The Rainbow Room is a New York City bar and restaurant overlooking Manhattan, remembered as the setting where Tully, after more than a year in the city, breaks her routine and meets Grant. The encounter begins with a solitary holiday evening and an empty seat at her table, turning the venue into the backdrop for an unexpected social connection.

Setting and Introduction

After spending fourteen hours at the station, Tully heads home tired. At Rockefeller Center, the holiday crowds and decorations hold her attention; when she notices the Rainbow Room sign, she decides not to go straight back to her quiet apartment. She has made acquaintances during her year in New York but has not pursued dating, and the evening offers a departure from that pattern.

The room’s view is central to her impression of the place: Manhattan’s lights spread below it, and the height gives her the sense of looking out from a futuristic vessel. She arrives early enough to find a table by the window, orders a margarita, and settles in alone.

The Bar and Its Visitors

As the evening advances, the bar fills with Wall Street and Midtown patrons gathered in groups, alongside tourists dressed for the occasion. The crowd takes over tables and chairs and forms a line several people deep at the bar. This change from a relatively quiet room to a packed social scene shapes the circumstances of Tully’s meeting.

Tully and Grant’s Meeting

When Tully is about to order another drink, Grant asks whether he may join her. He orders scotch on the rocks for himself and another margarita for her, then jokes about the bar’s crowded, competitive atmosphere. Introducing themselves by first names only, they agree to avoid exchanging their life stories and instead keep the meeting light. The Rainbow Room thus marks a small but significant break in Tully’s solitary New York routine: she arrives alone, but the crowded venue provides the occasion for a new acquaintance.