MUSAEK: A Sophisticated Cocktail Experience in NYC

MUSAEK Introduce

In a city famous for its bustling nightlife and endless bar options, finding a spot that combines a chic atmosphere with truly innovative drinks can be a rare find. For New Yorkers in the know, MUSAEK is a hidden gem that offers just that—a sophisticated, subterranean escape from the urban grind. Located in the vibrant heart of Midtown, this cocktail bar has quickly gained a reputation for its creative approach to mixology and its impeccably designed interior. This article is your guide to understanding what makes MUSAEK a must-visit destination for anyone seeking a unique and memorable evening. We will explore its prime location, the services it provides, and the standout features that contribute to its distinctive identity. From the perspective of a local who appreciates both style and substance, MUSAEK is not just a place to get a drink; it's an experience in itself, perfect for a special occasion or a refined night out.

The bar scene in New York is all about finding a place that resonates with your personal style, and MUSAEK fills a very specific and appealing niche. It’s a place that feels both exclusive and welcoming, with an aesthetic that's clearly the result of a significant investment in design and ambiance. The attention to detail, from the decor to the carefully crafted cocktails, is what truly sets it apart. While some bars might prioritize a loud and energetic atmosphere, MUSAEK offers a more intimate and elegant setting that encourages conversation and connection. Whether you’re looking to impress a date or simply enjoy a high-quality drink in a beautiful space, MUSAEK delivers. This overview is designed to give you a genuine sense of the bar’s character, helping you decide if it's the perfect spot for your next outing in the city.

MUSAEK is situated at 6 E 32nd St Lower Level, New York, NY 10016, placing it in a highly convenient and dynamic area of Midtown. Located just on the edge of Koreatown, its location is perfect for those who are either working in the vicinity or looking for a sophisticated place to start or end their evening. Being in a lower-level space adds to its exclusive and intimate feel, creating a sense of discovery for those who venture inside. The bar is easily accessible via New York City’s extensive public transportation network, with several major subway lines and bus routes serving the area. This makes it a great meeting point for friends coming from different parts of Manhattan or even the outer boroughs. The bustling street above provides a stark contrast to the chic and refined atmosphere found below, making the transition a part of the experience. For a local, the convenience of a location like this means a great night out is always within easy reach.

MUSAEK offers a focused set of services designed to provide a premium and comfortable experience for its patrons. The primary service model revolves around on-site dining and drinking, with a strong emphasis on a seated, table-service experience.

Dine-in: This is the core service offered by MUSAEK. The establishment is set up with comfortable seating to accommodate guests who wish to relax and enjoy their drinks and food in the bar's unique atmosphere.

This bar specializes in creating a cohesive experience centered on its creative offerings and elegant setting, ensuring every element from the moment you step in is curated for maximum enjoyment.

MUSAEK is defined by several key features that make it a standout destination for cocktail and food lovers.

Impeccable Cocktail Program: The bar is known for its inventive and high-quality cocktails. The drinks are described as "amazing and smooth," with creative and surprising flavor profiles that set them apart from standard bar offerings. This focus on creative mixology is a major draw.
Sophisticated and Chic Interior: The bar's interior design is a significant highlight. The renovations have created a "very pretty bar" with a "chic" and "elegant" mood that is perfect for a date night or a special outing with a group of friends. The ambiance is intentionally designed to be a key part of the experience.
Quality Food Offerings: While the food menu may not be extensive or designed for a full, filling dinner, it is praised for being "fresh and top-notch." The focus is on small plates and delicious accompaniments that pair well with the drinks, such as fresh seafood and creative bar bites.
Excellent for Dates: Due to its intimate and sophisticated atmosphere, MUSAEK is repeatedly noted as a "good place to bring a date." The setting is conducive to conversation and provides a memorable backdrop for a romantic evening.
Restroom and Credit Card Payments: The bar provides essential amenities like restrooms and accepts credit cards, ensuring a convenient and comfortable experience for all guests.

