PDT (Please Don't Tell)

PDT opened in 2007 behind the most famous door-that-isn't-a-door in New York: you enter through a vintage phone booth inside Crif Dogs on St. Marks Place, pick up the receiver, and wait to be let into a small, dim room of banquettes and taxidermy. The speakeasy bit could have been a gimmick; instead, founder Jim Meehan's bar became one of the most awarded cocktail rooms of its generation, and under longtime owner Jeff Bell it still is.

The kitchen link to Crif Dogs survives — hot dogs, some dressed up by famous chefs, served beside serious drinks — and the contrast is the house's whole personality. Book ahead; the booth only works if there is a seat waiting on the other side.