“We wanted everything to be a little tongue-in-cheek,” says Ronnie Flynn of The Flower Shop, a newly opened restaurant and bar in Chinatown, “and not take anything too seriously.” Actually, “newly opened” is a bit of an exaggeration. Today is their first day in business!

Alongside partners Dylan Hales, William Tisch, and Dave Turner, Flynn went for all-out nostalgia with the decor at the Modern Americana restaurant/bar, achieving a layered, convincingly multi-generational interior that pays homage to all four’s favorite haunts from Montauk to Manly, via New York and Los Angeles.

With its wood-paneled walls, floral banquettes, copious tchotchkes, and everything from so-bad-it’s-good art to Bad-era Michael Jackson adorning the walls, The Flower Shop is a place you want to go right at 5 PM, before everyone else gets there, just to take it all in. Read on as Flynn and Hales talk us through the evolving ideas of the bi-level downtown space.

Flower Shop is located at 107 Eldridge Street, and you can find more information (and make reservations!) here.