The Colony (restaurant)

The story

The Colony's upstairs gambling room became one of New York's most fashionable haunts only after Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt discovered it — a space originally where men met their mistresses. Founded in 1919 by Joseph Pani on Sixty-first Street off Madison Avenue, the restaurant served liquor during Prohibition in cups rather than glasses, hiding its supply in a service elevator. Mayor Jimmy Walker protected it from raids and celebrated his 1925 victory there. The Colony was the first New York restaurant with air conditioning and the first American establishment to serve Dom Pérignon.