5/5 Douglas K. 4 months ago on Google • 9 reviews
Smoke
is
the
real
deal.
There
is
only
one
other
jazz
club
(with
no
restaurant)
in
NYC
that
offers
such
a
consistently
stellar
lineup
of
superb
jazz
musicians.
Among
those
we
have
enjoyed
here,
to
give
you
a
sense
of
my
and
my
wife’s
jazz
preferences:
Brad
Mehldau,
George
Cables,
Joe
Farnsworth,
Emmet
Cohen,
Bill
Charlap,
Billy
Hart,
Cyrus
Chestnut,
George
Coleman,
Vincent
Herring,
Al
Foster
.
.
.
the
list
goes
on.
On
top
of
the
music,
the
kitchen
-
run
by
Paul
Stache’s
wife
and
co-owner
Molly
Sparrow
Johnson
-
produces
consistently
excellent
dinners
that
are
readily
a
solid
notch
above
other
clubs
that
operate
a
restaurant.
Paul
himself
is
usually
in
the
club,
making
personally
sure
everything
is
running
smoothly
and
chatting
with
guests
and
musicians.
Laurie,
the
club’s
manager,
is
always
welcoming
and
making
sure
the
uniformly
attentive
and
friendly
staff
is
in
top
form.
Aside
from
all
that
-
if
you
can’t
get
a
ticket
(it
does
occasionally
happen),
Smoke
offers
a
live
streaming
option
(and
excellent
CD
recording).
I
am
a
bit
of
an
audiophile
and
can
assure
you
the
sound
quality
of
Smoke’s
on-line
streaming
service
is
the
best
-
I’ve
listened
to
them
all
-
as
is
the
camera
work.
Unless
you’re
into
fusion,
funk
or
other
jazz
offshoots
(nothing
wrong
with
that,
just
not
my
cup
of
tea)
and
wish
to
hear
great
jazz
musicians
preceded
by
an
excellent
dinner
in
a
wonderful
atmosphere,
this
is
THE
club
to
patronize.
Douglas
(and
Linda)
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