Our Favorite Bars In Manhattan

2K

Undoubtedly, the place we visit more than any other is New York City. Maybe it’s because we both grew up there, or because it’s Sharon’s happy place, but more of our vacation nights are spent there than anywhere else. That being the case, we’ve found ourselves looking for a place to chill out more than once. We’ve spent some time in bars that were just blah but we’ve found a few favorites that we’d like to share.

Now, I’m not telling you what the hip, trendy bars are, as there are other blogs where you can read about those places. Instead, imagine a couple like Sharon and me, wanting a place to sit down and have a drink before or after a show, dressed like whatever we wore to tour NYC. Those are the places you’ll find on our list.

King Cole Bar

This bar inside the St. Regis in New York is definitely not a low-class experience. However, we’ve found that as long as you’re able to pay for the drinks, they really don’t care how you’re dressed 🙂

This is the type of place where you go when you want to feel like you’re one of the special people, even if you’re not. It’s honestly a little too fancy for our blood but we like to pretend like we’re classy every once in a while. Usually, we’re just classy with a “K”.

Tanner Smith’s

I found this location on Yelp when I was looking for somewhere to eat before catching a Broadway show.

Part speakeasy, part gastropub, Tanner Smith’s had the “come as you are” vibe that we’re looking for in a bar. We got a table and had some dinner, including some of the best Mac & Cheese we’re tasted to date. It’s also the first place I’ve ever had a smoke-infused bourbon, but it’s not the last.

Gallow Green

Gallow Green is the rooftop bar for the McKittrick Hotel, home of Sleep No More. While we love to stop by after seeing a performance, we also enjoy swinging by for a drink even if we’re not seeing a show.

While we’ve never visited in the summer, we do like making a trip in the winter when the rooftop is transformed into The Lodge and the bar specializes in warm punches and winter-themed drinks.

Photo Credit Conor Harrigan – courtesy of McKittrick Hotel

Lillie’s Victorian Establishment

This bar/restaurant on 49th Street, directly across from the theater showing The Book of Mormon has become our go-to after theater spot. I found out about it years ago when looking for somewhere to eat and while they do serve food, that’s not why we usually visit. Not that the food’s bad (I understand they have an awesome brunch), we’re just not there looking for food.

Sharon’s still longing for the Christmastime drink where the toasted the marshmallows with a blowtorch and I’m still thinking about the Old Fashioned where they smoke the glass by placing it over a charred cedar plank before serving it.

Even better was the bartender remembered our drinks when we returned the second night for a repeat visit. It’s been a long time since that’s happened to us.

I can’t describe the interior of the place. Sort of Eclectic Victorian, maybe? Whatever you call it, it’s cool looking.

There’s one place in New York we haven’t visited yet, but we really want to.

Magic Hour Rooftop Bar and Lounge

This is the bar located on the top of the Times Square Moxy Hotel on 7th Ave and 36th St. On top of being a happening place with a year-round rooftop location, it includes one thing we’d really want to check out.

The “Foreplay” mini-golf course features colossal sized animals in flirty poses.

While we totally enjoyed our stay at the Moxy Hotel outside of Phoenix, we’re still a bit skittish that we’ll be the “old people at the club” if we want to go and play mini-golf on the rooftop of the hotel.

Final Thoughts

Well, there they are. The places we like to hang out when we visit Manhattan. Who knows, if you go to one of them you might just see us on our next visit.

Like this post? Please share it! We have plenty more just like it and would love if you decided to hang around and clicked the button on the top (if you’re on your computer) or the bottom (if you’re on your phone/tablet) of this page to follow our blog and get emailed notifications of when we post (it’s usually just two or three times a day). Or maybe you’d like to join our Facebook group, where we talk and ask questions about travel (including Disney parks), creative ways to earn frequent flyer miles and hotel points, how to save money on or for your trips, get access to travel articles you may not see otherwise, etc. Whether you’ve read our posts before or this is the first time you’re stopping by, we’re really glad you’re here and hope you come back to visit again!

This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary