So & So's: A Secret Singing Spot

It's Friday the 13th, and I'm sitting in a dimly lit room next to a good friend, where Hannah Corneau sings a cover of Paramore's "The Only Exception." She hits the high note at the bridge; I wipe some moisture off my cheek and shake my head at the pristine quality of her voice. I pick up my dirty gin martini and take a sip, thinking back to the conversation I'd just had with my bestie at the table as we chomped on spicy-ramen K-pop fries, outlining the chaos that had consumed the previous week. As Corneau sings "Tiny Dancer," my mind goes to a tweet I'd favorited recently: "i looovvveeee having a shitty day in nyc like okaaaayyyy girls hbo." I admit, though, that being at the foot of the stage as a Broadway star submerges a pop-punk hit in her soulful vocals as I chomp on mini-burgers at a speakeasy in Hell's Kitchen makes was hard to want to be anywhere else.

So & So's officially opened during New York Fashion Week, with Noah Cyrus and Darren Criss taking on singing duties in the teeny, red-lit room. The piano bar and supper club tucked away in the Romer Hotel merge that timeless, retro New York City vibe we all live for with a modern, forward-thinking aesthetic. The team behind the new room hopes to create what they describe as "the ambiance of stumbling into a local legend's living room," and they pull it off with a line-up of jazz trio, drag performers, local acts, and well-known stars planning to grace its stage.

If you, like me, would like to get New York City-style sentimental without the sounds of "untz untz" distracting you from thoughts and close enough to the stage that the singer may (unfortunately) see you crying, then here's what you're gonna do. You'll go to the Romer Hotel Hell's Kitchen (a gorgeous boutique spot with a gallery, cafe and rooms that look like they were lifted from a Wes Anderson film). Then you'll find your way to the actual door to the venue, which is on 52nd Street, hidden around the side of the hotel and covered discreetly from the bustling streets of 8th Ave. nearby. Once you get in, you'll have a martini (you deserve it!) and maybe an additional prosecco (you're already here...) and share some small plates (may I suggest the tomato soup and grilled cheese "fondue") with a friend, or lover (or enemy, choose your adventure) while enjoying live music in a way that only feels possible in the greatest city on earth.

Check out the menu, strong drinks, and schedule of nightly music here. You'll thank me later!

Photography: Jason Lowrie