If you want a perfect snapshot of how NYC has become gentrified, look no further than two establishments in Chelsea.
One is a bar called The Half King that, for years, has been favorite watering hole for journalists. Its good old fashioned "joint", a booze swilling tap house, and, of course, it's closing -- its fortunes paralleling the profession so many of its patrons practiced. It's a classic case of rising rents (mainly due to the Highline that has changed the neighborhood) and changing tastes.
Then, a few blocks away, there's Cote -- the extremely chic Korean BBQ restaurant that some friends and I went to this weekend. Oh man, it was good! And expensive. It's a restaurant inside a nightclub -- very dark, lots of techno music playing, you know, that whole thing -- but the food is outstanding, especially the array of meats that were cooked and served right at our table. The cocktails were, truth be told, a bit mediocre and served with copious amounts of ice but, if Korean BBQ is your thing, this is the place to go. It's also the kind of place that's taking over NYC -- high end, exclusive, expensive, and a bit pretentious -- but, at the same time, so, so good. It is, yes, tasty.
Tastes change, for the better, for the worse, sometimes at the same time.
