Baz Luhrmann Opens New Bar Monsieur in New York

Director Baz Luhrmann is thought for his over-the-top directorial fashion — the sultry burlesque glamour of Moulin Rouge, the gauzy glittery pop of Romeo + Juliet, the wealthy Artwork Deco of The Nice Gatsby, the chaotic camp of Elvis. Now the Australian filmmaker has turned his over-the-top cinematic consideration to a brand new cocktail bar in New York. Monsieur (86 East Fourth Road, close to Second Avenue) opened within the East Village on January 21 with a gothic, medieval, and bohemian aesthetic.

In week one, the bar’s already a scene. Pop icon Madonna already gave her approval. In a carousel put up on Instagram that includes photographs the place she’s posing with Luhrmann, celeb mates, and the interiors of the bar, she wrote, “While you’re feeling down, go to Monsieur.”

Monsieur is a collaboration between Luhrmann, enterprise companion Jon Neidich (the CEO of restaurant firm Golden Age Hospitality, which oversees spots like piano bar the Nines, wine bar Le Dive, and French restaurant Le Crocodile, amongst others), and Luhrmann’s spouse, designer Catherine Martin, whose work is on show in her husband’s movies.

Emily Andrews/Monsieur

Emily Andrews/Monsieur

For the bar, Luhrmann got here up with a backstory for the titular (and fictional) Monsieur — who hosted salons with Andy Warhol and Lou Reed, per the press launch:

He was the type of fellow who appeared like he’d simply stepped out of his personal self-portrait; a fabulist, a trickster, a person who made fiction really feel extra truthful than reality, a real impresario of East Village nightlife within the Nineteen Seventies.

The medieval facet of the bar is sensible — Luhrmann has been engaged on a movie about Joan of Arc. The bar is sort of a movie set: there’s plant-filled wallpaper, glass chandeliers, draped curtains, tapestries, stained glass, walnut particulars, medieval art work, chambersticks, ornate candlestick holders, and cabinets stuffed with knick-knacks like leather-bound books, busts, and armored figures. The brand is a bespectacled monkey holding a martini and a e book (there’s a stained glass picture of it, too). The bar took over what had beforehand been longtime homosexual membership the Boiler Room.

Monsieur

The bar will whip up traditional cocktails similar to martinis. The kitchen is led by Golden Age Hospitality’s government chef Nicole Gajadhar. The pub-style meals menu has English and Australian takes, together with sausage rolls, minced meat pies, and fried stuffed olives.

Luhrmann and Martin aren’t new to hospitality, both: the couple helped design luxurious Miami resort Faena Lodge, which debuted in 2015.

Monsieur’s hours are from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Sunday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; after which from 5 p.m. to three a.m. Thursday via Sunday. Reservations will be made on-line; however there may be room for walk-ins.

Emily Andrews/Monsieur