Skip to Content

lounge

The Empire State Building's Chic New Bar / Lounge

Filed under: Decor, Spirits


Last week my colleague Deirdre Woollard reported on the Empire State Building's swanky new lobby, part of a $550 million building-wide renovation project. Now comes word that the New York architectural icon is also getting a great new cocktail lounge from nightlife entrepreneur Mark Grossich, known for elegant boîtes like the Campbell Apartment in Grand Central Station. He's turning a 3,500-sq.-ft. former post office on the skyscraper's ground floor into the Art Deco-style Empire Room, slated to open at the end of November. Design firm Goodman Charlton has cooked up an elegant scheme employing plush mohair, intricate cut velvets, macassar ebony, silver leaf, embossed leather, marble and polished stainless steel in tones of rich brandy, deep cognac, icy silver, and golden cream for the interior (rendering above), meant to evoke a more glamorous era of supper clubs and gentlemanly drinking establishments.

[via Duncan Quinn]

Camacho Cigars Take Center Stage at HBO Emmy Awards Party

Filed under: Cigars

And the Emmy Award goes to ... Camacho Cigars!

Camacho has announced that it will be the official cigar for the HBO Luxury Lounge® at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards. The lounge will be held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, From September 18 – 20, 2009. At the event, Camacho cigars will feature its top-end 10th Anniversary Robusto cigar, contributing to an already elegant affair.

"Camacho Cigars is proud to be a part of the HBO Luxury Lounge," said Dylan Austin, marketing director of Camacho Cigars. "We are excited to be aligning Camacho Cigars with HBO, the premiere name in cable television, to honor The 61st Primetime Emmy Awards."

[Photo via Camacho Cigars]

Bryant Park's New Southwest Porch

Filed under: Dining, Journeys, Services, Spirits, Wings


Southwest Airlines is celebrating its new service into and out of New York's LaGuardia Airport with the opening of the Southwest Porch, a plush al fresco lounge in Bryant Park, the stylish oasis in Midtown Manhattan. The space is furnished with porch swings, rocking chairs and Adirondack chairs and features a small bites menu in collaboration with 'wichcraft, the popular eatery founded by Tom Colicchio, owner of the Craft family of restaurants and head judge on Bravo's Top Chef. Menu highlights are inspired by the new routes from LaGuardia to key cities and feature a Southwestern Pork Sandwich and Baltimore Crab Sandwich. On tap are local beers such as a specially brewed Southwest Summer Ale from Long Island's Blue Point Brewery and a selection of summer cocktails. The Porch is now open to all New Yorkers and visitors who simply want to relax, read, converse or have a snack and a drink.

New Rocky Patel Cigar Lounge to Open in Scottsdale

Filed under: Cigars



If you live in Scottsdale, AZ, you're about to have a new place to smoke. Pat Mitchel, owner of 21 Degrees Cigar & Accessories, is expanding his store with a Rocky Patel-sponsored lounge. Smoking bans have made lounges more important than ever to the success of the cigar trade, as customers are running out of places to smoke.

The engagement of sponsors is starting to gather momentum, particularly given tough market conditions in which every brand needs to find every advantage available. Sources say that Cigar Inn, in New York, entertained offers from several manufacturers before finally giving the sponsorship opportunity to magazine Cigar Aficionado.

Mitchell's sponsor, Rocky Patel, is excited to be participating in its first lounge, saying "Scottsdale is a good location, with good clientele."

The store pulls its name from the temperature, 21 degrees Celsius (just off 70 degrees Fahrenheit) at which humidors are kept.

Narrow Exception in Works for Nebraska Cigar Bars

Filed under: Cigars



A split Legislature in Nebraska is struggling over whether to exempt cigar bars from a statewide smoking ban. The clock is ticking, as it takes effect on June 1. The measure, Legislative Bill 355, would limit smoking to half a dozen bars across the state – specifically, locations that have installed the appropriate humidors and air-handling equipment.

This is not a proposed repeal of the smoking ban. Instead, it's a small exception that would allow adults to consume a legal product ... and it would prevent several businesses from forced closure. In today's economic environment, common sense would dictate that the government doesn't need to put even more pressure on companies that are struggling to survive.

To qualify under the bill, a bar would have to show the State Liquor Control Commission that at least 15 percent of its revenue comes from the sale of tobacco. Few establishments would qualify, according to State Senator Scott Lautenbaugh. Any that tried to skew the results – e.g., by "selling cigars for $15 with a free steak dinner" – would prompt a movement to change the law.

Again, common sense suffers, as it would be tough for a "cigar bar" to stay open if it was giving away expensive meals.

[Photo by Steve Zak]

The ROO Easy Chair

Filed under: Decor


Wow, this looks like a comfortable chair -- nothing like a big luxe beanbag for relaxing in after a long day at work (that guy modeling looks totally passed out). The ROO chair is part of Woodnotes' Spring 2009 collection, and although it looks and feels like a beanbag it's filled with a material that's guaranteed to maintain its shape. There's also a smaller version, the MY chair, that's more for sitting comfortably, as opposed to lounging or laying down on the ROO. MY $1,500, ROO $1,900.

Via ForbesLife

PX, Elegant Drinks In D.C.

