 NY Magazine
Date: 02.01.06
Best of New York
8. East Midtown
Straddling that line between unassuming after-work pub and thoughtfully accessible lounge isn’t easy, but this newbie does so nimbly. Ahi-tuna salad and a cranberry Cosmo, anyone? Or a cold Bud?
In the days of rotary phones, operators shorthanded the prefix BU-8 as BUtterfield 8, hence John O'Hara's 1935 novel, Elizabeth Taylor's 1960 movie, and now this bar. Fittingly, the bar's design takes its cues from a bygone era with deco accents all around the 100-year-old, 3,000-square-foot space. Ornate chandeliers hang from 20-foot ceilings amidst the main room's original crown moldings, and the walls are covered in rich walnut paneling. For a comfort-food meal of cheesesteak with mac and cheese (or just a sense of intimacy), co-workers sink into the U-shaped leather banquettes or take a table in the back near a large photo-mural of the city skyline that’s brightened by Tiffany lamps. The full bar produces an imaginative array of specialty cocktails (Who would have thought that blue cheese befits a dirty martini?) and behind it, discreet wide-screen TVs allow sippers to catch sports highlights before they drift back to Grand Central for the train to Darien.
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