Shorty

Being a big fan of the old 1534 bar below Jaques, I had to see what the new Shorty bar calling the space home had to offer. Upon my first experience, the jury is out.
Vibe wise, they have a dimly lit, sexy thing going on. Red lights, red accents, sultry artwork, Sade streaming… they’re certainly making a statement. Think third date spot. A bit too intimate for the getting to know you phase, but by the time you’ve had two previous encounters, this could be the step before finally rounding second.
The drinks were always good at 1534. That hasn’t changed. They’re the star of the show. Especially the Smoke and Fire. But if that flavor profile isn’t your thing, there are plenty others to choose from as well. From rum to vodka — they’ve got you.
Food wise, they serve from upstairs at Jaques. This is where they miss the mark. Not because it’s not tasty. It’s perfectly admirable. But they really should create a special menu meant to service the people who’ve chosen to eat in their subterranean dwelling and not the upstairs alternative. Reason being… the tables for any booth are probably something like 36 inches in diameter. But when you order three things from the menu — including the drinks and waters — there’s literally no room to place anything without resorting to a Jenga-​like shuffle. It was really bizarre. Perhaps if there was a truncated version of the full menu that came out on much smaller plates it’d work out fine. The plate of mussels we ordered (they were great) took up most of the room on the table. Had to move our drinks to the couch to accommodate. Then came out the discarded shell bowl. Then a bowl of soup. And finally, a chicken entrée. It was like a very large individual trying to fit into a very small airplane seat. Spillover was inescapable and unavoidable. It’s their first night in business, but being the only thing that’s really changed is the name and theme, this seems like practice they could have perfected the first time around as 1534.
If they iron this wrinkle out, the sky’s the limit. As it stands now, it’s hard to imagine having a full, well rounded experience with a group. If you’re just grabbing drinks at the bar sans food, you’ll be fine. If you want to dine with a vase of french fries on your lap because you’ve run out of room on your exceptionally tiny table, it’s a whole different story.