Bill’s
John DeLucie (Crown, The Lion) has taken over the iconic NYC bar/restaurant Bill’s Gay Nineties, which closed earlier this year. He plans to restore this classic American grill with a raw bar to its glory days. We hope so! Our favorite thing about the old Bill’s was the piano singer in the downstairs bar. He would play ANYTHING you requested! Opening Mid-September.
Bill’s, 57 East 54th Street (between Park and Madison avenues); phone TBA.

Exchange Alley
Any restaurant where the chef equates his cuisine to music is a place we want to try. At this super-chic new neighborhood resto and bar (with some New Orleans flair), chef, co-owner and musician Paul Gerard refers to his chow as “three-cord” cuisine: simple, locally sourced, and rockin’. New Orleans-inspired dishes like Jambalaya Balls with gravy or Spiced Halibut with artichokes and herbed yogurt are seasoned with fresh herbs and vegetables that are grown in the backyard garden. You can also sidle up to the front bar with leather barstools and knock back a funky cocktail like a BBBQ (beer, lime, BBQ bitters, smoked salt).
Exchange Alley, 424 East 9th Street (between 1st avenue and avenue A); 212-228-8525.


Photo: Courtesy of Bill's