Located at 137 West 14th Street just north of the West Village / Chelsea border, Offside Tavern is a redux of the sports bar previously occupying the space called Bunga’s Den. We had visited Bunga’s Den once a long time ago and we couldn’t tell much of a difference between Offside Tavern and its previous reincarnation. Lots of TVs spread around the space, along with a decent draught beer selection. Standard bar fare offerings with some table seating available beyond the bar area. Stop in here for a beer on your next 14th Street NYC pub crawl.
Category Archives: Pub Crawl NYC Reviews
A review of The Lately in Manhattan’s Chelsea
Located at 357 West 16th Street in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District / Southwest Chelsea, The Lately is the latest cocktail bar to open in the area. Having opened recently, The Lately has been getting a lot of press, so we included the spot on a recent night of NYC bar crawling. Spacious with two floors, The Lately, in addition to its cocktail draw, offers a small selection of decent craft beers. Good bar bites (try the pretzel and popcorn) along with a friendly staff. During our visit, the spot was practically empty just before prime time on a prime night. We hope that was just a one-off occurrence because if The Lately is like that on most nights, we fear The Lately might not last particularly long.
A review of Lilly’s Craft & Kitchen in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen
Located at 675 Ninth Avenue in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen, Lilly’s picks up where the old Chelsea Grill left off. Lilly’s has much more of a bar feel than Chelsea Grill, which was right on the border of the bar vs. restaurant argument. With 24 tap beers, Lilly’s has a larger beer selection than Chelsea Grill did. The space is taken up by mostly high top tables, plus some bar-style seating by the windows for some prime people watching along Ninth Avenue. In addition to weekend brunch, the food menu consists of a mix of upscale bar and bistro fare. We look forward to returning here on our next NYC beer bar crawl through the nabe.
A review of The Spaniard in Manhattan’s West Village
Located at 190 West Fourth Street in Manhattan’s West Village, The Spaniard (though not really Spanish) is a Gastropub / Whiskey Bar from the same owners as nearby bar Wilfie & Nell. The Spaniard is set in the old Boxer’s space. While The Spaniard’s general layout is the same as Boxer’s, the dive-y feel of Boxer’s is long gone. Generous window seating for people watching at the corner of Barrow and West Fourth Streets. In addition to the notable Whiskey selection, the craft-beer includes several delicious options. For a bar snack, try the Buffalo duck wings! We look forward to returning here on our next NYC bar crawl through the neighborhood.
BK9, a solid Caribbean bar and restaurant located at 62 Fifth Avenue in Brooklyn’s Park Slope
A review of Local & Vine in Manhattan’s West Soho
Located at 282 Hudson Street in (way) West Soho (or is it Hudson Square?), Local & Vine is a wine and beer bar that serves solely wine and beer produced in New York State. The space is rather small with a 8-seat bar and only a few lounge-like low lying tables. Local & Vine opens daily by 4pm with Happy Hour until 7pm and the spot is experimenting with weekday lunch on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. While we hope Local & Vine is successful with its lunch hours, the space does feels more like an after-work/evening/late night spot rather than a day drinking spot. Either way, we look forward to returning to Local & Vine on our next NYC pub crawl through the neighborhood.
A review of Chelsea Bell in Manhattan’s Chelsea
Located at 316 8th Avenue in Manhattan’s Chelsea, Chelsea Bell is a solid craft-beer, picking up where the (short-lived) World of Beer left off. The layout of Chelsea Bell is almost identical to that of World of Beer. Plenty of seating just after the entrance, with the bar located toward to back of the space. Over 30 mostly-quality tap beers are available, plus numerous more bottled beer options. Chelsea Bell opens for business daily Monday through Sunday by 10am. Numerous TVs are tuned to sports and Chelsea Bell is a good spot for watching overseas soccer. Add in the friendly staff and Chelsea Bell is a great stop for any Chelsea NYC craft-beer bar crawl.
A review of Diamond Dogs in Astoria, Queens
Located at 34-04 31st Avenue in Astoria, Queens, Diamond Dogs is a craft-beer bar that, until recently, had slipped under our radar. We gather that the spot has been open for at least two years. We’re happy to have visited Diamond Dogs on a recent Astoria craft-beer pub crawl. Twelve tap beer offerings include a few nearby Queens breweries like Big Alice (Long Island City) and SingleCut (Astoria). Craft cocktails are also a liquid draw here. Diamond Dogs is a fairly small space with a backyard for pleasant weather outdoor drinking. Overall, another solid bar for Astoria and one we hope to revisit sooner rather than later.
A brief review of Trestle in Astoria, Queens
Located at 34-02 Broadway in Astoria, Queens, Trestle is a recently-opened gastropub/craft-beer bar. Twelve quality tap beers and numerous more bottled/canned offerings make Trestle a must for any Astoria NYC craft-beer bar crawl. Since it’s located at the corner of 34th Street and Broadway with large windows looking out onto the intersection, Trestle is a great spot for sipping quality craft beer, eating tasty food and people watching along Broadway. We look forward to returning here.
For wine on tap on Manhattan’s Lower East Side
Pay a visit to River Coyote, located at 121 Ludlow Street, in the old Amuse Wine Bar space. Serving coffee all day and wine/beer in the afternoon/evening, River Coyote is a solid recently-opened bar. Great wine/beer selection, along with a friendly staff. The wine taps are shown in the photograph below.