A New York City Classic: Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle
Like the summer wind, my ex-boyfriend made a cameo appearance last Tuesday via Blackberry Messenger.
“Interested in dinner and drinks this evening, darling?” He wondered. After waiting 25 minutes to respond — games — I agreed to a meeting and suggested Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle Hotel.
I laced up my 4″ espadrilles and “gracefully” hobbled six blocks to The Carlyle, which is located on Madison Avenue at 76th Street. As I entered into my own personal Gossip Girl episode, I scanned the supremely sexy room looking for the boy, but the old Hollywood-style décor — and maybe a quick flashback of the bar in The Shining — commanded my attention. I had forgotten how absolutely stunning this bar is. The impeccable combination of the black granite bar, 24-carat gold leaf-covered ceiling, a grand piano, sumptuous, chocolate brown leather banquettes and nickel-trimmed black glass tabletops makes this a wannabe Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s dream come true! I made a bee-line for the bar because I needed a swig of my old standby, a Grey Goose martini, before his arrival. “Ali”, my couldn’t-be-friendlier, white-jacketed bartender could sense my uneasiness and began asking about my day at work. After a couple of minutes of chit-chat and a few sips of his delicious martini, my date arrived.
During a moment of silence I scanned the room, admiring the murals of Central Park with picnicking rabbits and remembered that the bar was named for Ludwig Bemelmans, the celebrated creator of the Madeline children’s-book series and a past Carlyle resident. My attention was suddenly interrupted by the soothing sounds of the Chris Gillespie Trio who put my mind back at ease.
We decided — after becoming slightly tipsy off of their too tasty, Prohibition-era drinks; namely the Gin-Gin Mule and the Old Cuban — that we would stick around and eat something at the bar so I didn’t collapse. I ordered the chicken dish because I’m “boring” and it was absolutely delish! He was also quite impressed with his “cooked to perfection” steak, even though I ate the majority of his fries. We skipped dessert to save room for after dinner drinks — because we really needed an Old-Fashioned and a Sidecar — when in Rome…
As he paid the tab I people-watched the fabulous patrons and concluded that, for a Tuesday night at 11 PM, Bemelmans had quite a crowd! Fashionistas, lawyers, bankers, socialites and other well-heeled types found seats on the lush leather banquettes surrounding the piano as they swayed to the music and sipped on classic cocktails.
Bemelmans Bar was the perfect location to stage our reconciliation; perfectly unobtrusive, intimate and cozy. It still remains on the top of my list as one of the best bars in New York City — maybe even the country!
