Walking into Monkey Bar is like
reentering a bygone era. This 1930s hotspot
has been renovated perfectly true to time.
There are the namesake monkeys, immortalized in paint and bronze, red leather booths
that curve and arc like the top of the Chrysler
Building, the zebra-print rug, which flows
down the staircase as if unrolled for each
guest. In fact, the only indication of the 21st
century comes from the guests themselves:
Anna Wintour, Charlie Rose, Harvey
Weinstein, Valesca Guerrand-Hermès and, of
course, Ron Perelman. Media types, rockers
in ripped jeans and actors sit like beacons of
modernity against a backdrop of Edward
Sorel murals featuring the likes of prominent
players past: Fred Astaire, F. Scott Fitzgerald
and Dorothy Parker, to name a few.
And then there’s Jeff Klein, one of two
men Graydon Carter chose as co-partners
in the venture and a key player in making
the restaurant a draw for contemporary
New York notables. The über editor and
commander of Waverly Inn’s exclusive
dining room was first struck by Klein’s
work at the Sunset Tower Hotel in LA. “It’s
a place that makes you feel like you’re at one
of Sue Mengers’ dinner parties,” Carter says.
“The man behind it obviously knew how to
run an establishment.” When Carter met
Klein 10 years ago back in New York, he
liked him immediately. “Jeff understands
the business of hospitality better than just
about anyone I know,” he raves. “He has a
terrific eye. And almost more important,
he’s got a fine sense of humor.” Indeed,
despite Klein’s rather imposing stature and
obvious social influence, he’s approachable,
affable even—a friendly, jovial guy.
He’s also a relentless perfectionist, an
attribute Klein credits for his success in not
“I find downturns a fun time to start
a business. My partners and I know if
we can make it in tough times, we
have a shot at longevity.” —Jeff Klein
only a risky business, but a risky business
climate. Just as Klein’s City Club opened in
the economic aftermath of 9/11, Monkey
Bar opened in the midst of a recession.
“I find downturns a fun time to start a
business,” Klein explains. “My partners and
I know if we can make it in tough times, we
have a shot at longevity. But we also know
that we can’t take our eye off the ball, and
we need to constantly improve everything.
In our business, it’s always a work in
progress, and complacency breeds failure.”
An emphasis on hard work like this is the
sign of an old soul, which is just what
makes Klein a perfect fit for Monkey Bar.
The restaurant’s history clearly influenced
his vision, but he also imbued Monkey Bar
with his own personal values. “We revere
both the aesthetics and service that so often
seem lost in today’s world,” Klein says of
himself and his co-partners. “Personal
attention and service go a long way: a host
or maitre d’ remembering someone’s name,
a bartender asking you if you would like
‘the usual,’ a waiter remembering you’re
allergic to peanuts.”
After all, Monkey Bar is about the people
who dine there as much as what they’re
dining on (homey blueberry cobbler
and delicate fish dishes, amongst others,
prepared by famed chef Larry Forgione). In
other words, this is fine dining as spectator
sport. So don’t be fooled by the fact that,
unlike Waverly Inn, Monkey Bar has an
email address for reservation inquiries; this
place, like the other, is reserved for Graydon
Carter’s hand-selected diners. “The truth is,
Monkey Bar is very hard to get into,” Klein
admits, “but once you get in, you are treated
like a king or a queen.” —Kari Milchman
