“So, your job is to take beautiful women around to New York bars?†a gentleman seated next to me at our last stop, Stone Rose Lounge, asked Ori Mor, owner of Take Me Out tours.
Fairly enough, the guy has good reason to be envious. Mor has a pretty good gig going, considering a majority of his clientele are female. Besides myself, there were four other women on the Friday night Mixology Tour, two from North Carolina, two from Tokyo and one guy who also happened to be from Tokyo as well. Between mixing drinks in the limo, constantly obliging guests by snapping photos and trying to corral everyone to stay on schedule, though, Mor has his work cut out from him.
Take Me Out offers nightly limo tours that transport guests in luxury around Manhattan from one swanky watering hole to the next. The tours last three hours and have three stops with a drink en route between each of them. (Of the cocktails served in the limo, the Old Russian, made of vodka, lime juice, cane syrup and mint, was by far the tastiest.) There’s no waiting in line (which is key in the city’s current polar conditions) and tables are usually reserved for the whole party. Currently Take Me Out is the top-ranked Nightlife attraction in New York City on TripAdvisor.
Not long after we got in the limo, one of the guests (who was clearly ready for a fun night out) was already trying to persuade the driver into extending the tour past midnight. Everyone in the limo was friendly, and Mor was a delightful host (and cute to boot). “People always become friends. If you’re a single traveler, a lot of people don’t have anyone to hang out with,†Mor said, “That’s mainly why I started this.â€
Our first stop was Bathtub Gin in Chelsea, a dark, sexy speakeasy with handsome bartenders, lovely servers and a respectable cocktail list. The Skylark in the Garment District was the second stop on our tour (and is possibly the scene where one of the North Carolina ladies was caught stealing coasters). It was still early when we reached the Skylark, so the place wasn’t very lively, but the views are undeniably brag-worthy. Our final destination was Stone Rose Lounge inside the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle. This place has a DJ and a decent pick up scene, which made for a good spot to end the night.
Tours are $150, which doesn’t include the drinks at each stop. It’s a great way to enjoy the city’s nightlife and meet some new people, plus it takes all the guesswork and planning off your hands, giving you more time to focus on enjoying the evening.
For more info, go to:Â www.takemeoutnyc.com
