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NIGHT+DAY Ins and Outs (IOs)

Whether you are keeping a dogeared Night+Day guide as your bible to exploring a city, or just relying on NightandDayGuides.com, you’re in the right place for the latest and greatest happenings. Herewith are hotels, restaurants, nightlife, and attractions that have been open long enough to be tested and earn our recommendation.

September’s Top 5 New Restaurants

CHICAGO • COOBAH • Cuban Fusion
This Cuban, Asian, Mexican, and Latin hybrid restaurant is located in the swank Southport section of Lakeview. The intimate dining space seats guests at aged wooden dining tables closely nestled next to each other. Rustic red paint adorns the walls and Latin fusion beats glide out of the speakers. Think perfect first date, girls’ night out, or must-stop for dining and cocktails. Mojito lovers swoon over Coobah’s secret recipe, which includes fresh mint sprigs, raw sugar, and a homemade lime concoction. Try the stuffed pork chop with cocoa-flavored corn-cake stuffing. The flourless chocolate cake comes paired with a bacon ice cream that melts to an instant mouth shock. Check out the live music on Wednesdays. Mon–Thu 5–10pm, Fri 5–11:30pm, Sat 10am–3pm and 5–11:30pm, Sun 10am–3pm and 5–9:30pm. $$ 3423 N. Southport Ave. (W. Newport Ave.), 773-528-2220, coobah.com

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D.C. • KUSHI IZAKAYA & SISHI • Japanese
An emerging hip pocket of DC, so newly become a destination that few know the neighborhood’s name (“Mount Vernon Square,” north of Penn Quarter, east of the convention center), is home to the effortlessly jaunty Kushi. Combining a grill room, sushi bar, sake pub, and oyster house, the enormous dining room endlessly entertains, serving up delights such as seared fatty salmon nigiri, skewered duck breast, and grilled oyster, as well as performances of sushi chefs and grill masters in their open kitchens. Thoroughly Japanese, from paper lanterns to hachimaki head wraps, Kushi attracts Japanese expats and young others, happy for a lively taste of this cuisine and culture. Mon–Wed 11:30am–2:30pm and 5:30–11pm, Thu–Fri 11:30am–2:30pm and 5:30pm–2am, Sat noon–2:30pm and 5:30pm–2am, Sun noon–2:30pm and 5:30–11pm.
$ 465 K St. NW (Fifth St. NW), 202-682-3123, eatkushi.com

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LAS VEGAS • BAR MASA • Japanese
This über-modern space feels a bit like an airport hangar, but, stark ambience aside, chef Masa Takayama is serving up some of the city’s most creative Japanese food. The menu can be a bit hard to navigate on your own; your best option is to tell your server how much you want to spend, describe your likes and dislikes, and let the chef prepare you a tasting menu. Menu musts are the uni risotto with mushrooms, white truffles, and plenty of butter, and the decadent Kobe beef sukiyaki with foie gras. Compared to its neighbor, Shaboo, where meals start at $500 a person, Bar Masa is relatively affordable, but it’s nonetheless a splurge—which is why the clientele tend toward couples and high rollers who have hit the jackpot. Thu–Mon 5–11pm. $$$$ Aria Resort & Casino, 3730 Las Vegas Blvd. S. (Harmon Ave.), 877-230-2742, arialasvegas.com

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LOS ANGELES • STARRY KITCHEN • Pan-Asian
If you orbit the LA foodie universe, you know the story: Word leaks on a husband and wife’s private dinner parties; they turn their creations into an underground dining phenomenon; the health department shuts them down; and the feisty upstarts regroup and go legit, opening a Pan-Asian restaurant in downtown LA’s Financial District. Many of the dishes that Nguyen and Thi Tran (aka the Kitchen Ninja) served at their NoHo apartment now appear on the rotating, mix-and-match menu, which offers “Proteins” (organic lemongrass chicken, Korean pork belly) served in a “Vessel” (wrap, chopped salad, or bánh mì sandwich). It’s all fun and flavorful—think neon-green crispy tofu balls—and aimed at a wide audience that’s less concerned with authenticity than with an ideal midday meal. Mon–Fri 11am–3pm, Thu–Fri 6pm–9pm. $ 350 S. Grand Ave. (Fourth St.), 213-617-3474, starrykitchen.com

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SAN FRANCISCO • PUBLIC HOUSE • Gastro Pub
What was once Acme Chophouse is now San Francisco’s trendiest gastropub, courtesy of Traci Des Jardins. And though it is housed in AT&T Park, it’s not all baseball, all the time. In fact, the place opens at all kinds of odd hours for other sporting events, such as the World Cup (6am). The food is traditional American, and made with the care typical of this local celeb chef. Best bets are the lamb meatball sandwich, three kinds of sliders, and dogs made from 4505 Meats’ sausages. There are 24 beers on tap and three cask ales. Daily 4–11pm. Bar daily noon–midnight. Open for lunch during Giants day games. $$ 24 Willie Mays Plaza (Second St., AT&T Park), 415-644-0240, publichousesf.com

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