NYCGuide
The Best Bars In The West Village
photo credit: Nicholas Ruiz
There are many reasons to love the West Village. It’s cute and convenient, and all of the charming townhouses make up for the fact that you'll have to dodge a few guided tours as you walk down Bleecker. Also, it’s one of the best places to drink in the city. There are all kinds of bars in the area—from a speakeasy in a basement to a place where you can sing show tunes—so here’s a guide to help you figure out where to go.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Emily Schindler
If you want a great cocktail in the West Village, but you don’t want to have to go to a speakeasy, head to Katana Kitten. This is a Japanese bar on Hudson Street, and the drinks here are excellent. They’re made with things like salted plum, pandan, and Japanese whiskey—and we especially like the house gin and tonic, which comes in frosty mug lined with shiso leaves. You can either hang out at the bar upstairs or grab a drink in the darker basement area, and there’s a short menu of Japanese-influenced bar food, too.
photo credit: Bryan Kim
The original Angel’s Share opened in the East Village in 1993 and helped kickstart the whole neo-speakeasy trend that’s still going strong (arguably a little too strong). It closed in early 2022, but now there’s an updated iteration in a narrow space on Grove Street with ornate wallpaper and a jazzy soundtrack. Want to sit someone quiet and drink an elegant cocktail made with cream cheese and brown butter-washed cognac? If so, this is the place for you. Just keep in mind that standing isn’t allowed, the maximum party size is four, and the door policy is still walk-in-only.
The Happiest Hour is a spot we’ve come to rely on for its combination of fantastic burgers and good, strong drinks. If you’re looking to talk to strangers and possibly meet someone you’ll date for a month or two, this place is great for that. The retro atmosphere and big open space tend to draw a crowd, and you’ll usually see at least one person celebrating their 25th birthday here.
Employees Only opened in 2004, and it was one of the original craft-cocktail spots in the city. Now that every other bar serves drinks in fancy glassware, this isn’t necessarily a place you cross town for—but if you’re in the West Village looking for a fun night out, it’s one of your best options. It still gets busy, the bartenders still wear white lab coats, and you can still get some bacon-wrapped lamb chops after you have a third Manhattan and realize you need to eat something.
Little Branch was an early pioneer of the speakeasy scene, and you can still find it behind an unmarked door on 7th Avenue. The underground space is limited to a strict capacity (first come, first served), which keeps the mood inside pretty intimate and perfect for a date or small groups. Expect perfect cocktails, a nearly pitch-black atmosphere, and occasional live jazz.
photo credit: Nicholas Ruiz
When it comes to the best cocktails in the West Village, it’s a toss-up between Little Branch, Angel's Share, Katana Kitten, and Williamsburg transplant Donna. If you need a place where you can actually have a conversation, choose Donna. This vaguely tropical spot with white brick walls and pink banquettes doesn’t get too loud or hectic. Their signature drink is a frozen piña colada with a splash of minty flavor, and they also serve some pan-Latin bar snacks like a bean and cheese pupusa and chicken tostada.
photo credit: Talea Beer Co.
Ever since Talea moved into the neighborhood, it’s been our go-to alternative to all the overcrowded bars in the area serving $20 cocktails. Based out of Williamsburg, the women-owned brewery runs several taprooms in Brooklyn, as well as this pleasant, jewel-toned outpost on Christopher Street. The bright, spacious bar has plenty of little tables for when you need somewhere to hunker down with a friend for a couple of hours and drink some sour ales—or spicy pickle martinis. In addition to an interesting lineup of sours, stouts, and IPAs, they have a full cocktail menu and some snacks.
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St Tropez is the perfect place to go if you have a first date in the West Village and want to seem like the sort of person who reads books and has concrete plans for retirement. It’s a wine bar with floor-to-ceiling windows and plenty of little tables where you can sit with a date, and they serve some solid French small plates as well. Have an order of meatballs with whatever you’re drinking. The entire wine list is French, and there are some relatively affordable options if you don’t feel like spending your utilities budget on fermented grapes.
The Garret is a speakeasy in the sense that it’s hard to locate. To get here, you walk into the Five Guys at 7th and Bleecker, then walk up a hidden staircase in the back. Upstairs, you'll find a small room with a few skylights and some windows looking out on the street. It isn’t as stuffy or expensive as some other cocktail bars, but it does get extremely busy, and they play loud music. Your friends have probably heard of this bar, and they probably want to go, so if you want to impress someone, bring them here—and come early to get a seat.
This Italian wine bar feels like a thumbnail version of its sister restaurant, L'Artusi, and it’s a wonderful place to have a cocktail or a glass of wine while you share a few small plates with a friend or date. The menu is mostly geared towards snacking, with options like fluke crudo, arancini, and a burger with tomato jam and guanciale.
photo credit: Oleg March
Due West is sleek and loungy, and it feels like it should be in a neighborhood like Tribeca or the Meatpacking District. But it’s actually on West 10th Street, and you’ll find it useful if you have to plan a nicer date or grab drinks with some clients in the West Village. The space has white brick walls and velvet banquettes, and it gets pretty crowded. They also have a little dinner menu with things like crab dip, oysters, and a pretty good burger. Just be aware that this isn’t a huge place, and be sure to make a reservation.
This is the oldest operating gay bar in the city, and it shows. In a good way. They use barrels for stools, there are wagon wheels hanging from the ceiling, and there’s a whole wall of framed black and white photos. The crowd here skews a little older, but it’s also a good place to spot random celebrities. So if you’re looking for a divey, low-key, West Village institution, stop by Julius’. It’s cash only, and there’s a little kitchen in the middle of the room where you can get a burger and onion rings.
The Blind Tiger is the West Village’s most popular beer bar, where people come to either geek out over things with ample amounts of hops or just drink something good while they watch sports. If you can deal with crowds, you’ll be rewarded with an excellent selection of uncommon draft beers and very solid bar food.
Automatic Slims is, above all, a very normal bar. It isn’t divey, but it isn’t especially nice, and it never really gets too crowded. This place would be unexceptional if it were anywhere other than the West Village—but here, it’s great. It’s only few blocks below the Meatpacking District, and it’s like a little calm oasis on weekends when all the other nearby bars are full of people trying not to slur their pickup lines.
This is NYC’s best-known lesbian bar. If you just came out, or if you’re visiting NYC, someone will inevitably bring you to this small, cash-only, kinda-divey place where the ceiling is always completely covered in seasonally-appropriate decorations. It stays pretty low-key during the week, but on weekends it’s packed, and you should expect a line.
One day, one of your seven or eight children will ask you what Marie’s Crisis was like. And you’ll want to be able to answer that question. This is an old, divey basement bar in the West Village where there are Christmas lights year-round, and someone is always playing show tunes on an upright piano. Everyone is invited to sing along, and every once in a while a server will sing their own solo. If there’s a particular song you want to sing, try throwing some money in the fish bowl on top of the piano. Be aware that Marie's is cash-only.
This is as straightforward a bar as you’ll find in the city. Classic rock, beers, and well drinks are the key components here—and that’s a good thing. WXOU is the perfect spot to take a break from the routinely expensive, sceney, and packed bars that you keep going back to. You’ll leave wishing you had this place on your corner.
If you want a cozy glitter-and-rainbows gay bar experience with our favorite drag shows in NYC, go to Pieces. Their generous Happy Hour lasts from 2-8pm on weekdays, and the weekend “liquid brunch” lasts just as long and involves $8 Long Island Iced Teas that will give you the courage to finally do something about that crush you’ve been harboring for months. There’s a drag show every night at Pieces, and yes, they have themes.
