Baz Luhrmann Opens New Bar Monsieur in New York | Eater NY
"Opened January 21, this cocktail bar in the East Village is a collaboration between director Baz Luhrmann, business partner Jon Neidich (CEO of Golden Age Hospitality, which oversees spots like the Nines, Le Dive, and Le Crocodile), and designer Catherine Martin. Madonna, in an Instagram carousel post posing with Luhrmann, celebrity friends, and interior photos, wrote, “When you’re feeling down, go to [the bar].” Per the press release, the creator supplied a backstory for the fictional titular host: “He was the kind of fellow who looked like he’d just stepped out of his own self-portrait; a fabulist, a trickster, a man who made fiction feel more truthful than fact, a true impresario of East Village nightlife in the 1970s.” The aesthetic is described as gothic, medieval, and bohemian and the space is likened to a film set (Luhrmann has been working on a film about Joan of Arc): plant-filled wallpaper, glass chandeliers, draped curtains, tapestries, stained glass, walnut details, medieval artwork, chambersticks, ornate candlestick holders, and shelves full of knick-knacks like leather-bound books, busts, and armored figures. The logo is a bespectacled monkey holding a martini and a book (there’s a stained-glass image of it, too). The venue took over what had previously been longtime gay club the Boiler Room. The bar will serve classic cocktails such as martinis; the kitchen is led by Golden Age Hospitality’s executive chef Nicole Gajadhar and offers pub-style English and Australian takes including sausage rolls, minced meat pies, and fried stuffed olives. Hours are 5 p.m.–2 a.m. Sunday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, and 5 p.m.–3 a.m. Thursday through Sunday. Reservations can be made online, and there is room for walk-ins." - Nadia Chaudhury
