New York has been all a-buzz about No.8, the zhu-zhy new nightlife concept from Bobby Rossi and his partners at LDV Hospitality; an appropriate group to oversee such a venture, seeing as LDV is an acronym for La Dolce Vita, and if you’re a patron of No.8, you’re living a very good life, indeed.

Recently, I put together an intime gathering for a dozen or so of my peeps, and was granted a variance on No.8’s nearly fascist “No Cameras Allowed” policy, enabling me to stealthily chronicle the herd and scene, for this ShulmanSays exclusive.

Denizens of the nightlife will be pleased to see a number of faces who have become beloved perennials over the past couple of decades, including doorman Disco, GM Juan Vasquez (and lemme tell you, Juan is on it!), manager Lily Cho, AGM and mixologist Niccole Trzaska, and aural ambience auteur Uncle Mike, all of whom have attracted a devout following working at some of New York’s most prestigious venues.  As such, once greeted by the impossibly stylish Ozwald Boateng-clad Jean Marc (whose basso profondo voice brings to mind that of the late Roscoe Lee Brown), and your name is confirmed on the iPad of the molto fabuloso Ashley Ruprecht (this is the Technology Age, after all); one of the hostesses (wearing a Michelle Jonas dress, slit high-enough to inspire an Angelina Jolie-at-the-Oscars pose) shows you to your table.

The lighting has been designed to perfection – just bright enough to see who is who (i.e., Glenn Close, Bono, Clive Owen, Jim Carrey, Scarlett Johansen, Prabal Gurung, and Russell Simmons) and allow for jewels to sparkle, yet dim enough so as to be preternaturally flattering.  To wit, I’m convinced I looked 30 pounds lighter and 10 years younger within 45 seconds of walking through the door.  Lord knows, I felt it!

Knowing her guests as she does, Lily doesn’t simply utter a few banal pleasantries and remember peoples’ drinks of choice (though that’s a pretty nifty trick, in and of itself); but rather, she greets all who enter as a long-lost friend and catches-up on her customers’ lives –all while looking fierce and fresh.  Said one guest at dinner, “She’s wearing Giambattista Valli.  What’s not to love?”

Come back, next time, to find-out about dinner, the conversations, and how we turned New York's most buzz-worthy boîte into a jewelry bazar!

No.8
347 West 16th Street
New York
Click HERE for info

Get into it!