McSorley's since 1854. Lucy's reborn. The grit and grime that gave New York nightlife its reputation.
The full ranking
McSorley's since 1854. Lucy's reborn. The grit and grime that gave New York nightlife its reputation.
McSorley's Old Ale House
New York's oldest Irish saloon, open since 1854 on East 7th Street, serving only light or dark ale in a room that has barely changed in 170 years. Abraham Lincoln, Ulysses Grant, and Teddy Roosevelt are among its documented regulars.
Holiday Cocktail Lounge
A faded-glamour East Village bar resurrected in its original 1950s spirit, known for cheap drinks, a horseshoe bar, and a crowd that spans generations. The neon sign and red vinyl booths are unchanged.
Lucy's
A beloved East Village dive that closed and was mourned before reopening, carrying the neighborhood's lowkey late-night tradition forward. Dark, cheap, and welcoming at any hour.
Tile Bar
Named for its vintage tiled floor, a Second Avenue dive that has held its ground through decades of neighborhood change. Beer is cold, prices are low, and the crowd is mixed in the best East Village tradition.
Blue & Gold Tavern
A classic East Village dive with a long bar, dim lighting, and a bartender-to-customer ratio that means you're never waiting long. The kind of room where the conversation picks up from wherever it left off last time.
Sophie's
A corner dive on East 5th Street with one of the better jukeboxes in the East Village and a cash-only, no-nonsense approach to hospitality. The pool table in back is a serious one.
Mona's
A narrow, unfussy bar on Avenue B with strong, affordable drinks and a jukebox stacked with alt-country, soul, and classic rock. A neighborhood anchor that has never tried to be anything other than what it is.
Milano's Bar
One of the East Village's oldest dives, dark and sticky-floored, drawing a mix of longtime locals and visitors who heard it was the real thing. The cash register is old, the drinks are cold, and that is enough.
Cherry Tavern
A small, pressed-tin dive on East 6th Street with cheap domestic beers and a history of booking local rock bands. Reliably unpretentious in a neighborhood that has seen its share of reinvention.
KGB Bar
A former Ukrainian labor hall on East 4th Street, now a dimly lit literary bar famous for its decades-long reading series. The Soviet memorabilia on the walls is not ironic; the writers in the back booths are very serious.
Ranked across 5 sources: The Infatuation; VinePair 20 Best; Time Out New York; Yelp · Ranked by Rating (June 2026); Google Reviews · Ranked by Rating (June 2026). Full scoring is on the Methodology tab above.
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