Last week, I was escorted to two places in celebration for my birthday. The Standard Hotel, which is located in the Meat-packing district of New York. It has several restaurants/lounges attached to it, but the newly renovated rooftop area and club are the newest additions. This is the look of a nice upscale hotel, where hob knobbing is actually supported. One thing I will say is that this hotel wants to appear upscale with its visual aids in the elevator, while the car is dark, there is a screen displaying a Willy Wonka type rotating pictorial. It's attention grabbing. Upon entering the area where we have a reservation, the hostess and waitresses were dressed in curiously styled beige dresses and the men wore what reminded me of a bell-hops uniform. They were courteous and besides the big, gruff looking security guy, service was nice. The lounge area that we entered had a very good view of the Manhattan skyline (picture above). They had a piano and trumpet player and the bar was centered in the room surrounded by bottles of wine and almost every kind of liquor you'd want. We sat down with a great view and prepared to order our drinks after being handed two lists. The Wine bottle list and the Cocktail and wine by the glass list. The prices were pretty average for Manhattan, with a few dollars more than what you would pay for had we gone Uptown or Midtown. The wine choices for the glass were not many, although for the bottle was extensive it was very pricey. The red wine I ordered was not worth the $15. I've had better, but the view and company didn't make it a big deal. We only came here for drinks and the great view, so when done we went off to our next destination.
The Standard has only two things really going for it. It's awesome view and the ladies room. Otherwise, the feel was more of a look of upscale and classy. My friend asked me if he was to bring a date here would she like it. I told him, yes. She would be impressed by it. I felt it was nice, but it lacked a certain air and quality that would come naturally to a hotel that was upscale and classy. For those who look at just the top layer, they would be very impressed and feel as if they are keeping up with the celebrities, but for those that enjoy the high-life and tastefulness of places like these, would be disappointed. Overall, I give The Standard Lounge area a 3 out of 5 stars..
SPICE MARKET
After The Standard we walked about a block or so to a restaurant called Spice Market. This was a casual dining restaurant with upstairs and downstairs seating as well as an option to dine outside. When you walk in the colors of stained wood and deep coral reddish colored drapes. The staff were welcoming and the waiters/waitresses were attentive. I told my friend that it had the feel of a Buddhist temple. The dress of the waiters/waitresses were of a deep coral orange dresses or comfortable cotton Mediterranean styled shirts with drawstring pants. The simplicity and relaxed representation was welcoming. The wooden beams and architectural design on the inside was nothing you would expect while walking by from outside.
The restaurant is Asian inspired. Thai, Chinese, Indian, Japanese, etc. The dishes are fresh! This is one thing I do love in a restaurant. The fish was great quality and thick serving size. The dishes are served family style, so you are encouraged to share your meal and given enough of the serving to do so. We had their take on a Japanese sashimi style dish, Tuna and avocado. They used Salmon tartar on top of fresh chopped avocados and served it on a ginger dressing that was heavenly. It was amazing! For my appetizer I ordered a lobster roll with a tangy sweet yet spicy dressing wrapped in rice paper. It wasn't as divine as the salmon tartar, but it was refreshing. Ray ordered a chicken dish and I ordered a Red Snapper with coconut jasmine rice wrapped in banana leaf on the side. It was sweet, but went very well with the garlic and cilantro that garnished the fish. Very light, yet satisfying meal. For drinks they didn't have the regular fare of most restaurant. They had homemade house soda's. I had Jasmine and lime soda, which was very tasty. Ray had a Sangria that had fresh fruits, including pineapple, oranges, and blackberries. It was very good so we ordered a pitcher. The pitcher was on the pricey side but it gave us about three drinks a piece.
Overall, I would definitely visit Spice Market again just to eat the Salmon and avocado tartar with a glass of their Sangria, also to look at the diversity of a staff. My only dislike of the place was the lighting. It was too dark for me, especially with the dark color of the wood, which adds to the darkening atmosphere. Although the paper lanterns casted a nice glow, I still would like to see what I'm eating. 4 out of 5 stars.
Compared to The Standard, which represents "high-class", Spice Market was the better pick of the evening, even if the view at The Standard was breathtaking.
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