Manhatta

New York City

Sky-scraping bar with lofty ambitions

After a two-year closure, lauded restaurateur Danny Meyer’s Manhatta reopened with a bang in early 2022 on the 60th floor of a skyscraper on New York’s Liberty Street. Where the venue’s previous incarnation held focus on the food and restaurant, its latest iteration gives greater prominence to the bar programme and the far-reaching talents of its head bartender, Cameron Winkelman.

Such has been the success of the fresh-faced cocktail list, which sports truly original serves and a philosophy to keep the drinks keenly priced (under $20), Manhatta is named the Campari One To Watch for North America’s 50 Best Bars 2023. This award is given to the bar that the 50 Best team believes has the most potential to break into the list in future years.

Manhatta specialises in cocktails that work with flavours more traditionally associated with food. Take Mistakes Were Made, for instance, which applies one of Winkelman’s favourite ingredients, fig leaf, and infuses it with sparkling wine before blending it with cucumber, grapefruit and plum liqueur. Or the Gourd and Tailor, which mixes tequila with pumpkin, sweet potato, papaya and pineapple soda. Both pick up notes of umami that work perfectly with the respective alcohol content.

Many argue that the bar’s lofty perch afford the best views of Manhattan of any in New York. Its 100 covers make good use of floor-to-ceiling windows, where almost every position has a slice of the view. Indeed, since opening, there has rarely been a night where all seats have not been occupied, often by international bartenders who have either visited the bar on recommendations, or take part in Manhatta’s guest shift programme, which regularly welcomes bar representatives from across the globe.

Winkelman’s pedigree is without question. He arrived at Manhatta after stints in New York with former World’s Best Bar, Dante, at the globally lauded Mace and highly regarded The Polynesian. In winning the Campari One To Watch Award, it looks likely that Winkelman will take Manhatta to enjoy the successes of his alma mater.

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