Finding the right place for a first date in New York can be tricky – even frustrating. There is such a sheer volume of variety in places – and, in kinds of people that you might be taking out. Does your date like underground salsa dancing? Heavy metal? Minimalist art shows? The raw food movement? By taking a swing at it and bringing your date to one of the more pigeonhole spots here in the city, you might really win your date over and make the night unforgettable. Or, your date might get the “emergency phone call” eleven minutes into eating seaweed next to a xylophone player.So, let’s take the safer route and stick to a more general area on the first date. Even here you can run into problems. See, if you’ve lived here even a month you’ve realized that the New York restaurant and nightlife scene – just like every other kind of scene – is borderline unbearably trendy. Many people complain that following all the nightlife openings and staying on top of what’s hot is a full time job. Remember how blazing hot Marquee was for a while there? Yeah, tell your New Yorker date you’re taking him or her there for a night of dancing now. Cue the laughter. It’s impossible for a normal person with a life to constantly have a running knowledge of what places are hot on any given day. So avoid the headache by going somewhere with class, sophistication, and a little bit of edgy fun. These places are perpetually trendy, especially in the new dawn of nightlife in New York: old school, comfy, casual, and chic lounges and bars. By staying on this course, your date will be impressed by how “with it” you are, and how insider New York you are, and yet it won’t look like you’re just trying to show how unbelievably hip you are. Scenester is not the impression you want to give on a first date. Whether it’s always a true assessment or not, people on a date with a scenester assume said scenester is way too wrapped up in nightlife to have any sort of relationship, goes out and meets a lot more of the opposite sex, and just might be a bit shallow and/or superficial.
You can still show some insider knowledge and chic-ness though. Instead of going for a place that might only be cool for a week, go for the trend that’s been solid in the city for a couple of years now, and doesn’t look like it’s going anywhere soon: the Prohibition inspired bar or lounge. “Speakeasies” have been popping up all over Manhattan. These are bars without big flashing signs announcing their presence, so your date will be impressed when you usher him or her up to a non-descript door and suddenly introduce them to a hidden treasure. Gourmet cocktails are the draw at these places, places such as one of the pioneers of this trend, Milk and Honey.
Arguably the best spot for a first date is the somewhat new Raines Law Room, 48 West 17th Street between 5th and 6th Avenue. This bar is described by patrons as decadent, comfortable, and quaint. There is actually no bar, but instead a sort of open kitchen where you can watch your mixologist of the night engage in the art of the cocktail. You can do this from your comfy booth in a bar that has transported you back to the decadent 1920’s. This is the perfect date spot, since you and your date can actually settle in and be comfortable. You canreally relax, talk, and get to know each other. Being able to kick back and talk is the most important thing on a first date, and Raines Law Room will really set the tone and make that happen. Plus that very mentioned decadence will make the mood a little fun and flirtatious. There are even curtains at the booth you can close to really be in your own little world, and you can pull the chain at your booth to summon the waitress. There is definitely a sexy tone, but not overt. Plus, the cocktail menu is unique and extensive, and a different drink menu like this is a great bonding experience for a date. You two can pore over the drink menu and each get something different but that you both like, so you can try each other’s – just don’t go overboard with these deceptively strong cocktails, of course.
Your date will be so pleasantly surprised by Raines Law Room, and of course, by you. It is trendy in a timeless way, and the perfect place to unwind, get to know each other, and flirt. It is one of the very few bars in New York where you can sit – comfortably – for hours without being rushed, and where you can drown out the rest of the world in an overcrowded city.
Raines Law Room - NYC - 48 West 17th Street (Between 5th & Avenue Of The Americas)
Written by: Courtney Iseman - SpeedNY Dating Resident Blogger
