Milk & Honey (CLOSED)

In 2000, Sasha Petraske recast the mold for the Gotham cocktail bar, igniting a worldwide fascination of pre-Prohibition tipples, with Milk and Honey—the reservations-only temple of mixology guarded by a secret phone number. Thirteen years and countless imitations later—the secret long out—the visionary Petraske shocked the booze cognoscenti with his recent Flatiron move of the legendary bar: Ditching the unlisted number, the relocated, expanded and now democratic drinkery will welcome walk-ins for the very first time. There are more changes afoot. In the coming weeks, look for bistro dishes (another new addition) such as club sandwiches, as well as an expanding library of whiskeys and rums and a near-comprehensive selection of aperitivi. But some habits die hard: Patrons still talk through their drink orders with barkeeps (there are no cocktail menus). Ask for one of the contemporary classics created at the original location, like the ginger-and-Scotch Penicillin or the Gold Rush, a honey-sweetened bourbon quaff. Sixty-two seats—set within Art Deco digs (pendant lamps, a Mondaine clock)—welcome all comers, but expect stiff competition for one of the six stools at the African-wood bar. As for Milk and Honey’s old, shuttered LES space, it will find new life when longtime bartenders Michael McIlroy and Sam Ross—whom Petraske handed the keys—reopen it as Attaboy.