New York City nightlife offers everything from a dark gothy bar, historic hotels, to posh rooftop bars and heart robbing dance floors. NYC’s trendsetting cocktail culture is already world famous. For more than 20 years, the city has been marketing the ingenious art of mixology. It is the place where global speakeasy movement was born, along with the world’s most talented bartenders. Top cocktail bars in NYC have inspired everything from glassware to designer drinks to lighting. Whether you are new to the city courtesy of Manhattan movers, or a born New Yorker looking for new places to check out, here’s a list of 5 NYC legendary cocktail bars.
1. THE NOMAD BAR
One of the top cocktail bars in NYC, The NoMad won top honors at Tales of the Cocktail’s 2018 Spirited Awards. It entered the top 5 in the World’s 50 Best Bars 2017 as well. The NoMad Bar exudes the complexity and warmth of New York City in a tavern style interior. The menu celebrates the traditional pub. For example, the NoMad’s famous chicken for two got a reinvention as a chicken pot pie. Dreamy replete with black truffles and foie gras are guests’ favorites. The cocktail menu starts off with classics, grabs you with unique tastes of rare spirits, and floors you with creations for eight to 10 people. Promise you’ll try the Detox-Retox when you visit this NYC staple bar. If you’re not a fan of that one, try the Start Me Up with bourbon, rum, honey, ginger, lemon, and orange bitters.
2. DEAD RABBIT
The Dead rabbit took six years in the making, and it emerged on the scene of top cocktail bars in NYC as a brilliant Irish pub styled lounge. It nurtures and honors a tradition of hospitality, sense of history and the dynamic of a modern cocktail bar in each of its three floors. A superlative Irish joint, a fiery cocktail menu, and neighborhood watering hole all in one, the Dead Rabbit has one of the most amazing mixologists in the world. One of the best places for singles in New York has suffered fire damage last year but has again hit the scene at full force. Jack McGarry and Sean Muldoon have created an impressive cocktail and whiskey list. We recommend the signature The Dead Rabbit Irish Coffee with a Scotch egg. Yum!
3. DEATH & CO. changes the mood on our top cocktail bars in NYC list
This bar of an interesting name draws its inspiration from the historic or rather a poetical point of view. This bar seems to remind us how far we’ve come in our way of having fun. In the way, we think. Nowadays, we celebrate our special occasions with fine wine, ingeniously crafted cocktails. And let’s not forget beautiful food and impeccable deserts.
This dark lounge opened on New Year’s Eve 2006/07 in Manhattan’s East Village, and it quickly became one of the top cocktail bars in NYC. It is now famed a cocktail institution. If you want to reduce the stress of moving day, come to have a cocktail from the talented and dedicated hands of suspender-wearing bartenders. In 2007 it was an intimate bar in Big Apple, and now is a buzzing cocktail epicenter with a restaurant that branched out to Denver. Through its growth, the bar has committed to bringing the finest products to its guests.
This moody cocktail bar is an exceptional experience and the East Village’s worst-kept secret.
It tries to awkwardly hide behind a discreet but not at all invisible wooden door. Behind it, you’ll find a magnificent cocktail menu that they change up twice a year. Try novelties like the Yojimbo, Nikka Coffee Grain Japanese Whisky, togarashi, almond, and Creole Shrubb. Wow, right?
4. ATTABOY
Attaboy is the Meat district’s most eclectically comfy cocktail bar. Hidden in plain sight on the darker end of Eldridge Street. Michael McIlroy and Sam Ross’s baby, Attaboy is an understated belle that took the place of Milk&Honey when it moved uptown. Michael and Sam are also the creators of M&H. But it passed with flying colors in the community and it lived up to Milk&Honey’s standards. Eclectic and beautiful, It’s forerunners are custom drinks, many spirit-free options, and you have à la carte and on the spot! Talk about service quality and genius. Its policy is first to come, first serve since it has just a teeny tiny counter that doesn’t take reservations. Just as well, it is worth it so ring the doorbell to enter and wait for an unforgettable experience of one of the top cocktail bars in NYC.
5. TOP OF THE STANDARD might be the peek of our top cocktail bars in NYC list
Top of The Standard is a rockstar of this list just by having the most dramatic city views that turn magical at sundown. Whether you are moving within NYC or you will be new to the city, you’ll need your moving quotes NYC. So don’t hesitate and get the most reliable quote on the market today. Then you’ll be set to visit the mesmerizing glittering room at Top of The Standards. In the evening, you can expect to live jazz music, a small-plate menu, and craft cocktails.
The service and the exquisite interior turn the lounge into the city’s most sophisticated rooftop club.
The iconic gold bar matches the breathtaking views in this very popular Big Apple place. It actually has a dress code, and we warned you here first. Wear smart casual attire with carefully-tailored and fitted clothing. Match with the appropriate footwear. We recommend you reserve your spot on the roof on time.
- Luck Be A Lady (Polish rye vodka, lychee, lime, elderflower, and Champagne), Pornstar Martini (Reyka vodka, passion fruit, vanilla, Moet & Chandon).
- Blood and Sand (12-year aged Scotch, blood orange, sweet vermouth, cherry hearing) for just some of the amazing drinks you should try at this classy NYC spot.