Take a look around Porchlight, the first and only bar from New York's reigning champ of hospitality, Danny Meyer and partner Mark Maynard-Parisi. It's a not-too-fancy, Southern-leaning cocktail lounge way out on 11th Avenue in West Chelsea, in the 28th Street corner of the enormous Waterfront New York Building, which dates back to 1891, and also houses the events arm of Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group. Inside there are concrete floors and a lot of raw wood, including some old beams salvaged from the basement, which was flooded by Hurricane Sandy. There's a game room in back, and an actual porch in one corner, furnished with rocking chairs and couches. This is where you'll find Danny Meyer in his old age, sitting back, chewing beef jerky, watching the world go by.
The food and cocktail menus have been online for a little while now, but to recap: the bar is helmed by Nicholas Bennett, of Booker & Dax, and the cocktails (created by Michael Shain) include versions of Southern classics. There's a sazerac made with cognac, a whiskey and cola made with housemade cola syrup, and a mezcal drink that unabashedly makes use of blue curacao. Blue Smoke chef Jean-Paul Bourgeois is in charge of the food menu, which includes smoked beef jerky, a "jar of pickles," shrimp with shrimp chips, and a bison burger.
