A hotel bar is usually one of two things: a place for a quick and easy nightcap or a standalone destination. You can find us at the latter.
This is not a sad spot for business travelers. This is a place tucked into a hotel foyer offering quality drinks and well-to-do guests that, along with the lavish decor, serve as the view. There are many hotel bars in New York City that fit this mold, but few have reached icon status.
Hotel bars are a crucial intersection of hospitality, combining the skills of both the hotelier and bar sectors of the industry. It’s a hard balance to strike. What makes a hotel bar iconic isn’t how long it’s been around — it’s the sum total of its vibe, drinks, sociocultural appeal, and hospitality. Some great hotel bars have been around since the early 20th century, whereas others are relative newcomers to the city’s scene.
Here are six iconic hotel bars in NYC.
Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle
People don’t flock to Bemelmans Bar just for the seen-and-be-seen environment, but it is the kind of place you’ll want to see — and be seen. This is an Upper East Side den of all things status: Window cases advertising jewelry and premium beauty products guide you through the lobby of the ultra-luxurious, five-star Carlyle hotel to the ground-floor bar. Since its 1947 opening, the bar has played host to a long list of socialites — most notably John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, whose NYC residence was once in the Carlyle. There, drinks are served atop custom linen coasters, and most of their prices fall in the $35 to $45 range. But Bemelmans can get away with it: Spending some time and sipping on a beverage in a place with such opulent history and cultural appeal is worth every penny. Its drinks menu features four sections, and “Martinis” is its first and lengthiest category. Bemelmans’ Martini list ranges from classics like Madeline’s Vesper to more contemporary mixes with offbeat ingredients like fish-infused bitters.
Drinks aside, being at Bemelmans can feel like indulging in a highbrow night in the setting of your childhood fantasy. The place gets its name from the man who created the murals that decorate its walls, Ludwig Bemelmans, who may be better known for illustrating the “Madeline” children’s books. The walls depict a fantastical, romanticized life in New York City, full of soft-colored animals tucking under umbrellas, smoking cigars, or walking hand-in-hand through Central Park. Bemelmans rounds out the sensorial experience with a piano player and nightly jazz trio.
The Champagne Bar at the Plaza
At the Plaza, icon status dips into regal territory. Need we establish its grandeur? As the former residence of Gilded Age financier Diamond Jim Brady, a frequent pitstop for the English royal family visiting NYC, and home to the precocious Eloise, the Plaza is a landmark. Thirsty residents and visitors can choose between two destinies: the Palm Court or the Champagne Bar. Both are stellar options with pleasant beverages and views to match, but for an environment that’s as timeless as the hotel itself, head to the Champagne Bar. The room was first the Champagne Porch, which opened along with the hotel in 1907, and a 2014 renovation brought a new elegance to the space, which features draping chandeliers and a marble bar. The space is an afternoon tea parlor by day and, given its name, the menu specializes in bubbly with specialty cocktails, caviar, and other light bites by night. It offers stellar Champagnes by the glass, and with a list of some of the world’s greatest Champagnes at your disposal, why not try them all? The popular Champagne Flight allows you to bounce between Billecart-Salmon, Perrier-Jouët, and Duval-Leroy for $185. Don your white gloves, lift your pinky, and prepare to savor some bubbly.
Peacock Alley at the Waldorf Astoria
Peacock Alley might sound like a place for those with turned-up noses to flaunt their feathers — and that’s exactly what this bar is. The name Peacock Alley comes from a famous marble corridor that connected the old, separate Waldorf and Astoria hotels that were where the Empire State Building now stands. The old New York elite strutted their way through the alley to show off their wealth. The new hotel bar retains much of that ethos. The Waldorf Astoria boasts quite the guestbook with names like President Herbert Hoover, Cole Porter, Marilyn Monroe, and the Hiltons as former long-term residents.
Located at the newly revamped Waldorf Astoria on Park Avenue, Peacock Alley features low couches and high ceilings in an expansive room that’s a ways (a walk that will take you a few minutes, perfect for gawking at all the glitz) from the hotel’s lobby entrance. Navy blue carpets and marble floors set the tone while granite columns establish the grandeur. The bar itself is set before a bright, floral backdrop, where bartenders dressed in all white work their magic. From the space’s ornate statue centerpiece to its $35 namesake Martini, Peacock Alley exudes wealth.
