Nightlife

En Fuego

The Best in Flammable Consumption

Look outside. Snow. Ice. Wind. Despair. You need a spark. Better yet, a full-on flame. So we put our UD Labs Team® on the case, seeking out the most incendiary menu items in town. Without further ado, then, our roster of licensed arsonists and their fiery offerings. Into the blaze...

Kill-Devil at Pegu Club

Kill-Devil at Pegu Club

The Heat: Your vest-adorned barkeep will strike a match and carefully light a flame on the kiwi slice that precariously floats atop your dangerous mix of rum, Chartreuse, demerara syrup and bitters. It's not going to keep you warm, but fear not for your intrepid kiwi...
The Heat Index: Low

Pegu Club, 77 W Houston St (near W Broadway), 212-473-7348

Steak Diane at the 21 Club

Steak Diane at the 21 Club

The Heat: A waiter will appear at your table. He will present a choice cut of beef. He will gently introduce said beef into a pan with Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, white wine and heavy cream. Then he will ignite the whole thing. With cognac. Discreetly.
The Heat Index: Medium

21 Club, 21 W 52nd St (near Fifth Ave), 212-582-1400 or 212-582-7200

Bananes Flambées at Les Halles

Bananes Flambées at Les Halles

The Heat: You'll watch as a fire-wielding server wheels a dessert station to your table and spoons a simmering mixture of melted butter, sugar and black rum over a sliced banana. Then, another dose of rum, a tip of the pan and a burst of flame. This is how the French deal with unruly bananas.
The Heat Index: Medium

Les Halles, 15 John St (near Broadway), 212-285-8585

Scorpion Bowl at the Rusty Knot

Scorpion Bowl at the Rusty Knot

The Heat: Out of caution, the Rusty Knot left this flaming painted ceramic bowl of liquor off the menu. They'll coat the bowl with liquor and then light it on fire, before pouring on the slushy drink of your choice (mojito, Singapore Sling, piña colada) to extinguish all but the middle part of the flame. Which is kept lit as a tribute to all fire-based foodstuffs around the world.
The Heat Index: High

The Rusty Knot, 425 West St (near 11th), 212-645-5668

Rack of Lamb on Fire at Acappella

Rack of Lamb on Fire at Acappella

The Heat: A full rack of Colorado lamb, sliced tableside, then ceremoniously teased out with cognac flames before being mercifully doused with a port wine sauce.
The Heat Index: High

Acappella, 1 Hudson St (at Chambers), 212-240-0163

Absinthe on Fire at Apotheke

Absinthe on Fire at Apotheke

The Heat: Imported herbs from the South of France, soaked in house-pressed sugar cane juice, fermented with Artemisia absinthia essence, all ignited on the surface of the bar, before your eyes in a feat of blue-flamed showmanship.
The Heat Index: Face-Melting

Apotheke, 9 Doyers St (near Pell), 212-406-0400

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