Who better to know about ambience and décor than an interior designer? Michelle Kantor, of Michelle Kantor Associates (in the Pearl District, of course) spoke to me in her loft studio, which distinctly reminded me of the set of Will and Grace. She had several favorites for the category of well-designed hotspot, but her favorite was
Tube (18 NW 3rd). She calls its
space-aged design "cool, slick, and edgy" and "L.A. hip vortexcolliding with
air-stream traveler." She also singled out two Bruce Carey restaurants,
Bluehour (250 NW 13th) and
Saucebox (214 SW Broadway), the latter of which is "ambient, moody, and romantic." Michelle also enjoys the
"ghoulish green" night lighting of
Mint (816 North Russell), calling the interior "
retro meets white trash." Sounds like my kind of place!