

Listings and reviews (7)

The NoMad
Chef Daniel Humm and William Guidara, the celebrated team behind Eleven Madison Park, turn the music up for their sophomore venture in the NoMad Hotel. Ditching EMP's tasting-menu-only format, Humm takes a more democratic approach with an à la carte menu of seasonal, French-inflected fare. The venue comprises five distinct spaces, all designed by Parisian architect Jacques Garcia: a dark-oak-clad dining room with heavy fabrics and an open hearth; a sunlit atrium with a pyramidal glass roof; a cozy fireplace room; a library for afternoon tea and evening nightcaps; and a cocktail lounge featuring a stately mahogany bar.

Terroir Park Slope
Sometimes, when a good thing blows up, a little street cred is lost along the way: Indie bands forfeit their edge when they hit the big time; talented chefs turn out duds as their empires grow too vast. In 2008, Terroir was an anomalyâthe trailblazing wine bar, from pedigreed toque Marco Canora and sommelier guru Paul Grieco, brought genuine East Village cool to the high-minded world of wine by way of an offbeat selection, loud music and a tatted-up staff. But in the past few years, the pair has gone on an expansion tear, installing spin-offs of the quirky downtown gem in Tribeca and Murray Hill, on the High Line and, as of September, in Park Slope. This venture, their first Brooklyn foray, could have been the moment the whole enterprise jumped the sharkâif it didnât fit into the neighborhood so naturally. Like Mario Batali and Daniel Boulud, Grieco and Canora have figured out how to operate an expanding domain without losing sight of the details on the ground: polished service, stellar food and a hobnobbing room. DRINK THIS: Grieco is known as a diehard riesling booster, and his list, with 30 options of the varietal, reflects the obsession. Taste the star grapeâs rangeâfrom bone-dry to fruity and lushâvia three-ounce pours ($4.75â$8.25), or just kick back with a full glass ($9â$16). Of course, red-wine loyalists can find plenty of cork-dork bait, and the roster also showcases an admirable selection of ciders and beers. GOOD FOR: Neighborhood wine geeks, Park Slope parents re

Porsena Extra Bar
When porchetta queen Sara Jenkins set up her East Village trattoria Porsena, her ambitions were modest: to conjure a simple workaday pasta joint just like the ones she encountered during her enviable childhood in Rome and Tuscany. Her spin-off wine bar next door, more like a casual mom-and-pop enoteca than a cool-kid vino spot, shares this humble attitude and personal approach. At Porsena Extra Bar, there is no encyclopedia-thick wine list full of self-consciously obscure offerings with eye-popping price tags. The trim 27-bottle selectionâa collection of Jenkinsâs personal favoritesâis just as easy on the eyes as it is on the wallet, with an approachable selection of five reds and five whites by the glass, and the majority of bottles clocking in the $40â$50 range. DRINK THIS: At this vino-focused annex, Jenkins has expanded on the Italian lineup at her flagship restaurant with a more diverse Mediterranean wine list. Lesser-known varietals from France and Spain dominate the menu, but Greece and Lebanon punctuate the offerings. On a recent visit, we were taken with a rich, acidic French white wine showcasing lip-smacking salinityâthe 2011 Picpoul de Pinet from ChĂąteau de Saint Martin de la Garrigue in Coteaux du Languedoc (glass $14, bottle $50). We were also intrigued with the offbeat 2010 Amazigh from Zniber Vineyards (glass $10, bottle $35), in Moroccoâs northern region of Beni MâTir, a spiced red blend with a pleasing barnyard whiff. GOOD FOR: A refuge from downtownâs high-

Extra Fancy
With shiny new condos on the rise and the artsy masses receding to Bushwick, Williamsburgâs era of ĂŒbercool stands at a critical junctureâan echo of Sohoâs arc from bohemian mecca to blanched commercial landscape. At the moment, though, the changing âhoodâs wide-ranging bar scene is hitting its boozy peak, accomodating both high-minded and budget-conscious drinkers, with hoity-toity oyster bars (Hotel Delmano, Maison Premiere) and standout dives (the Commodore, Lady Jayâs). Bridging the gap is the seaboard-inspired Extra Fancy, where $4 Bud drafts share menu space with local rosĂ© wine. The bar-restaurant hybrid reflects the neighborhoodâs high-low culture clash, catering gamely to both scruffy bearded types and the areaâs recent influx of spendy settlers. DRINK THIS: The team behind the joint has direct lineage from cocktail guru Dushan Zaricâs nightlife empire: Owner Mark Rancourt put in time at Macao Trading Co., and beverage director Robert Krueger paid his dues at Employees Only. Accordingly, the drinks list spotlights plenty of voguish spirits, like Averell Damson Gin, and approachable contemporary cocktails. The zippy Ray-Ray (Plymouth Gin, Pimmâs #1, herbs, Cel-Ray soda) proves herbaceous and refreshing, while the tart Squibnocket showcases a balanced mix of funky Banks 5 Island Rum, rich Kronan Swedish Punsch, fruity beach plum puree and fresh lime juice. Less successful is the Papi, Do Me a FavorâEl Tesoro Platinum, dry sherry, Cocchi Americano, Royal Combier, grapef

