The vibe: Upstairs, the Ragtrader feels like it was conceived as a shooting location for Mad Men’s 2020s-set spiritual sequel. Downstairs, Bo Peep is red velvety, dusky, jazzy.
The food: Ragtrader’s food is a sort of gastropub/brasserie; pizzas, steak, dinner salads, etc. Bo Peep’s menu is shorter–mostly finger food (sliders, fried calamari, wings, etc.) and a few small plates in addition to pizza.
The drink: Ragtrader has a varied selection of tap beers, bottles and cans, wines by bottle or glass, and cocktails that are less inventive than iterative but still tasty and skillfully crafted. The Made in Midtown reminds us of a Sidecar with whiskey, citrus, and blackberry–sweet/tart sipper. Bo Peep’s beer and wine selection is smaller than upstairs, but the cocktail program is more imaginative and whimsical. The Sleepy Hollow is cinnamon mezcal, pumpkin, and ginger beer–slightly unhinged, fun, and super tasty; sort of like drinking a smokey, boozy jack-o-lantern.
Time Out tip: You can more or less walk into Ragtrader whenever and find a seat–it’s huge. That is a double edges sword though as the din is noticeable. Downstairs almost certainly requires a reservation for one of the two nightly seatings: 5:30pm or 8pm.