Whiskey Tavern

Never mind karaoke or umbrella cocktails: this Chinatown outpost, from the folks who brought you the East Village’s Whiskey Town, delivers the basics with flair. Predictably, you get a whiskey list with seven kinds of rye and more than a handful of bourbons. Surprisingly, the drinks top out at $18 (some are under $10). And the classy touches keep coming. There’s a kitchen with extra-crisp fries and burgers and chicken sandwiches on club rolls, a straightforward rear garden, and — in the niftiest touch — communal wood tables with bench seats that flip up to provide space for coats and handbags. Broad-shouldered guys with crew cuts crowd the bar after work, but those who head to the rear can comfortably study that whiskey list in relative peace. Settling in across the street from the city jail might feel remote from the catwalks of nearby Soho, but that’s part of the charm: At a place like Whiskey Tavern, you really don’t care if anyone ever finds you.