ACME Bar / Lounge / Restaurant

Greenwich Village / NoHo, New York –

Held over from the venue’s previous incarnation, a sign out front promises “authentic southern and Cajun cookin’,” but the trendy gals and hip locavores at ACME won’t find gumbo on the restaurant’s avant-garde Nordic menu, nor is there a trace of Louisiana in the chilled-out but über-exclusive downstairs lounge.

Well-connected patrons pass through a small vestibule before entering the expansive dining hall – a space that stays perpetually loud and full given ACME’s limited dining hours – joining the fashion editors and successful SoHo artists at the round vintage bistro tables scattered about the room.

A long mirrored bar dominates one side, providing a spot for socialites to wait for a table and gossip over crafted cocktails like the Upstate Affair (green apples, celery juice, vodka, and dandelion), while foodie couples feast on haute cuisine such as duck in a jar or a pearl barley and scallop dish lathered in faux sea foam.

Savvy scenesters bypass the restaurant entirely, instead descending a staircase near the entrance that gives way to a dark mirrored hallway and hidden bar, where a handful of privileged guests can mingle and dance to 70s-era rock and 80s pop.

Dinner meets its daytime rival during weekend brunch, but any visit to ACME combines the vibe of a cocktail bar with unique fare usually reserved for fine restaurants, making it an ideal retreat for people who take their food as seriously as their style.