• The Rum House

  228 W. 47th St., nr. Broadway 646-490-6924

  When the Edison Hotel’s sooty piano bar went dark in September, its crestfallen fans feared that the Times Square relic would, like so many neighborhood joints before it, transform into another antiseptic chain restaurant. In an unlikely about-face, the crew behind Ward III arrived to resuscitate the space in January. Instead of gutting and refurbishing the room, the team opted for largely superficial and, frankly, beneficial changes, including replacing the grotty green carpet with intricate tilework, restoring the copper bar, and covering banquettes in red leather. And just like old times, you can get liquor on the rocks and listen to chanteuses and lounge-poppers tickle the ivories.

  See Also: A Look Inside the Rum House

From the 2011 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine