The backdrop is the view of NYC that exists in everyone's imagination. Photo / Facebook
The Fleur Room on the Rooftop of the Moxy 105 W. 28th St., Manhattan
The view: Named after the Flower District in Chelsea, this is New York's highest rooftop bar. Take the lift up 35 floors, and if your jaw doesn't fall on the floor at the view, I'll shout
you a Manhattan (around $18) and bowl of warm olives ($4). With 360-degree views of New York's skyline, sweeping from Midtown, across to Downtown and the Hudson River, it's breathtaking. The fit-out is lush with a touch of European grandeur. Fleur doesn't need a disco ball, with the Empire State building right there. But what the hell. They have one anyway - a giant 80s disco ball that came from LA's Vertigo club.
The vibe: There's a bunch of people lined up outside the lift and it's not even 6.30pm. But after about five minutes, we're hurtling towards the heavens. The Fleur Room is actually two rooms. One, a casual classic bar; the other features velvety banquette seats and DJ decks. Later on, those seats make way for a dance floor. Angelo Bianchi, who created this hip and much-hyped hangout where A-listers are supposed to flock, says the food is "mind-blowingly good". I can speak only for the tamari almonds and warm olives, which are very nice. And the "Black Truffle Cheese, feat. Young Pecorino" ($14) which sounds like a great hip-hop collaboration.
The expectation: Lofty. We come to Fleur - as we do to every experience in the Big Apple, with a sense of childish excitement and with open minds.
