The Ace Hotel is rich pickings for a V-Day cocktail-lover. Its lobby bar is a prime place for watching the world go by. If your heartthrob is a happy geek, then this is a spot worth noting with books and library seating, and a cocktail menu with some serious brains behind it.

Out-of-town chefs and bartenders tend to make almost ritual visits to The Breslin, and you’d do well to follow their lead. The food is meat-focused, and the drinks are fit to match the muscle. This is a kitchen-centric place, and that is to a drinker’s advantage. Everything that can be made in-house, is: syrups, juices and reductions. The winter negroni, made with Lapsang Souchong infused Beefeater, is smoky enough to take the edge off the winter. It isn’t the same as being in a mountaintop lodge, but it’s a rich second.

The Ace takes a fishy turn with The John Dory. Cocktails are by Sasha Petraske, the man behind Milk & Honey and the Little Branch family. The cocktail menu is broken down by stirred/aperitif, shaken, long, sparkling and (Thank you, Mr. Petraske.) hot. There’s plenty of beer and wine, too. Taking an early break for romance? The John Dory’s “afternoon drinks” menu includes a spicy oyster shooter. You know what they say about oysters . . .

4/5

Photo via The Breslin