This Way Up

By Alison Bing  |  July 21, 2010

In America’s hard-working cities, a great summer escape can seem like a tall order. But at these 10 urban rooftop bars, you can catch summer breezes, celebrity sightings, baseball games, priceless art and, yes, killer cocktails without leaving your prime perch.

ROOF, Chicago

From atop the 27th floor of theWit Hotel, Chicago’s architectural achievements are perfectly clear, from Bertrand Goldberg’s round, space-age 1964 Marina City towers to Mies van der Rohe’s tall, dark and handsome 1973 IBM Plaza. The roof blends into the high modernist scenery with streamlined white chairs poised for takeoff and glass aquariums containing fire instead of fish. (201 N State St, 312-239-9501 | www.roofonthewit.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Mix orange juice, cranberry juice, floral St Germain and artisanal Hangar 1 vodka and voilá, Sex on the Roof.

Recipe:
1 oz Hanger One Vodka
2oz Orange Juice
3/4 oz St. Germain Liquor
1/2 oz Aperol
Cranberry juice
Roll once in shaker; serve in tall glass with ice and an orange/cherry garnish.

AERIAL, Nashville

You won’t find a marquee for Aerial; look for the aqua-blue building marked “Paradise Park Trailer Resort,” and duck inside to Aerial’s private elevator. When you reach the penthouse, the doors open to thronged couches, cool breezes and honky-tonk neon backlighting the 2,000-square-foot patio. Don’t be surprised to spot crossover country stars like Jewel and Keith Urban grooving to a hiphop DJ mix. (411 Broadway, 615-251-9882 | www.aerialnashville.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Tennessee Tea: Jack Daniels, sour mix, Triple Sec and Coke on ice

MAD46, New York

On sultry summer nights after the faint of heart have fled to the Hamptons, savvy New Yorkers hit the Roosevelt’s top elevator button to raise a glass to the glowing skyline that makes a beach sunset a distant second-best. Atop the Roosevelt Hotel’s 19th floor and the glitter of Madison Avenue, mad46 is lush with greenery and top-shelf vodkas and comes with no cover charge. (45 E 45th St, 212-885-6095 | www.mad46.com )

Signature Cocktail:

A madMojito with Bacardi, coco, freshly muddled mint and lime, and coconut juice.

Recipe:
Bacardi Coconut Rum
Simple syrup
Coconut juice
Freshly muddled mint and lime
Combine & top with soda water; serve on the rocks in a pint glass, garnished with a chocolate stick and coconut shavings.

MOTO-I, Minneapolis

moto-i serves something completely different: sake on draft, sumo wrestling on TV and okonomiyaki (savory Japanese pancakes) on the roof patio. This Uptown bar/restaurant pulls triple duty as the first sake brewery outside of Japan. Arrive before 6pm weekdays for $3 sweet potato fries. (2940 Lyndale Ave S, 612-821-6262 | www.moto-i.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Mimosas made from the house sparkling sake are only $1 a glass with the weekend brunch special.

SFMOMA BLUE BOTTLE ROOFTOP COFFEE BAR, San Francisco

Visitors to the rooftop sculpture garden and coffee bar at San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) are promptly greeted and scared witless by Louise Bourgeois’ giant steel spider sculpture. On Thursdays, the museum and café stay open until 8 p.m. Museum admission (required to visit the bar) is half-price Thursdays after 6. (151 Third St, 415-243-0455 | www.sfmoma.org )

Signature Cocktail:

No drinks here, but the dessert menu’s affogato should knock you out: Double shot of espresso with Humphrey Slocombe’s Secret Breakfast ice cream made with cream, cornflakes and bourbon.

THE STANDARD, Los Angeles, downtown

On a good night at The Standard’s Rooftop Bar, red carpets can’t compare to this stretch of red Astroturf: watch and learn as seasoned Hollywood pros cozy up to producers in poolside waterbed pods. Weekdays mean free cover and A-list views over downtown LA; weekends bring $20 covers and velvet ropes. (550 S Flower, 213-892-8080) | www.standardhotels.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Lemon juice and Ketel One Citroen poured over a sugar cube equals the Standard’s Lemon Drop.

POOLSIDE AT THE JOULE, Dallas

After you get over the gravity-defying infinity pool that cantilevers over Main Street with a clever glass wall at the end that changes colors thanks to fiber-optic pool lights, turn your attention to the view from 10 stories up: the 1920s Neo-Gothic roofline of the hotel set against the city’s contemporary skyline and Dallas glam on full display. (1530 Main St, 214-748-1300 | www.thejouledallas.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Order mixologist Lucy Brennan’s PoolSide Grape Cooler.

Recipe:
6 muddled green grapes
1.5 parts Ketel One Citroen
1.5 parts Sauvignon Blanc
1 part lemon juice
1 part simple syrup
Combine & serve.

PLUNGE, Miami

Situated 18 floors up in the sky with a beachside view of the ocean Miami Beach’s Plunge at the Gansevoort Miami Beach appears streamlined and ship-shape thanks to polished wood decks and taut canvas canopies. From the bar, discreet alcoves and cocoa palm trees line a 110-foot-long pool—or should we call it a liquid fashion runway? (2377 Collins Ave, 305-604-1000 | www.gansevoortmiamibeach.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Order the Pink Elephant: Mint, limes, agave nectar, limejuice and vodka, topped with Champagne.

Recipe:(Courtesy of Gansevoort Miami Beach mixologist Jay Law)
2oz Goose Pear vodka
2oz Champagne
½ oz agave nectar
½ oz lime juice
4 mint leaves
2 fresh strawberries
Combine mint, agave & strawberries; add limejuice & vodka. Shake, strain, and pour into martini glass; top with Champagne & garnish with strawberry.

TAO BEACH, Las Vegas

There’s only way to go in Vegas, and that’s over the top. Upstairs at the Venetian Hotel & Casino on the Strip, the Asian-themed TAO nightclub features showgirls wearing strategically placed rose petals who frolic tirelessly in elevated tubs. Another flight of stairs leads past the Buddha-bedecked bar to rooftop TAO Beach, a pool lounge with a view of the Strip and a $35 cover. (3355 Las Vegas Blvd S, 702-388-8588 | www.taolasvegas.com )

Signature Cocktail:

A Taotini, fruity vodka, fruit juice, and coconut rum.

Recipe:(Courtesy of Tao mixologist Eddie Allen)
1oz Absolut Manadrin
1oz Stoli Raspberry
1oz Malibu
1oz Cranberry Juice
0.5oz Sweet and Sour mix
Combine; serve up with 3 raspberries.

TAVERN DOWNTOWN, Denver

One glimpse of the Rockies can make a grown man cry, especially if it’s the view of Coors Field from Denver’s Tavern Downtown. Sports of all sorts are religiously screened inside the exposed-brick bar and on its outdoor roof deck, where you can hear the roar of the crowd from the baseball stadium across the street. (1949 Market St, 303-299-0100 | www.tavernhg.com )

Signature Cocktail:

Try the generously spiked 190 Octane Slushies: Triple sec, orange juice and punch. They work for this raucous crowd.

Recipe:
Fat Tuesday Frozen Orange Juices
Three Olives Vodka or Triple Sec
Combine & garnish with orange.