"There’s something about taking a date down a flight of stairs into a subterranean spot that feels particularly clandestine in a romantic way. The below-ground Scotch Lodge is such a spot, a hidden-away library of whiskies from around the world, though the drams are hardly the main draw here. Lauded bartenders mix drinks with everything from genmaicha to coffee vermouth, pulling bottles of Ardbeg and Teeling 17-year, cognac-finish single-malt as additions. The food is equally matched with the beverages — think granita-topped oysters, scallop crudo with rambutan, and pappardelle slick with seaweed butter." - Katrina Yentch, Thom Hilton, Brooke Jackson-Glidden