To get in touch with MUSAEK, or to find their location, you can use the following information.

Address: 6 E 32nd St Lower Level, New York, NY 10016

Phone: (917) 952-9490

For any New Yorker seeking a truly elevated night out, MUSAEK is worth choosing for its unique combination of aesthetic appeal and high-quality offerings. The renovation and interior design have created a space that is genuinely beautiful and contributes significantly to the overall experience. This is not just a casual watering hole; it is a destination designed for a specific kind of evening—one focused on sophistication and sensory pleasure. While some may note that the food menu lacks "substantial" dinner options, this is a bar, and its offerings are designed to complement the drinks, not replace a full meal. The seafood is praised for its freshness and quality, making it a perfect pairing for the innovative cocktails. The drinks themselves, while perhaps not what some might expect from their names, are consistently described as "amazing" and "smooth," with "clean and surprising tastes" that appeal to a discerning palate. It’s the kind of place you go to for a few exceptional drinks and to savor a moment of refinement with good company. The attentive service and chic atmosphere make it an ideal spot for a date, a celebratory drink, or a relaxed evening with a small group of friends. Ultimately, MUSAEK’s value lies in its commitment to a refined experience, making it a stellar choice for anyone who values a great cocktail in a beautiful setting.

MUSAEK Details

Service options
Dine-in
Delivery
Takeout

Offerings
Alcohol
Cocktails
Food

Dining options
Seating

Amenities
Restroom

Payments
Credit cards

MUSAEK Photos

MUSAEK Location

MUSAEK

New York New York County New York East 32nd Street

6 E 32nd St Lower Level, New York, NY 10016, USA

MUSAEK Reviews

An average rating of ★4.6 from 23 user reviews.

