Close Up

"If you’re a serious live music fan, or testing out if your summer fling might be in it for the long haul, you should know about Close Up on the Lower East Side. There’s a small bar up front where you can wait for the live music to start, but a night here is all about the performance room. The bar is well-named—the tiny back room is small enough to make even the biggest name (and they do get some serious acts on the weekends) feel as private as a studio session with a personal bartender. This does mean it’s the kind of jazz bar where you can’t really talk while the performance is going on, so it’s best used after you’ve already gotten dinner at one of our favorite spots in the neighborhood." - bryan kim, will hartman, willa moore, neha talreja, molly fitzpatrick, sonal shah

"Close Up might be the most appropriately named bar or restaurant in NYC, because you’ll never be more than 15 feet away from the musicians. This relatively new spot on the Lower East Side serves creative cocktails in an intimate concert space, and draws some pretty big names on the weekends. If you’re a jazz aficionado, you’ll love Close Up for the music. If not, it's still a great place to take a date—as long as you respect the unwritten no-talking-while-music-is-playing policy." - neha talreja, bryan kim, hannah albertine, matt tervooren, will hartman

New jazz bar LES