The bar’s interior is a celebration of the space’s long history.
• Little Jumbo hosts some of Asheville’s best live jazz every Monday and Tuesday night, with no cover charge. The website lists each week’s lineup.
• Specialized menus, including a list of G&T options and specialty absinthe and pastis offerings, are available upon request.
• For date night (or any night), the bar offers special drinks service for two. Choose between Manhattans, Martinis, Japanese highballs, absinthe or hot cocoa and rum, and your selection will be delivered on ornate trays with various fun accoutrements.
NICE TO KNOW
Nearby, at the edge of downtown, Heiwa Shokudo is a cozy spot favored by locals for sake or Sapporo with sushi or a bowl of hot ramen. A block north and across the street, Static Loft, a bar operated by nearby vinyl shop Static Age Records, offers live music, comedy shows and other events as well as late-night food.
NOTABLE AND NEARBY
Named after an 1880s-era Manhattan bar owned by famed bartender and author Harry Johnson, Little Jumbo has garnered acclaim as one of the Southeast’s top destinations for creative cocktails that pay homage and attention to historic detail. Built in 1920 as a grocery store, the building’s interior glows warmly with polished wood and copper ceilings. Little Jumbo’s quiet perch in the residential Five Points neighborhood means the bar can be an easygoing respite from the downtown hubbub, but the place quickly gets packed during the popular weekly jazz nights, dance parties and other events. The large menu is full of surprises, delivering inventive takes on classics, like the sparkling Paloma Brillante finished with cava, and multiple riffs on the Martini and Old-Fashioned.
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Around the corner on Grand Street, Fresh Kills (from Richie Boccato) has been quietly serving some of the best cocktails in Brooklyn for nearly a decade.
NOTABLE AND NEARBY
• When outdoor seating is available, the wisteria-draped garden (book ahead on Resy) might fool you into thinking you’re somewhere between Louisiana and Provence.
• While Maison excels at the A-list classics, look closely and you’ll find lovingly executed takes on B-side hits, like the Yellow Parrot and the Obituary, that make the case for revival.
NICE TO KNOW
Staff Favorite Dive Bars
Pete's Candy Store
I moved around the corner from Pete’s in 2008, and have found myself wedged into the bar’s tiny back music venue on countless nights since. The crowds may have changed, but Pete’s still maintains a bygone Williamsburg combo of grit, disaffection and surprise and delight. —Talia Baiocchi, editor-in-chief
Happyfun Hideaway
If you’re looking to make out on a dance floor, this no-frills, tropical-themed queer bar is the spot for you. —Irina Groushevaia, senior social media manager
7B Horseshoe Bar
7B stands out from the hoards of East Village icons not only because it opens at noon (ideal for killing time before, well, anything) but because it has one of the friendliest staffs of any bar, let alone dive, in the city. —Chloe Frechette, deputy editor
Sunny’s
This outer fringe of Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood is not easily accessible, but it’s worth a trip to experience a bar that’s been resurrected from the brink of closure several times. Live music starts most nights at 8 p.m., and there’s plenty of outdoor space for loitering. Don’t forget to bring cash. —Allison Hamlin, director of network development
An essential guide to the bars and retailers that have turned Oakland into an epicenter of progressive wine culture.
New York’s Essential Martinis
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An essential guide to the bars and retailers that have turned Oakland into an epicenter of progressive wine culture.
At Valley Bar, expect on-theme drinks like the vodka-based Original Sinema (left) and Mexican food, including a variety of burrito options (right).
The signature cocktail of the original Rogue Cocktails, the Gunshop Fizz uses a full 2 ounces of Peychaud’s bitters.
The Howitzer, the first original cocktail to be featured on a Cure menu, is a bourbon-based riff on the French 75.
• Little Jumbo hosts some of Asheville’s best live jazz every Monday and Tuesday night, with no cover charge. The website lists each week’s lineup.
• Specialized menus, including a list of G&T options and specialty absinthe and pastis offerings, are available upon request.
• For date night (or any night), the bar offers special drinks service for two. Choose between Manhattans, Martinis, Japanese highballs, absinthe or hot cocoa and rum, and your selection will be delivered on ornate trays with various fun accoutrements.
NICE TO KNOW
The Little Jumbo menu offers twists on the classics, from Palomas to Pimm’s Cups.
