Supper clubs are making a comeback as two Manhattan chefs update the classic dinner and a show combo. Zagat editor James Mulcahy filed the following report.
This week, Zagat looks at two city restaurants that are offering modern takes on the classic supper club. First up, Marcus Samuelsson, who recently opened Ginny's, a stand alone supper club in the basement of his Harlem restaurant Red Rooster. Here's what he had to say about the space:
Marcus Samuelsson: When I thought about Red Rooster, I really thought about the music, people and food of Harlem. That's when Ginny's supper club came together - we really thought 'let's do a supper club that in one way honors the past of the 1940's style supper club that Harlem's well known for and let's do something that's current and present. When you're upstairs and you walk downstairs, right away you see the shift of the mood. We celebrate that by our design here, which is inspired by music. Upstairs we looked at churches, here we looked at supper clubs, where cocktails win, where you can dress up, not dress down. Be social, enjoy the food, enjoy the company, enjoy the performance.Located in Chelsea, The Darby is also offering a modern take on the supper club, with live music every night and cuisine by chef Alex Guarnaschelli. Here's what she had to say about the space:
Alex Guarnaschelli: I think The Darby is at the forefront of the new idea of a supper club. The dining experience can actually be your whole evening and I think that The Darby really speaks to that whole idea, because you're dining, you're having a communal experience, you're sort of sharing in the experience of the music with everybody in the room. We have our signature people that come and sing a wide variety of different music, and we have a lot of unexpected guests. We've had a lot of really famous singers and some actors even come and jam with the band, sing a few songs, play a few songs on the piano, the drums. That really adds that element of mystery to it. I think there's gotta be something unknown and magical about The Darby for it to kind of be The Darby.For more restaurant news, visit blog.zagat.com.