A very well read coworker (I'll refer to her as Miss D) who is always in the know with the NYC scene suggested a great bar for a first date called Milk & Honey down in the LES (aka Lower East Side). Though it's a bar, you actually need reservations which is a bit odd, nonethelsss Miss D assures me it's a true gem down in the LES. It's a bit difficult to find because it's externally discrete, but once inside it's the beginning of a chromatic parade of drinks -- tall drinks and fat ones with fresh fruit puree. Miss D said it's a great first date place because the music isn't too loud and you can actually have a conversation without yelling "WHAT DO YOU DO?!"

A Washington Post review stated that it's the "bar with the best vibe in New York City" and more importantly for dates, "furniture that encouraged canoodling in another era."