The best cocktail bars in Manhattan in 2026 are Double Chicken Please and Attaboy on the Lower East Side, Dante in Greenwich Village, Death & Co and PDT in the East Village, and Katana Kitten and Employees Only in the West Village. The Dead Rabbit, Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle and Overstory, 64 floors above the Financial District, complete the list.
See also our citywide guides to cocktail bars, speakeasies and rooftop bars.
Inventive cocktails inspired by dishes, from a world-renowned team.
Double Chicken Please has a casual front room and a back 'Coop' where cocktails are designed to taste like dishes, from cold pizza to Japanese cold noodles.
Good to know: Book the back room for the full menu.
115 Allen St, New York, NY 10002
A century-old café reborn as a celebrated cocktail bar.
Dante, in a café that dates to 1915, is famous for its Negronis and garibaldis and a lively Village atmosphere.
Good to know: Try the Garibaldi — fluffy orange juice and Campari.
79 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012
No menu — bespoke drinks from expert bartenders.
Attaboy, in the former Milk & Honey space, has no menu; tell the bartender your tastes and they'll make your drink.
Good to know: Ring the buzzer at the unmarked door.
134 Eldridge St, New York, NY 10002
The bar that shaped the modern cocktail renaissance.
Death & Co is a dark, intimate East Village bar with a deep, creative cocktail list and influential bartenders.
Good to know: Arrive early or expect a wait.
433 E 6th St, New York, NY 10009
The speakeasy behind the phone booth in Crif Dogs.
PDT, reached through a phone booth in a hot-dog shop, is a small, polished cocktail bar with excellent drinks.
Good to know: Reservations open the same day.
113 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10009
A fun Japanese-American highball bar.
Katana Kitten mixes Japanese highballs and creative cocktails in a lively, two-level West Village bar.
Good to know: Order a highball and a bowl of snacks.
531 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014
A lively late-night bar behind a psychic's sign.
Employees Only serves classic and house cocktails until late, with a full menu, behind a neon 'Psychic' storefront.
Good to know: A great last stop of the night.
510 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014
An Irish pub with a world-class cocktail parlor.
The Dead Rabbit pairs a convivial taproom downstairs with an ambitious cocktail parlor upstairs.
Good to know: Get an Irish coffee in the taproom.
30 Water St, New York, NY 10004
Old-New York glamour with live jazz piano.
Bemelmans, inside the Carlyle, is lined with Ludwig Bemelmans' murals and has live piano most evenings.
Good to know: Come before the music starts to avoid the cover charge.
35 E 76th St, New York, NY 10021
Cocktails on the 64th floor with a wraparound terrace.
Overstory, at the top of 70 Pine Street, serves refined cocktails in an intimate room with a terrace overlooking Lower Manhattan.
Good to know: Book a sunset reservation.
70 Pine St, New York, NY 10005
Some do, including Overstory, PDT and Dante; others, like Attaboy, are walk-in only. Arriving early in the evening is the easiest way to get in.