A Supper Set at Smoke

Smoke opened in 1999 on Broadway near 106th Street, a stretch the city also signs as Duke Ellington Boulevard, and it has become the Upper West Side's serious jazz room. The bookings run in week-long residencies by established players, so you can catch a band on its fourth night together, tight and relaxed. The club runs its own label, Smoke Sessions Records, and many of its albums are recorded live in this room, which tells you how much the musicians trust the sound.

Book on the club's website; most nights have two sets, with a third late set on weekends. Dinner is part of the format, and the kitchen is better than a jazz club needs to be, but you can also come just for the music at the bar. Uptown audiences skew local and attentive. Take the 1 train to 103rd Street, and leave time for a walk along Riverside Park afterward.