While the drinks, service, and surroundings couldn't be more beautiful, it is the reassuring presence of singer-pianist Kathleen Landis that always brings me back to thIs 5th Avenue establishment. Though many would argue that New York's sophisticated nightlife is a thing of the past, to spend an evening at the Cafe Pierre, and watch Landis at work is to experience the epitome of urban elegance. The atmosphere she helps conjure really is like something out of the 30s, and in addition to playing standards by Gershwin, Porter and the like, she's always gracious and willing to take requests from bar patrons. For my money, no trip to New York is complete without a post-theatre cocktail at the Cafe, and her rendition of ""Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered."" Like the late great Bobby Short, Kathleen Landis is a true East Side institution.
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