The 18 Best Cocktail Bars In NYC - New York - The Infatuation

"The day Contra closed was a sad one for lovers of dainty, seasonal plates. But there's still some elaborate recipe prep involved at Bar Contra, which replaced the Lower East Side restaurant. Their focus just shifted to drinks. The cocktails—all $21—are divided into shaken, stirred, carbonated, and on the rocks, and we'd recommend sampling one from each section of the menu. Start with the Saltair, a combination of umeboshi tequila and lime. It comes with a Modelito sidecar, and it tastes like the salty-sweet dregs of a margarita (in a good way). There are still some dainty bites here, and even if you've just stopped in before dinner, order the celeriac crumpet, and the sexy little red prawns from Montauk." - bryan kim, neha talreja, sonal shah, willa moore, will hartman