With Kees, PDT's Jeff Bell Brings Old-School Manhattan Glamour Downtown
In a Mix Exclusive, Bell Talks About His New Greenwich Village Cocktail Bar, Due to Open This Fall.
With Kees, a new West Village cocktail bar due to open this fall, Jeff Bell hopes to bring back the glamour of mid-20th-century Manhattan.
“It’s trying to capture the essence of what you would have gotten at Stork Club or El Morocco,” Bell told The Mix, mentioning two of the most famous nightclubs of post-Prohibition New York. Both began life as a speakeasy and evolved into high-profile destinations of cafe society from the 1930s to the 1960s. “A special occasion place,” Bell continued. “That kind of New York. The pendulum swings in hospitality between fancy and casual. We want to do an old-school place, but downtown.”
Kees will be the final puzzle piece in the trio of new businesses that Bell—the owner of the famed East Village cocktail bar PDT—is opening at 1 Cornelia Street in Greenwich Village. Mixteca, an agave bar which will be run by longtime PDT bartender Victor Lopez: and Tacos 1986, the first east coast branch of the popular California taco chain, will open in mid-summer. They will both be on the ground level of the building. Kees will be subterranean.
The space, designed by Post Company, will accommodate 55 people, with 12 seats at the bar. Opposite the bar will eight “Hollywood” banquettes (that is, curved) lining the walls of the room. In a nod to places like the Stork Club, all the banquettes will be outward facing.
“He was a great marketer,” Bell said of Sherman Billingsley, the owner of the Stork Club. “Every table would be open facing out into the room. Everyone can see out and be seen.”
The cocktail menu will focus on classics, with pages devoted to the Martini, Spritz, Negroni, Highball, Collins, Manhattan, Old-Fashioned and Sours and Non-Alcoholic drinks. On each page there will be a classic version of the drink in question, followed by three variations. For instance, the Martini (3 to 1, gin to dry vermouth) will be followed by a Spring Martini featuring Mancino's Sakura Vermouth; a Low-abv option featuring bartender Leo Robitschek's new low-proof gin Second Sip; then a reserve Vesper with gin, vodka and Chateau d'Yquem.
“Something I feel is that at cocktail bars, you order a Manhattan, and they say, ‘Here’s our version of a Manhattan.’ This menu is reminding people that they can order those classic drinks."
“I’m trying to get rid of as much noise as possible,” he continued. “PDT’s menu is verbose. This is going to be tight and precise. Sometimes you focus on the insider so much you lose ninety percent of the people. This breaks it down to categories they know.”
There will also be wine, with sommelier Dustin Wilson providing some guidance, and a downstairs kitchen will serve a variety of small bites and larger dishes. Bell has a head bartender in mind, but has not yet named them. Kees will take reservations. Bell’s partner in Kees is Apres Cru Hospitality.
As for the name, it has multiple meanings. Recently, Bell was looking into his ancestry and discovered that his family came to New York (then New Amsterdam) from Holland in the 1600s. One ancestor was named Cornelius Van Arsedelen. In those days, Bell said, Cornelius and Jan were the most common names in the city, and Kees was a common shortening of the name Cornelius. (There is a theory that the word “Yankee” is derived from a combination of Jan and Kees.)
The name is also intended to evoke “key,” referring the hidden nature of the bar, as well as a reversal of the word “seek.”
“[Kees] for me is all those things I’d like to do that don’t necessarily make sense at PDT,” said Bell. He described Kees as “elegant, less is more, a simplicity that shows confidence and restraint and refinement.”
Odds and Ends…
On Sunday, June 1, Bittercube, the Milwaukee-based bitters and liqueurs company, staged the second annual Botanical Battle Royale cocktail competition at the Ivy House in Milwaukee. Attendance numbered 400, a 100% increase over last year. Competing bars and restaurants included Agency, Bavette La Boucherie, Bryant's Cocktail Lounge, Hill Valley Dairy, Lost Whale, Lowlands Group, Pufferfish, Screaming Tuna (all Milwaukee); Station No. 6 (West Allis); Explorium Brewing (Wauwatosa); Public Parking (Madison) and Wiscocktail (Baraboo). The winning cocktail came from Public Parking. Its Post-Service Seance was composed of Tequila, Heirloom Pineapple Amaro, Heirloom Alchermes, lemon juice, pineapple juice, simple syrup, Bittercube cherry bark vanilla bitters and Bittercube orange bitters, garnished with an orange peel and mint sprig… Sotheby’s is auctioning off an exceedingly rare bottled Sazerac Whiskey Cocktail from New Orleans circa early 1900s. “Prepared and bottled by Thomas H. Handy & Co. Limited Sole Proprietors. New Orleans La, 6 Cent Cordials wine stamp adhered to front of bottle, front label worn and soiled.” Starting bids are $3,000-$5,000. Anyone reading this who buys it and needs an expert taster please contact me at this newsletter!… Botanical Battle Royale judge Toby Maloney, author of The Bartender’s Manifesto, revealed that the working title of his next book will be The Cocktail Sessions. He described it as “a prequel” to the previous book. It will be out on Clarkson Potter in 2026… Speaking of Mahoney, he is currently helping to open The Elbow Room, a circa-1970s bar in Vancouver, Washington… J. Henry & Sons bourbon and rye whiskey, a brand only available in Wisconsin, will make its first appearance at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans this July. It will sponsor a pop-up by Milwaukee tiki bar Pufferfish at Patula… Portillo’s, the Chicago hot dog chain, has honored Pope Leo XIV with a new sandwich called The Leo. It is “a divinely seasoned Italian beef, baptized in gravy and finished with the holy trinity of peppers—sweet, hot, or a combo"… Clover Club, the Brooklyn cocktail bar, has invested in a frozen-drink machine. The first result: a frozen version of the bar’s signature cocktail, the Clover Club!… On June 12, from 2-7 p.m., Brooklyn Stillhouse will present “The Last Barrel,” a one-day-only celebration featuring the final opportunity to purchase Van Brunt Stillhouse whiskey before it's gone forever. “Whiskey enthusiasts and Brooklyn craft spirits lovers: this is it,” reads press copy. “These rare, never-before-released barrels represent over a decade of master distiller Daric Schlesselman's artistry, and once they're sold, they're gone for good. Beyond the exclusive bottle sales, enjoy local food, special guest bartenders, live music, and enter our exclusive raffle.” General Admission is $35 (includes a guided whiskey tasting, welcome cocktail, small bites from local food vendors, and an opportunity to buy rare whiskey). VIP Experience is $100. Guest bartenders include Lucinda Sterling, Michael Neff, Damon Bolte, and Masa Urushido. Buy tickets here.
Cannot wait to check it out! 🍸
Thank you Robert! Cannot wait to welcome you and MK