Hasidic haberdashery
On Shabbat or for special occasions like weddings, married men in most Hasidic groups (including the Satmars in Williamsburg) wear the shtreimel, a round fur hat made of sable—and which costs a couple grand or more.
Hasidim from the Ger sect in Borough Park, meanwhile, favor the spodik, which is just like a shtreimel but taller. The spodik is made of foxtail and can cost up to $1,000.
The Lubavitcher Hasidim (based in Crown Heights) aren’t so into flash: They wear plain black yeshivish fedoras, sometimes with the front rim turned down, as trendsetter (and the late Lubavitcher spiritual leader) Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson is said to have done.
Weekdays (and usually only in winter), some Hasidim wear samet hats, ubiquitous black toppers with a felt, velvet or rabbit-fur finish. Satmar sport the flat samets; most other sects are partial to the higher style. The Ger group wears only felt-finished hats (no rabbit fur for them), and the Satmar wear felt hats on weekdays and rabbit-fur hats or shtreimel on Shabbat.
Restaurants that still require a jacket*
Bouley 163 Duane St at Hudson St (212-964-2525, davidbouley.com)
Café Carlyle and the Carlyle Restaurant 35 E 76th St at Madison Ave (212-744-1600, thecarlyle.com)
Daniel 60 E 65th St between Madison and Park Aves (212-288-0033, danielnyc.com)
Jean Georges Trump International Hotel & Tower, 1 Central Park West at Columbus Circle (212-299-3900, jean-georges.com)
La Grenouille 3 E 52nd St between Fifth and Madison Aves (212-752-1495, la-grenouille.com)
Le Bernardin 155 W 51st St between Sixth and Seventh Aves (212-554-1515, le-bernardin.com)
Le Cirque 151 E 58th St between Lexington and Third Aves (212-644-0202, lecirque.com)
Le Périgord 405 E 52nd St between First Ave and FDR Dr (212-755-6244, leperigord.com)
The Modern 9 W 53rd St between Fifth and Sixth Aves (212-333-1220, themodernnyc.com)
Per Se Time Warner Center, 10 Columbus Circle at Broadway, fourth floor (212-823-9335, perseny.com)
River Café 1 Water St at Old Fulton St, Dumbo, Brooklyn (718-522-5200, rivercafe.com)
‘21’ Club 21 W 52nd St between Fifth and Sixth Aves (212-582-7200, 21club.com)
* All venues provide loaner jackets for those who have “forgotten” theirs at home.
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