"The East Pole is a consistently crowded restaurant on the Upper East Side that works for everything from date nights to fun group dinners, but the bar area up front is also useful when you’re just looking for drinks. They serve really good cocktails, as well as some good wines by the glass and beers on tap. You wouldn’t spend the whole night here, but it’s a solid option for after-work drinks or low-commitment dates." - Bryan Kim, Matt Tervooren, Neha Talreja