New York has plenty to brag about—Naples-level pizza reverence, pastries worthy of Paris and a sushi scene unrivaled outside of Tokyo. But a proper Down Under scene has been lacking, a void that Tim Harris and Matilda Boland are working to fill with a two-story ode to their native soil. A staircase up from their modern Australian bistro, Burke & Wills, hides this gold-brocaded, cricket-inspired cocktail parlor, a polished upgrade from the shrimp-on-the-barbie kitsch that’s oft plagued past Aussie efforts.
DRINK THIS: A downtown-worthy tipple. In a neighborhood short on cocktail culture, Summit Bar founder Greg Seider offers pricey but potent quaffs ($18) inspired by commonwealth cricket hubs like India and South Africa. The I’ll Have Another jolts a dark-and-stormy base of sweet rum and shaved ginger with the spice-heavy bite of garam masala–infused agave, while the kafir lime’s Malay sweetness tempers a smoky spritz of campfire essence in the vodka-based Bonfire of the Calamities.
GOOD FOR: A genteel proxy for a bro-baiting sports lounge. While the downstairs eatery speaks to new-age Australia, the mirrors-and-mahogany cocktail den has old-world leanings. The space is modeled after Melbourne’s posh, turn-of-the-20th-century cricket clubs: Sepia team portraits stud the baroque papered walls, bat-and-ball regalia pepper bookshelves lined with dusty Dickens tomes, and—refreshingly—there’s not one blaring flatscreen in sight.
THE CLINCHER: The clubhouses of yore were upper-crust, members-only affairs—the stately bar tips a baggy green to tradition with its private liquor-locker program. Regulars can have go-to bottles held in personal lockers styled after antique trophy cases, a perk of a $500 annual membership (along with member outings and private events). You may not know a googly from a gazunder, but at least you can drink like you do.