Filed under: Dining, Spirits


If you are wondering where to find a good drink in the Washington D.C.area, the Washbiz blog has a piece on the lounge, PX, that will make you want to sidle up to the bar. PX seats just 32 people, eight seats at the bar are for walk-ins and the rest must be reserved. Drinks are steep too, $11 to $19 for a cocktail. But what you get is the equivalent of fin dining in a glass. Bartender Todd Thrasher makes even the simple sublime, using home-made cola for your rum and Coke, quinine is shipped in weekly from a health food store in Nevada for his homemade tonic. Juices are fresh squeezed and only top shelf liquors are used. Thrasher even makes his own bitters which change seasonally. The bar is small and intimate with a speakeasy vibe featuring warm wood and twinkling chandeliers.

Elite Home Theater Seating Cuddle Couch

Filed under: Decor

One of the benefits of having your own home theater is that you don't have to follow the rules of being out at the cinema. You can talk, use your cellphone, bring in all sorts of snacks and rest your feet on the chair in front if you prefer. But for the most part you can't quite sprawl out or cozy up like you can in the living room because of the restrictions of home theater chairs. Elite Theater has solved that problem with a home theater seat called the cuddle couch. The two-seater couch has a cupholder on either side and comfortable pillows. It is available in fabric or leather and starts at $2495.

Hoverit's Limited Edition Floating Lounger

Filed under: Decor, Gadgets


Do you have a favorite comfy chair? One that you can sink into and suddenly all your stresses seem to float away? Well Hoverit, a British company, is introducing their latest in stress relieving and lounging technology: The Limited Edition Lounger. The concept is that you'll feel like you're floating on air because you will actually be floating on air...in a sense. Powerful magnets set to repel each other make the lounger feel like a big comfy hoverboard, and as an added benefit the magnets may also help with various health issues.

The chair may look cool in a futuristic and techie way, but other than the "floating" part it hardly looks cool in a comfortable way. Why are they so anti-cushion?

Not sure what this beauty costs, but I'm willing to bet it's more than your average furniture mart recliner chair.

Virgin Atlantic's Upper Class Wing

Filed under: Journeys, Wings


Many airlines have first class lounges but Virgin Atlantic has raised the bar at London's Heathrow airport with an entire Upper Class wing. The wing includes a dedicated security channel just for Virgin Atlantic customers helping to deliver what Virgin Atlantic promises will be the fastest check-in around. Their new ad campaign promises "limo to lounge" in just 10 minutes. The wing, designed by architects Foster + Partners has a hotel-like lobby to help deliver a more relaxed experience. The wing opens November 2.

Poltrona Chaise Lounge

Filed under: Decor


I've always loved the idea of chaise lounge chairs, but somehow I've managed never to have one. I'll have to fix that, and I'm thinking this Poltrona Chaise Lounge is very appealing. It has simple, classic lines, with the most attractive feature (for somebody moody like me anyway) being it's flexibility to either serve as a long inviting recliner or a straight-backed and more formal chair. Designed by Stefan Heiliger and available from Bonaldo, the Poltrano is available in either black or beige.

I know I said I wanted a chaise, but I personally think it looks the best converted to the chair!

Newson's Lockheed Lounger Will Sell For Millions

Filed under: Decor, Auctions


Cutting edge design doesn't come cheap, and with every day, month, and year that goes by it only gets more and more expensive. Case in point: Christie's will soon be auctioning off the most expensive piece ever by a living designer. It's the Marc Newson Lockheed lounge chaise, and it's expected to go for more than $2.4 million next month. That's one expensive lounge chair -- do you think they'll let bidders try it out/sit in it beforehand?

This sale is expected to blow the previous record (also a Newson piece that sold for $1 million earlier this year) out of the water by more than a little. Would you pay that much for this seat?

Argument Chair

Filed under: Decor


Next time you order up a big fight on Pay-Per-View wouldn't it be nice to keep with the theme and sit back to watch it in a chair made of boxing gloves? My first reaction to the Argument Chair was to laugh, and my second reaction was "wow, that actually looks really comfortable." It would make a great conversation piece and bring a bright shot of color to the right room.

It's made of real leather Everlast boxing gloves on nickel plated hardened steel and is hand-crafted in limited edition. It features locking casters on the rear legs and adjustable front legs for stability on uneven surfaces. $5895


Via Luxury Launches

Willow Chair

Filed under: Decor


When I first heard the name Willow Chair I pictured a softer looking design with rounded or flowing shapes, but in reality the focus is on vertical and horizontal lines. Designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh in 1903 for The Willow Tea Rooms in Glasgow, it's inspired by his interest in Japanese design. You can see the shape of a tree formed by the checkers and straight lines of the chair back, and now available from Design Icons it's made of black lacquered ash with a cushion of leather, velvet, or cotton. £1155


Via Retro to Go

The Fatboy Outdoor

Filed under: Decor


Searching for stylish outdoor furniture that's comfortable, portable, and convertible? Check out the Fatboy Outdoor. Designed by Jukka Setala it has a UV treated heavy denier polyester exterior which has been coated in PVC to make it both water and fade resistant. It's filled with millions of tiny EPS pieces which makes it great to sit on in any number of arrangements. It can be folded, propped, or rolled, which means you can sit on it, lean on it, or sleep on it comfortably. Plus it has two large straps that provide both additional support in some sitting positions and a means to make transporting easier. And of course it comes in several fun bright colors, and washes clean with just a damp cloth. $349


Join Luxist on Facebook!

Featured Galleries

Langham Yangtze Shanghai
Robb Report Limited Edition Series
M Struman Jewelry
2010 Audi S4 sedan
Chota Falls
Hunter's Oak
The Blackout Collection
Sculptz Legwear & Shapewear Makes NYC Debut
Images from First Class: Legendary Ocean Liner Voyages Around the World