Lobby Bar at the Hotel Chelsea
The Hotel Chelsea first opened in 1884, and after the turn of the century, a host of major players in the downtown art scene staked their claims there. Key former residents include Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Robert Mapplethorpe, Janis Joplin, Arthur Miller, and Andy Warhol. The hotel’s most recent makeover came in February 2022 when it relaunched after a full renovation. Along with the glow-up came the Lobby Bar, which the hotel introduced that July as the first-ever watering hole on the property. It was previously a storage area, but refurbishments transformed it into a comfortable yet cool den with high-end drinks. Warm-colored velvet seats furnish the dimly lit space dotted with ornate mirrors, thick drapery, and weeping greenery. Like other upscale hotel joints, Lobby Bar brings in a highbrow crowd but with more of a downtown edge. While there, try the Duke’s Martini: It eked its way into the semifinals in our first-ever Martini Madness.
Swan Room at Nine Orchard
On its website, the only description Swan Room has to offer is that it’s “an elegant space. Dress for a night out.” It sure is: This is the bar at the famous Nine Orchard hotel in the building that once played host to the elegant Jarmulowsky Bank on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The bar and hotel opened in 2022 in an effort to restore the building to its former neo-Renaissance glory. With pink marble floors and white marble walls, a high decorative ceiling, and large, arched windows, the Swan Room draws well-dressed yet unstuffy crowds. All of the cocktails here are $24, which has become something of a sweet spot for New York bars serving high-end mixes. For $125, the bar offers a large-format Martini service, and at a bar with such a commitment to honoring New York’s history, we recommend going all in.
King Cole Bar at the St. Regis New York
Today, Bloody Marys are known as boozy brunch drinks, but some say the first was crafted at the King Cole Bar in the St. Regis on 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan. This lobby bar opened in 1932 and has since become a hotspot for socialites and celebrities. In its nearly 100-year history, A-listers like Salvador Dali, Marilyn Monroe, Meryl Streep, and John Lennon have sat in its chairs. One thing that draws them, and the many others that hope to drink there, is the famous mural set behind the bar. “Old King Cole” by Maxfield Parrish is a triptych depicting King Cole sitting in a throne among other royal court characters. CNBC calls the King Cole Bar a place “where the rich and famous can knock back a $760 drink.” But when you’re at the supposed birthplace of the Bloody Mary, ordering anything else feels sinful.
Bar Blondeau at Wythe Hotel
The first and only iconic hotel bar outside Manhattan on this list, Bar Blondeau opened in the Wythe Hotel in 2021 from the same team behind Le Crocodile, the restaurant on the building’s ground floor. This more recent spot, however, is six floors up. One of its claims to fame is its views of the Manhattan skyline over the East River. One of the bar’s partners, Joe Neidich, is also the man behind swanky downtown spots like the Nines and Monsieur, and while whispers of a Neidich bar can be felt at Bar Blondeau, this location is a much chicer environment. This pseudo-rooftop bar is like a new-age Parisian bistro that doubles as a natural wine bar. As for the crowd, expect a mixed bag of hip Brooklynites and people who’ve just ascended from the L train. The cocktails alone are worth the visit, but take a look at the bar’s rotating by-the-glass list, which usually features some hip, cult wines.
The Blue Bar at the Algonquin Hotel
Just off of Times Square and Manhattan’s Theater District, the Blue Bar is a toast to the golden age of Broadway. It opened upon the repeal of Prohibition in 1933 on 44th Street in the Algonquin, which began operations 31 years earlier. Dotting its menus are illustrations by Al Hirschfeld, the famous artist known for his black-and-white portraits of Broadway stars. Members of the New York literati frequented the Blue Bar, such as poet and critic Dorothy Parker and newspaper columnist Robert Benchley. It gets its name from the deep blue and indigo touches that accent the lush design. As for a post-matinee pick-me-up, you might want to skip the hotel’s $10,000 Martini — naturally garnished with a diamond. At a bar that celebrates old-timey showbiz, go for the classics like an Old Fashioned or French 75 here.