seafoodseaweedyuzugochujangprawn crackersmusselssoy saucepearcitrusfan

★ 5★ 4★ 3★ 2★ 1

Very pretty bar, you can tell they spent a lot of money doing the renovations. Food was good, but they didn’t have anything substantial. Not sure why there is a dining menu and a bar menu. Weird things on it like soup, which we didn’t get. We wanted to have dinner there but there’s nothing filling on the menu. Drinks sound creative but the ones we had tasted not as creative as it sounds. Good place to bring a date.
July 30 · Jing Yang
Impeccable cocktail and seafood bar! The drinks are amazing and smooth. If you like clean and surprising tastes then you’ll love the drinks here. Love the concept and the food is fresh and top notch. The interior design is chic and sets the mood for a great date night or with a group of friends. Try everything on the menu!
July 05 · Michael Cho
Downstairs from Dubu House, this a dimly lit bar specializing in seafood.They appear to concentrate pretty heavily on their cocktails and they have a nice happy hour/HH selection with reasonable prices. I went with the Cantaloupe & Boricha for $12 with tequila, Korean barley tea, pandan, lime, soy milk, and yakju which was tasty. It had a nice light sweetness from the tea, a tiny bit of citrus, and a good hint of the nutty tea at the end. The drink was small but it's hard to complain about as it was only $12 as even for happy hour, this is quite cheap. Two other people from the same menu enjoyed the Korean Pear & Gochujang with tequila, Grand Marnier, bergamot, and guava. Both are normally $19 on the main menu and if it's the same size, I wouldn't recommend it as much.To start out with, someone else got the Hwe Muchim for $14 with squid, Jeju fluke, granny smith apple, perilla, sesame, gochujang vinaigrette, and jalapeno-cucumber granita. The portion was good with three oversized pieces topped with large pieces of squid and fluke which she said was pretty tender even for squid with only a bit of chew. They enjoyed it a lot and recommend it though they found it difficult to pick up and it was easier to eat partially with chopsticks at least to begin with before eating the rest.As extra, I got the Mussels from the HH menu for $13 or $14 with steamed B.I. mussel, pickled shallots, and yuzu-seaweed sauce. This came with five high quality mussels where the shells were all on salt which was an interesting but not so good idea as it made picking them up a little bit messy. The mussels were high quality and meaty with a bit of sourness and sweetness from the shallots and sauce. These were good.The rest of us outside of the person ordering the muchim started with the Jeju Fluke Hwe simply listed as the fresh chef's selection of fluke. There are two versions of this dish with one being on the HH menu for I believe $10 less or so with the waiter saying that it was a bit smaller by comparison which makes sense and we got the HH version which I think was in the mid or low $20s while the full size version was I think in the mid $30s or so. The hwe was presented very nicely in a few different styles with two being in a ssam topped with a some spicy crunchy vegetable (I am pretty positive it was finely chopped radish kimchi,) two being wrapped around some crunchy leafy micro greens, and three pieces each of two types of slices with one being slightly thicker with there being 10 pieces overall. The dish also came with two dips including some soy sauce with some peppers in it as well as a perilla oil sauce with some yuzu kosho which was a fun spin. As a texture person, my favorite version by a little bit was the mini ssam as the crunch went nicely with the bit of spice along with the micro green variant. The slices were excellent quality as well though and went nicely with the perilla in particular. This was excellent and I would recommend it heavily.There was also the "Masan" Monkfish Soup for around $20 with 48-hour fortified monkfish bone broth, radish, and red pepper which was light but hearty. The broth was simply flavored with many pieces of thick monkfish. They gave a dipping sauce which had some mustard in it to put the fish in to add some extra flavor which was nice. I think the dish should also come with some rice or something to eat with said soup and wouldn't mind paying a few bucks more if it came with multigrain rice or something similar. It's also perhaps a little bit too plain so maybe kimchi on the side or some other type of banchan would help otherwise. Outside of the more plain flavor, it was good and will be nice when it gets cold in winter.We had a good time here. The food was good quality and reasonable enough for the price point especially for the happy hour stuff. They might concentrate on cocktails but I would stop here again and get some more hwe and possibly try some other dishes. Mid 4 for the spot during HH while a low 4 otherwise
September 08 · Glenn C
What a nice addition to K town! Artfully prepared seafood dishes and creative fun cocktails. Their mussels are so plump and cooked just right, sashimi was all cured well, and hand rolls are rich in flavor yet clean. The quality of the ingredients really shines.A bit dark for dinning, but this place is also a bar. Beautiful setting with sophisticated lightings, yet still comfortably casual. Will visit again definitely.
August 09 · Jinsuk Park
Having tried Dubuhaus and being surprised by their aesthetic execution, I was compelled to give Musaek a try, which is the speakeasy located within Dubuhaus. It seemed to be a similar concept as Undercote of Cote and Barbam of Rib No. 7.You enter Dubuhaus and make a left, where you see the sign for Musaek. Then you walk down a couple flights of stairs and see this very spacious open area, which was surprisingly louder than I had expected, but not in a displeasing way. It felt like a speakeasy but a very big version of it.We sat down at the bar and ordered four drinks total. I usually like to specify the names of the items I ordered but forgot to take a photo of them, and the cocktail menu is not available online, which I think they should have. I remember we ordered all of the signature cocktails except for the ones that were available for happy hour.Most of them were good. The drink that stood out to me was the Yuzu and seaweed one. I thought it was intriguing, but it leaned more Yuzu than seaweed. It tasted like a cocktail that everyone would like: citrusy and a bit savory, what's not to like? The other drink that stood out to me, in a bad way, was the one with dongchimi in it. It was really interesting at first because it smelled like dongchimi, and the first sip was pretty good; I was surprised that they were able to make it pleasant. But as time passed, the warm temperature made the cocktail taste disgusting, and we did not like it. The cocktails were a bit on the pricier side, but nothing crazy, just standard New York pricing.The host and bartenders were all nice, patient, and personable, which I appreciated.There were six bathrooms that were beautiful, private, and clean, just like Dubuhaus.The good ambience and service from the workers made me want to return to try the happy hour cocktail menus, since they all sound interesting and are provided at affordable pricing.
July 18 · Won Ko