Cocktail barCocktail bar$$$east-villageSun-Thu 17:00-00:00, Fri-Sat 17:00-01:00
Amor y Amargo on East 6th has poured bitters-forward cocktails in the East Village, New York City since 2011. Order the all-bitters cocktails.
Signature drink: All-bitters cocktails
Food: Snacks
Tip: Tell the bartender you want a base spirit; they build around the bitter. Two drinks is the right ration.
Cocktail barDive bar$$$midtownMon-Wed 11:30-02:00, Thu-Fri 11:30-04:00, Sat 12:30-04:00, Sun 16:00-02:00
Jimmy's Corner near Times Square has poured cheap beer and bourbon to off-Broadway crowds in New York City since 1971. Boxing photos on the walls, jukebox.
Signature drink: Cheap beer and bourbon
Food: None
Tip: Cash only. The bar takes Bud, Bass and Bourbon orders. Sing along with the jukebox.
Cocktail barDive bar$$$sohoDaily 11:30-04:00
Ear Inn on Spring Street has poured pints to dockworkers in SoHo, New York City since 1817. The B in BAR fell off in the 1970s and stayed off.
Signature drink: Draught beer
Food: Pub food, oysters
Tip: Sunday afternoon jazz from 14:00. The room is small and loud; the oysters are surprisingly good.
Cocktail barHotel bar$$$upper-east-sideSun-Mon 12:00-00:00, Tue-Thu 12:00-00:30, Fri-Sat 12:00-01:00
Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle Hotel has poured cocktails under Ludwig Bemelmans's Central Park murals in New York City since 1947. Located in Upper East Side.
Signature drink: Old Cuban
Food: Hotel-bar snacks
Tip: Walk-ins after 18:00 carry a $35 minimum per person music charge. Earlier visits skip the charge but miss the piano.
Cocktail barLiterary bar$$$east-village
KGB on East 4th Street runs a Soviet-themed second-floor bar in the East Village, New York City. Free reading series Mondays and Tuesdays, red walls.
Signature drink: Russian Standard vodka
Food: None
Tip: Reading series start at 19:00. Climb to the third-floor speakeasy The Red Room for the bar without the readings.
Cocktail barHotel bar$$$chelseaSun 05:00-23:00
El Quijote at the Hotel Chelsea has poured Spanish drinks since 1930 in New York City. Order the spanish gin and tonic. At 226 West 23rd Street.
Signature drink: Spanish gin and tonic
Food: Spanish kitchen
Tip: The bar takes walk-ins; the dining room needs Resy. The Iberico ham and the gin and tonic on the bar is the pre-dinner combo.