Nobody Told Me is on Amsterdam Avenue in the upper reaches of the Upper West Side, a neighborhood that has historically been underserved by bars that take their cocktail programs seriously. The interior runs with neon signs and floral wallpaper that would feel overwrought a few blocks south and lands right at home here, giving the place a downtown energy without pretending it's not uptown.

The menu divides its cocktails into "Kinda Classic" and "Kinda Not," which is a useful distinction rather than a gimmick. A pepper jelly julep sits alongside a more restrained old fashioned. Happy hour runs daily from three to six, and the food menu has enough range to cover a full dinner. The fried chicken sandwich and chicory caesar have both earned their regulars.

The bar was opened by chef Nick Pfannerstill and has a kitchen sensibility that other cocktail-forward spots often don't bother with. Open until two most nights. For the upper Amsterdam corridor, that's its own kind of gift.