The Kesha H. Washington is a low-ABV mix of amari, lemon and soda water.
• The Rose Room, tucked behind wine racks, feels like a ’70s living room and is named for Rose Mofford, Arizona’s first female governor. Out at the main bar, a spinning crib-mobile installation nods to a notorious Phoenix crime from the 1930s.
• Food is covered nightly (6 p.m. to 1 a.m.) by Condesa, a residency of the beloved Mexican restaurant located upstairs and around the corner, serving everything from carne asada burritos to fresh, Nutella-dusted donuts.
NICE TO KNOW
Valley Bar is a block from Hanny’s, a sleek downtown hang in a restored 1920s department store with legendary second-floor bathrooms and bizarre art installations. Three blocks south, Little Rituals, a trailblazer in Phoenix’s cocktail scene, holds court in a hotel bar with skyline views. Cornish Pasty is steps away, a no-fail late-night spot for beer, pool tables and British fare.
NOTABLE AND NEARBY
Marked only by a red neon arrow off a back alley downtown, Valley Bar opened in 2015 and quickly became a nucleus for Phoenix nightlife. The main venue space, housed in a basement that once held an art gallery and underground theater, fits 250 people packed standing, or rather, pulsing with local bands, DJ nights, drag bingo and comedy shows. The adjacent bar is moodier; it’s part dive, part time capsule, with vintage political portraits and a cocktail menu framed through the lens of Arizona’s public figures. There’s the mezcal-heavy McCain, the Caipirinha de Ruben with honeydew and génépy, and the Barry Goldwater, a rye Sazerac with chocolate bitters. There’s skee-ball, darts and a healthy amount of camp. Some nights it’s wall-to-wall dancing; other times, it’s low-lit corners and offbeat conversations. You might come for a show and end up staying all night, just because it’s easy to.
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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.
