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Vela goes for a South American vibe, and just about gets there. It's a sleek den with bamboo, hanging lanterns, a colorful waterfall, and sexy bartenders. Ours, a cross between Lenny Kravitz and Milli Vanilli (yes, both Milli and Vanilli), practically purred when he took our order. Easy on the eyes, the house cocktails made from Cachaça, a Brazilian rum, can be a bit too sugary for the stomach. Opt instead for a basic vodka tonic—you'll be thankful come morning. Hanging sheets of shimmering steel and large bamboo pillars separate the one long bar from the dining area, where hydraulic tables rise for diners and lower for late-night revelers. A hangout for mini-skirted, toned twentysomethings, Vela, which means "candle" in Portuguese, has the most flattering lighting the not-so-toned set could ask for. Chinese lanterns emit pink-hued rays, and suddenly, everyone looks like a Brazilian bombshell. — Emma Rosenblum