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Low-level lounges featuring pricey fusion cocktails are now a dime a dozen in Nolita, but Shebeen's inventive cucumber martinis and lychee champagne cocktails are spot-on. The South African speakeasy-meets-exposed-brick-and-bulb industrial decor is pleasing enough, and you can lean back on the plush length-of-the-bar bench and listen to DJs spin eclectically mixed hip-hop and downtempo beats Tuesday-through-Saturday nights. There, you can peer through the raw wood beams obstructing a clear view of the bar's mixed crowd. Also, be sure and take a trip to the semi-secret airplane-hanger-like ventilated backroom smoking lounge, and flout Bloomberg's quality-of-life program. — Chris Fichera

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Best of New York Awards

• Best Bar to Smoke In (2007)