasure of the crowds. Here kitsch reigns among the original tiling and waist height shower heads, the sauna rooms turned private party coves, the original etched glass "swan and naked female" mirror, all combining for an intimate, almost indecent atmosphere that harkens back to a pre-Giuliani New York, with a touch of 1960's Las Vegas.

A diverse clientele, appreciative of that style, drawn by consistently good music and an over-abundance of sex appeal from their fellow patrons, drink in the atmosphere nightly. The lounge has earned accolades from the New York Times, New York Magazine, TimeOut and others, feats that Oliver and staff credit to their almost puritanical approach to lounge culture and a healthy respect for timeless conceptions of cool.