Middle Branch
In an age when suspenders and âstaches are cocktail-bar clichĂ©s, itâs hard to remember that a bit more than a decade ago, craft cocktails were almost a historical footnote, degraded over the years by sugary premade mixes and the herculean rise of the Appletini. Times have changed: Many casual drinkers now know Angostura from Peychauds bitters, and bartenders are thought of as serious pros, not moonlighting actors. Arguably, no one has done more to advance the cause of a well-made drink than Sasha Petraske. In 2000, the visionary barman paved the way for the modern cocktail bar with Milk & Honeyâa rarefied antidote to New Yorkâs sloppy drinking scene, fueled at the time by Red Bullâvodkas and cheap beer. In short order, he and his acolytes have spread the liquid gospel with a rapidly expanding web of standout watering holes, including Little Branch and Silver Lining. Along the way, Petraske loosened the reins at his new spots, ditching M&Hâs famed house rules (âNo hooting, hollering, shouting or other loud behavior,â etc.), as well as the reservations-only door policy. His latest bar, Middle Branchârun by longtime Little Branch lieutenants Lucinda Sterling and Benjamin Schwartzâplants a flag for artisanal cocktails in postfrat epicenter Murray Hill. This is no sly Trojan horse for tipplers in the know, hidden from the popped-collar masses with a windowless facade and an unmarked ingress: The bi-level drinkery, sporting open French doors offering an easy glimpse inside, practic

Brooklyn Botanica
Before gastro fanatics hunkered down for a two-hour wait at Pok Pok Ny or cocktail nerds made the pilgrimage to Fort Defiance in Red Hook, seasonal bar Botanica beckoned Brooklyn locals to a quiet corner in the âhood for its produce-driven libations and stunning Venetian-inspired room. But though the April-to-October spot gained fans from the borough, it never quite made its way onto the lips of culinary sophisticates. That may soon change (or should, at least): This past spring, one of those local admirers, Michelin-starred chef Saul Boltonâwho discovered the Red Hook gem on a trip back from Fairwayârebooted the food and drink menus, with plans to keep the joint open year-round. Bolton, a pioneer of Brooklynâs now-surging food scene, already had his hands full with his restaurants Saul, the Vanderbilt and (coming this fall) Red Gravy. But he was so charmed with Botanica that he tracked down owner Dan Preston, who also presides over the glass-windowed chocolate factory and distillery Cacao Prieto housed in the same 1846 Dutch building, and convinced Preston to let him take over operations. With Boltonâs own team in the kitchen and behind the bar, the gorgeous spotâeasily one of the cityâs best-looking watering holesâfinally has destination-worthy food and cocktails to match the dreamy setting. DRINK THIS:Â Bolton installed his head barkeep at Saul, Dan Carlson, behind the stately copper bar at Botanica. Carlsonâs breezy nine-drink list hits all the notes of todayâs cocktail tr

Burnside
Who needs a road trip when you've got Grand Street in Williamsburg? The pub-crawl-friendly strip is fast becoming a microcosm of regional dive-bar culture, where you can chase Labatt longnecks at Ontario Bar with slugs of bourbon and honky-tonk ballads at the Dixieland-leaning Lady Jay's. And now, Midwest transplants and their hipster doppelgngers can find Jucy Lucys and cans of Milwaukee's Best at Burnside, a cozy tavern that mashes up heartland sensibilities with the 'hood's trademark DIY aesthetic. Instead of Vince Lombardi murals and trophy muskies on the wall, the three ownersâincluding Wisconsin native Tim Millerâhave crafted a sort of refined barnyard, with distressed gold-and-brown wallpaper and filament bulbs hanging from upside-down chicken feeders. We wouldn't mind if they dialed up the kitsch a bit (pond hockey on the patio?), but the easygoing spot is still a fineâif somewhat genericâplace to post up with your crew for the evening. DRINK THIS: It's best to adopt a when-inâChippewa Falls philosophy when perusing the chalkboard suds menu, which offers some rare-in-NYC (if not necessarily delicious by craft-beer standards) Badger State bottles like Stevens Point lager ($5). There are also a couple pedigreed Midwestern breweriesâFounders from Michigan, and Illinois's Two Brothersârepresented on the eight draft lines, but we wish they'd pushed the theme further. How about some Jolly Pumpkin? Leelanau? Goose Island? The rest of the taps are filled out with the usual su