The Breakdown:

Location: 251 West 48th Street at 8th Avenue, New York, NY 10036

Cuisine: American (Locally sourced)

Items: 3 Small Plates, 3 Cocktails

Price: $130 (20% gratuity added)

Overall: A rather luxurious dining experience, imagine the courtyard of Louis XVI.  Perfect place for a night on the town or an after work treat.

Paris may have its sidewalk cafes with views of the Eiffel tower, but NYC is the place for dining in the clouds.  Rooftops are the hideaway of choice for some of New York’s most exclusive restaurants, and we at JSD were invited to review one of the trendiest spots, XVI.  Located on the 16th floor of west 251st the venue on a Friday night is positively swarming with professionals and socialites.  On this particular evening we enjoyed the sounds of DJ Pace, who spun an eclectic string of pop and dance hits.  He is but one in a rotating assortment of DJs who will grace the locale in the next few weeks.

Scantily,  yet tastefully uniformed waitress milled about the couch littered inner sanctum laden with some of the venues gourmet delectables. We started our evening with a round of cocktails. I opted for the Knickerbocker Special, a refreshing mix of rum, raspberry syrup and lime. My companion took a walk on the wilder side with an El Diablo, a heady mix of Resposado Tequila, Lime and a splash of ginger.  Both items served chilled over ice, were a perfect compliment to the light summer breeze.

We sipped and admired the opulent decor.  Modeled after the estate and lavish lifestyle of King Louis the 16th.  Louis legendary decadence and overspending eventually cost the despot his head, at the guillotine.  If your a fashion and decor geek like me you will appreciated the custom furnishings and columns. The golden accents, rugs and seating are all reminiscent of France’s most luxurious and infamous period. In addition to the beautiful surroundings the equally lovely and cheerful waitstaff roam the venue eager to grant you every request. It’s very much like being an invited guest in the King’s court.

It wasn’t long after the last sips of our beverages that  we felt the urge to sample the edible offerings. XVI is not the place for a multi course sit down dinner.  It is instead the right space for small plates sized to share with a lucky companion or 2.  We started with the Smoked Duck on flatbread.  The thinly sliced duck rests on a bed of molten goat cheese and herbs.  This was our favorite dish, savory and divine!

We followed the Duck with the Salumi tray.  The Salumi and Artisanal cheeses are served in a personalized assortment of your choosing and accompanied by Ficelle, Cornichons and Grainy Mustard. Delicious and decadent finger food at its best.

Lastly we tempted our palates with the Lobster and Basil Crostini. Succulent lobster meat is placed gingerly on toasted bread with a generous sprinkling of fresh tomatoes. This is a perfect dish for a seafood lover, especially if cerviche is a favorite.

Great tasting food relaxed atmosphere and comfortable surroundings add to the charm of this beautiful venue.  With the official opening still weeks away the space has already been featured in photo shoots, a video and will be the locale for a corporate gathering and movie screening.  Created as a taste of the luxurious lavish France of Louis the XVI the venue is everything one would want for a glamorous event, or just an evening as it were. Be forewarned this is not a space for penny pinchers, opulence does not come cheap. Trust us, when we say, XVI is worth every penny.

Tell them John Simon Daily sent you

For more information & to purchase your advanced ticket visit www.LifestyleConcierge.eventbrite.com

Alek Wek, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Mena Suvari, Parker Posey, Patricia Field, Selma Blair, and Joe Zee, were some of the A-listers that came out to last nights Launch Party for the Zac Posen for Target Pop Up Shop. I pleasantly surprised at how well they transformed the raw space at 481 8th Ave. It resembled a chic 80s prom and the clothes were absolutely adorable. Guests did not waste anytime grabbing the must-have items. Female rock group The Like performed several of their songs, while DJ Kid America kept the crowd moving on the 1s and 2s.

The party started at 11 p.m. on April 15 and goes until 11 p.m. on Friday, April 16. With an array of colorful dresses for day and formal pieces including Target’s first full-length gown for night, Posen ensures that every woman is dressed the part. Shop the full collection before it goes on sale April 25 in Target stores and at Target.com. Everything is under $200! If you are in NYC, we highly recommended you go RIGHT NOW, the one of a kind pieces were flying off the racks (literally).

Fern Mallis, Senior VP - IMG Fashion

Stylist & Glam Girl June Ambrose

The Like perform

The scene at the shopping party + Zac Posen dancing

Zac Posen for Target – Gia Coppola Video featuring The Like

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and Hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs

Elite athletes Eli Manning and LaDainian Tomlinson joined top media and celebrities like P. Diddy in New York City at an exclusive Gatorade’s G Series Pro event Tuesday, April 13. The event transformed a high-end Soho loft to dramatically communicate the premium quality of the new product line and capture the mindset of a pro athlete who thinks about sports performance 24/7. The party started rocking early with more than 100 guests including New York Jet players D’Brickashaw Ferguson, and Jericho Cotchery. For the past 15 years G Series Pro products have only been available to college and pro athletes until now as we offer them through our partnership with GNC and Dick’s Sporting Goods.

LadDainian Tomlinson & New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning play a friendly game of foosball

New York Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson, New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning and Hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs

New York Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson & New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning

Hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs after running up an impressive eight flights of stairs

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning & New York Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson show guests their best moves

One of our favorite brands, PUMA launched Italy’s 2010 uniform with a fun event held at posh eatery Trattoria Cinque (which JSD highly recommends) in NYC. The new kits are part of PUMA’s PowerCat 1.10 collection, including the statement football boot the PowerCat 1.10. Staying true to tradition, the colors of the home kit is Italy’s classic azzurro blue with white details. The away kit is the traditional white with blue and gold details. The home shirt features a unique body fit and ‘battle skin’ graphic, designed specifically for Italy and their quest for a fifth World Cup title. The Italy away shirt delivers a different design interpretation under the same PowerCat concept.The unique star-shaped collar highlighted with the green, white and red of Italy pays homage to the team’s four World Cup titles as do the four stars on the official FIGC logo on the left chest. A leaping PUMA Cat logo on the right chest is prominently displayed. The design of the jerseys reflects PUMA’s sports lifestyle positioning and the dynamic and modern character of the Azzuri. The new Italy kit puts emphasis on courage, engineered performance features and a distinct articulation of raw football power. Visit pumafootball.com for more information. Here is a closer look at the new and improved uniforms.

PUMA kept everyone entertained with a live photoshoot throughout the evening. Pictures from the shoots were displayed on monitors and later printed for guests.

As we made our way through the restaurant, we noticed there were custom PUMA tees being made for everyone in attendance.We opted for the blue-on-white T-shirt, to match our PUMA shades.

Special thanks to PUMA

FOX‘s must see show Glee was recently nominated for several Golden Globes and the stellar cast attended the celebration for their nominations with InStyle and 20th Century Fox held at Sunset Tower. FOX has already renewed the freshman series for another season.

Actress Lea Michele

Actor Mark Salling

Actress Amber Riley

Actresses Jayma Mays (L) and Jessalyn Gilsig

Actress Meagan Good (L) and actor Dijon Talton