Some nightspots are calculated to please a niche while others reflect the owner’s personality. This lounge by gypsy-of-all-trades Chynna Soul is most definitely the latter. Soul, whose jingling belts and bare midriff bespeak her belly dancing skills, has run the high-ceilinged space for ten years, during which time it has housed an art studio, a hair salon and a private party venue before opening to the public. And while waitress...

Some nightspots are calculated to please a niche while others reflect the owner’s personality. This lounge by gypsy-of-all-trades Chynna Soul is most definitely the latter. Soul, whose jingling belts and bare midriff bespeak her belly dancing skills, has run the high-ceilinged space for ten years, during which time it has housed an art studio, a hair salon and a private party venue before opening to the public. And while waitresses wearing feathery angel wings and cocktails called “potions” suggest a New Age sensibility, drinks named Hashem’s Rain, Honor Thy Sabbath and 36 Chai (akin to a Long Island Iced Tea) add a bit of Judaic frisson. The isolated Murray Hill location means that when a party hasn’t flocked in, it can be either dead empty or the ideal place for a little Page Six-style tete-a-tete depending on your company (New York Magazine).