"From the people behind Bandits and Rocco’s Sports & Recreation, The Garret is a casual, lively cocktail bar hidden up a staircase in the back of Five Guys in the West Village. It’s always pretty crowded, but if you need an easy way to impress someone who just arrived from JFK and insists on hanging out in the West Village, it’ll get the job done. Getting a seat will be tough, but just linger next to a table or the couch in the back until a few patrons decide to put their name in at Via Carota." - bryan kim, sonal shah