Yawning Cobra

A dark staircase in the middle of the Bowery leads down to a door with a serpent-shaped handle, the entrance to a 42-seat room in NoHo. Bartender Sota Kandaka, who worked high-end cocktail bars in Tokyo and Beijing before moving to New York, sends out a small cup of miso soup to everyone as soon as they sit down, meant to line the stomach before the cocktails start. The list runs to the unusual: Say Cheese arrives with a shaving of Parmigiano Reggiano, and Green Grass of Home is topped with an edible gold flake. The room stays small and sleek enough that conversation doesn't need raised voices.