Summit Bar
If you have years of catching up to do with someone, you need a bar where you can actually chat, without feeling like a piece of driftwood being tossed around on a sea of revelers. Excellent cocktails never hurt conversation, so Summit Bar fit the bill nicely. I was a little relieved, on walking in, that there were no bartenders in suspenders or tasteful antiques attempting to evoke a 1920s speakeasy, a trend that’s getting a bit tiresome. Summit Bar seems like a straight-up lounge, with an elegant, candlelit bar, long wrap-around sofas, heated patio, and a music selection trending toward Jimi Hendrix and Led Zepplin.
The menu is divided between classics, like the Tom Collins and the Old Fashioned ($8-$9), and more creative concoctions. I started out with the Situation ($12), comprised of Afghani raisin-infused Rittenhouse Rye, caraway-infused agave, lemon, and orange bitters. It was sweet and tart in just the right amounts, and topped with fat golden “infused” raisins that pack a boozy punch. Between the Situation and the Guv’nor, ($12) which combined Yamakazi 12 year whiskey, toasted cinnamon-infused agave, Japanese yuzu, and fresh orange juice, the Situation had the perfect balance.
My favorite drink of of the evening was “Charmane’s Star,” with Russian Standard vodka, cucumber shiso leaf, fresh lime, Vietnamese cinnamon-infused agave, and rhubarb bitters ($11). There are some cocktail bars that won’t touch vodka (hello, Death & Company and Milk & Honey) because it wasn’t used in cocktails back when you had Model-Ts and gramophones. But any other liquor would have drowned the perfect harmony of the cucumber and cinnamon, which was unique and refreshing combination.
I can guarantee this place will be 100% more crowded when NYU and other colleges are back in session. But this past Saturday night it seemed like few people were venturing through the lazy snowflakes to Avenue C before 10pm, and the scene was pretty mellow. Actually New York Magazine picked Summit Bar as Best Cocktail Bar this year, but I’d say it might be a toss-up between Summit Bar, Elsa, and Death & Company, which, while older and more popular, has been reliably good.
Summit Bar
133 Avenue C between 8th St. and 9th St.
Hours