R17

SHE SELLS COCKTAILS AT SOUTH STREET SEAPORT.

If you grew up in this city, or have just been here for more than two decades your knee jerk thoughts about South Street Seaport have to start with Abercrombie & Fitch on cobblestone streets, Guess, a couple more 90s gems, a street and then a mall you wouldn’t expect to have in the city, you know, the kind with Victoria’s Secret, a token poster shop, a food court laden with junk food (though I did discover chocolate covered gummy bears there which sounded nasty but I fell in love at first bite—FYI, Fairway makes them awesomely if I’ve piqued your curiosity). Any way, you get the gist, this was no Brookfield Place, Hudson Yards, or Columbus Circle kind of upscale mall. Fast forward to present day and they have completely revamped. Like, knocked the building down and started from scratch (right move.)

Now, I haven’t explored it fully. I’ve been to a conference inside so I know there’s good space but here’s the icing on the cake, or in this case, spoiler alert, the roof on the building. There’s a rooftop bar! A stunning upscale with beautiful water views bar. Allow me to formally (or as formally as reading this on your phone or comp can be) introduce you to R17. 

With both indoor and outdoor seating, kick back in its Hampton’s chic catalog decor. The refined summer vibes are so on point. You’d feel right in a day dress, afterwork suit, or even being cool and trendy—really, you can’t go wrong. For a cocktail driven bar (or even a food driven one, at that), the food at R17 is awesome. From the Poached Egg with beans, quinoa and brown butter sabayon to the upscale Chicken R17 English Muffins made with organic thigh meat, sweet onion slaw and pickles, the bites rock (see their sips here)! Love that they went with this rich elevated vibe. It’s not just the perfect revamp of the South Street Seaport area, it’s an actual rooftop bar destination you should absolutely make the trip specifically for.