From The Times 'Travel Section' profile of hotelier André Balazs:

From the man who claims to have set off trends such as wenge wood and bathrooms that outsize their bedrooms, the newest ventures are his boldest attempts yet at tapping the zeitgeist....he wants to revive traditional bathhouse cultures from around the world, as in the hamams in Turkey, Korean scrubs, Swedish saunas and the Russian shvitz, and more particularly their traditions of very relaxed socializing.

Mention of the 10th Street Baths, a grouty but thoroughly authentic bathhouse on the Lower East Side where in the 80's cigar-chomping Russians mingled and steamed with models and Wall Street brokers, sends Mr. Balazs into raptures. "My Holy Grail is to get the 10th Street spa right," he said. "People whose eyes light up when you mention the 10th Street Baths are my kind of people."

Mmmm, now that's what we call funky chic.
Granting Entry to the Land of the Hip [NYT]