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Party Earth Review A Murray Hill mainstay since 2003, Rare Bar & Grill combines upscale diner fare and sweeping rooftop views, allowing its dapper patrons to enjoy their steakhouse burgers with a side of the Chrysler Building. The south... ... read full review
303 Lexington Avenue
New York, NY 10016
4, 5, 6: 33rd Street; 4, 5, 6, 7: 42nd Street
212-481-1999
Restaurant: M–W 7am–11pm, Th–F 7am–midnight, Sa 8am–midnight, Su 8am–11pm
Kitchen temporarily closes daily from 11am–noon
Rooftop: Daily 4:30–11pm, closing time varies based on crowd (Open Summer only)
Murray Hill, New York –
A Murray Hill mainstay since 2003, Rare Bar & Grill combines upscale diner fare and sweeping rooftop views, allowing its dapper patrons to enjoy their steakhouse burgers with a side of the Chrysler Building.
The south side, to be exact.
Attached to the boutique Affinia Shelburne hotel, Rare’s street-level restaurant performs a lot of in-house catering for executive luncheons, with plenty of visiting businessmen in Brooks Brothers suits stopping in to sip twelve-year-old Macallan at two in the afternoon.
The chic but casual dining area goes for a sleek tavern look, with lots of hardwood tables where local lawyers and bankers can savor artisan burgers and tequila-flambéd T-bones as they check the scores on the TV, and where forever twenty-somethings can sip pinot and eye the passersby from a window booth.
Warm evenings promise a line at the elevator heading for the seasonal rooftop, where stylish couples grab a daybed and catch the last rays of sun, while sophisticated fashionistas and finance types settle onto cozy indoor/outdoor furniture to flirt over fruity cocktails.
DJs turn things up a notch by 7:30pm on the rooftop, prompting trendy locals to head up and get sufficiently tipsy before venturing to a nearby club.
A fun atmosphere that makes for a nice lunch or a great start to the night, Rare Bar & Grill is still going strong after all these years – a rare thing in New York’s ever-competitive nightlife industry.
Trendy hotel guests, young executive and local business types, fashionable pre-club crowd, yuppie tourists, low-key but well-to-do Manhattanites, early 20s to 40s.
DJs spin mostly Top 40 from 7:30pm to close on the rooftop when it's open.
Amped-up grill fare including lollipop wings, freshly ground rib-eye burgers, and steaks.
Rooftop is open seasonally and may be closed at any time due to inclement weather.
Reservations accepted online only unless for groups of over 20.
Late-night Happy Hour M–W, Su 9–11pm and Th–Sa 10pm–midnight.
Appetizers $6.50–$15, salads $15–$18, entrées $9–$28.
Beer $7–$9, wine $10–$16/glass or $36–$65+/bottle, cocktails $14–$16, whiskey and spirits $12–$30+, champagne $10+/glass or $40–$220/bottle.
Business casual to trendy: blazers, jeans, nice t-shirts, button-downs, leggings, designer skirts, with trendier wear on the pre-club crowd.
Any night after 10pm for the late-night Happy Hour, or Friday and Saturday nights for the biggest pre-club crowd.
Rooftop Lounge at Pod 39 Hotel (145 East 39th Street) is another hotel rooftop joint, this one going for an upscale Mexican theme with tiled tables, terracotta columns, and specialty tequilas paired with its own panoramic views.