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New Yorkers are famously reluctant to leave the city for anything, but this fall, at least three excellent reasons to travel for a drink are coming directly to us.
Gramercy Tavern is launching Behind the Bar, a new takeover series bringing some of the country’s best cocktail bars to its Tavern room for three nights of drinks and food. The lineup starts this month with Miami’s Café La Trova before welcoming New Orleans’ Jewel of the South in September and Philadelphia’s The Lovers Bar in October.
First up is Café La Trova on August 17 and 18. The Little Havana favorite is led by legendary cantinero Julio Cabrera, whose drinks draw on Cuba’s cocktail traditions; James Beard Award-winning chef Michelle Bernstein handles a food menu packed with Cuban classics and inventive twists. Café La Trova has also repeatedly appeared on the World’s 50 Best Bars list.
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(There is one catch if you want to get in on night one: The August 17 takeover is exclusively for Chase Sapphire Reserve cardmembers. Everyone else can snag a reservation for August 18, when the event opens to the public.)
Next, New Orleans comes north on September 9 with Jewel of the South, the acclaimed French Quarter cocktail destination co-founded by Chris Hannah. The bar has collected some serious hardware over the years, including the 2024 James Beard Award for Outstanding Bar, and landed at No. 6 on North America’s 50 Best Bars list for 2026.
The series wraps up October 5 with Philadelphia’s The Lovers Bar, the downstairs cocktail bar at acclaimed restaurant Friday Saturday Sunday. The intimate drinking den, where head bartender Paul MacDonald oversees the cocktails, was a finalist for Outstanding Bar at the 2025 James Beard Awards.
Each visiting team will take over the Tavern at Gramercy Tavern, serving a selection of its signature cocktails and dishes alongside the restaurant’s regular à la carte menu. So, no, you don’t have to fly to Miami, New Orleans or even brave Amtrak to Philly for a destination-worthy cocktail this fall.
Reservations for the Jewel of the South and The Lovers Bar nights haven’t gone on sale yet, so keep your eyes peeled.