The Cutting Room: NYC's Newest Rock Mecca
When The Cutting Room shut down in 2009, Chris Noth (“Mr. Big” of Sex and The City) only waited a year to tell everyone that rock 'n' roll wasn’t dead. Noth and his partner, Steve Walter had plans to bring it back bigger and better, and they gave us the inside scoop.
The Cutting Room is now in Murray Hill. The shrine to rock brings the rock of old and new together, and will soon be open to the public. Tickets are currently available for special events.
The Cutting Room will have padded leather couches spread around the venue from upstairs in the mezzanine to the waiting area, where you can put your feet up in a swirling 1940s barbershop chair. Tall, dark mahogany bar stools and high-top tables circle the bar, and two-seated dinning room tables are available. And brass chandeliers can be found hanging in certain corners, especially near the stage.
The mezzanine is a shrine to rock. Table seating overlooks a portrait of famed rocker, Jim Morrison, in the style of a Morrison Hotel photo. On the other side of the mezzanine, there is bar seating with vibrant portraits of Janis Joplin, Keith Richards and Jack White adorning the walls. All of the portraits are available for purchase.
There are Fender Stratocasters hanging on a five-foot tall chandelier when you walk-in. The bar is made to look like a bass guitar; a main stage room is big enough to fill 100 people. Co-owner Steve Walter says that "the wall that separates the bar and the upstairs mezzanine from the main stage is retractable. So we'll be able to fit more people into the room, and everyone will be able to see the show." So when big-time Rock icons like Tommy Ramone come on stage to rock out (November 14), everyone, from any angle, will be able to see and hear the show.
Walter also wanted to let us know that The Cutting Room is not going to be just your typical live concert venue. "We're going to be serving American food, but it's definitely going to be upscale. Not frozen. Cut and prepared daily," says Walter.
And, if you and your friends are just feeling the vibe, and want to rock out in the corner upstairs, they have a dual, life-size Guitar Hero machine ready for you to test out your skills. No smashing the guitar, though.
