Morgans Hotel Group announces the opening of Reserve at Morgans

Specializing in brown liquors, aged and rare, Reserve will feature 120 varieties of Scotch, Whiskey and Bourbon, an inventive list of handcrafted cocktails. The seductive lounge, replete with lush banquettes and sofas in a palette of cool blues and warm grays, creates an intimate salon feeling within the grand bi-level space.

Reserve’s comprehensive beverage program will feature 120 labels of American, Canadian, Irish, and Japanese Whiskeys, Single Malt and Blended Scotches, and an extensive selection of traditional Mashbill Bourbons. Paying tribute to the world’s first cocktail, Reserve will offer 216 varieties of the classic Old Fashioned, using an array of perfectly balanced bourbon, bitters, and sweeteners. The cocktail program, helmed by acclaimed mixologist Josh Bradenburg of SkyBar in Los Angeles and Forty Four in New York, is a blend of the old and new, serving up expertly crafted classics and irresistible original creations, including: Leon and Eddie made with Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon, Spiced Syrup, Ginger Chocolate Bitters, Lemon; The American made with Black Dirt Applejack, Bacardi 8, Carpano Antica, Aperol, Benedictine, Whiskey & Apple Bitters and The Golden Swan made with Beefeater gin, Yellow Chartreuse, Benedictine and Peychauds Bitters. Reserve will also feature a Old-Fashioned Dice Game where if a guest is unable to decide which cocktail to order, they can roll three different colored die that will dictate the spirit, sweetener and bitters for you depending on what number each color lands on.

Inspired by the seductive lounges of New York's heyday, the décor at Reserve is light, open and provocative. Designed by renowned modernist S. Russell Groves in collaboration with Morgans Hotel Group’s in-house design team, Reserve incorporates rich furnishings in cool, neutral tones with carefully calibrated lighting elements and gleaming finishes, to strike a flawless balance of glamour, ease and comfort. Its entrance, accessed through a private door on the main façade, is characterized by a sense of grand procession and drama. An intimate vestibule opens to an expansive eighteen-foot gallery of reflective surfaces; full height glass walls of wire mesh and an illusive, floating brass “ceiling” of sparkling pendant lights cast an inviting glow. A textural screen of burnished metal marks arrival to the main space, which features lush banquettes, a custom oversized ombre area rug, a long metallic communal table and shimmering sunburst chandeliers. The focal point, a bronze metal and glass bar, is offset by an oversized backlit crenellated wall sculpture that creates a prismatic interplay of shadow and sheen. A striking glass and antique bronze staircase leads to the more intimate mezzanine level, where the palette deepens with the addition of darker blues, rich purples and decorative sconces that emit a soft light.

Reserve, located at 237 Madison Avenue, opens May 2014.