"Your mom may have taught you to avoid long, dark alleyways, but scout’s honor, this one leads somewhere safe (though, maybe less so for your liver). Just off Midtown Village’s bustling 13th Street, Graffiti Bar sits around back from Sampan, the much-lauded Asian restaurant from restaurateur Michael Schulson. (Bonus: the restaurant, with its kung pao chicken wings and edamame dumplings, also services the bar). Opening onto a 30-seat open-air patio, there's also a three-story-high mural commissioned by local artist Ali M Williams serving as a backdrop; the bartop and two rectangular communal tables are likewise decorated with graffiti. Drink choices consist largely of Asian-inspired revamps of the classics, like the Ming Mule (vodka, lychee, mint, and ginger) and the Hashi Old Fashioned (Applejack rum, bourbon, and smoked caramel), though we're also big fans of the sharing-sized (read: large) Scorpion Bowls with a tequila, vodka, or whiskey base." - Katie James Watkinson
