Maison Premiere has been a Brooklyn favorite for more than a decade due to its abundance of absinthe and oysters, elegantly weathered dining room, and, of course, its charming garden. It’s lined with vines and teeming with greenery, natural light streams in by day, and the whole place takes on a twinkling, magical quality in the evening.
New York City's warming up this spring, and outdoor dining and drinking are as hot as ever. Rooftops bars and waterside restaurants are open all over town, and the appeal of the open air makes outside space as competative as a table at the Waverly Inn circa 2008.
Short of making a reservation (What is this, Los Angeles?) one way to secure a spot is to patronize places unknown to your friends and neighbors, unheard of by tourists and unfamiliar to even the most prolific Yelpers. But being that this is neither the surface of the sun nor the bottom of the sea, few places are truly secret.
Some restaurants and bars, however, do have areas that are a little more hidden away than the rest. These are your semi-secret gardens, surprising back yards, unexpected patios and cozy spots where you can feel a little tucked away in one of the biggest cities in the world.