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It's not every day that a new nightclub opens in New York City, especially one that harks back to an old sort of New York—when nightclubs were the city's premiere destinations for some after-hours fun. Which is why Daphne, a new subterranean spot under Hotel 50 Bowery in Chinatown, is so special.
Hospitality company Gerber Group opened Daphne earlier this month as a complement to the hotel's rooftop bar, The Crown, and New Yorkers have been flocking to it ever since.
Upon entering the massive 2,500-square-foot space, patrons are pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful silk pink flower installation by art studio Floratorium. Dazzling disco balls also permeate the premises, calling back to a time when the dance club you frequented was just as important as where your apartment was located.
"There haven't been many new club openings in New York City in the past two years," said Owen Gerber, part owner of Daphne, in an official statement about the news. "We wanted to recreate the disco, vintage feel that my father [Gerber Group CEO Scott Gerber] experienced in his 20s, for my generation."
In addition to clubs' signature bottle service, the bartenders at Daphne can serve some remarkable cocktails that range from the classic to modern interpretations of the form. For every dirty martini, old fashioned and margarita there is an Aphrodite (Malfy gin, fortified wine, pomegranate and fresh lemon), Lite My Fire (Patron silver tequila, ginger liqueur, fresh lime and flamed rosemary) and Cider Car (Hennessy, apple cider and apricot liqueur), among other options.
The only other major club that has opened in New York since the pandemic changed the way we interact with each other is Nebula, a massive, multi-level, 11,000-square-foot nightclub that opened back in November of 2021 smack-dab in the middle of Times Square.
Following what felt like a collective preference for cocktail bars over dance clubs for the past few years, could we perhaps be living through the beginning of a new discoteque-heavy trend?