(Photo: Ruvan Wijesooriya)

Russian Vodka Room
265 W. 52nd St., nr. Broadway; 212-307-5835
For the last decade and a half, this well-carpeted, Russian-owned vodka lounge loaded with plush chairs and polished black marble has taken its awning’s motto, attitude adjustment hour, to heart. On weekdays until 7 p.m., tie-loosened office workers, Russian expats, and pretheater tipplers pack the horseshoe-shaped bar for discounted Baltika beer and $3.50 double shots of house-infused vodka—from tart cranberry to stinky garlic-dill—that are as bracing and cool as the steely-eyed bartenders.