My Bartender
Once a gritty railroad and factory district, Chelsea has since been reborn as one of New York City’s most culturally vibrant neighborhoods. Old railways and factories have been converted into luxury apartments, art galleries, restaurants, and bars.
Chelsea is now a beacon for art, food, drink, and nightlife. Its countless bars offer diverse and creative atmospheres.
If you’re looking for where to get a drink and enjoy the best happy hour in Chelsea, check out my list of fun places to get drinks.
Fish Cheeks
55 Bond St, New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 677-2223
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Located in NoHo, a quick drive from Chelsea, Fish Cheeks is a stunning modern Thai bistro specializing in seafood. Its bright and airy space with colorful, modern décor has an open kitchen and a lively atmosphere.
The New York Times gave Fish Cheeks a coveted two-star review. I recommend the Tongue and Cheek lychee and lime vodka cocktail.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 12 to 3:15 pm & 5:00 to 6:00 pm – $9 1/2 dz oyster, $18 1 dz oyster, $6 beer, and $10 wine.
Dante NYC
79-81 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012
Phone: 123-456-7890
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Dante is an iconic Greenwich Village bar and a registered New York City landmark. It’s been the meeting place of many famous New York creatives, from writers to musicians since being founded in 1915.
It offers a long list of wine, beer, cocktails, and a family-friendly food menu. Their Negroni is the height of classic quality.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 3:00 to 6:00 pm – $10 negroni and $14 to $17 cocktails.
Crown Alley
263 W 19th St, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (646) 892-3003
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Crown Alley is a welcoming and quaint craft beer and cocktail parlor. Not only do they have over 100 types of spirits and delicious seasonal cocktails, but they boast one of the more decadent pub menus I’ve seen.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $1 oysters, select draft beer $5, select wine $8, and happy hour cocktails $8 (sub mezcal +$1).
Worthwild
156 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (718) 942-9385
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Worhtwild is a cozy and artsy bar and gastropub, a block from Chelsea Market. The stunning dining space and bar has black and white printed walls with green wooden siding while the main dining room is reminiscent of a rustic French bistro.
I’d go for a happy hour draft beer and stay for a luxurious and opulent New American dinner.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday from 4:00 pm to 11:00 pm – $10 old fashioned (rye, bourbon, rum), $10 wine (terenzuola fossi di corsano, petite Mairie galuches bourgueil), $5 draft (jai alai, allagash, tenement pils, shacksbury dry cider), $5 snacks (potato chips, marinated olives, spiced nuts).
Skinny Dennis
152 Metropolitan Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211
Phone: (212) 555-1212
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Located in Williamsburg, Skinny Dennis is a dive bar with cheap booze, free peanuts, live music, and a trendy atmosphere.
It self-proclaims to be a honky-tonk bar, with live country music and a vintage jukebox playing all the greats. I loved their Tito’s Tuesday deal.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday 12:00 to 7:00 pm – $1 off draughts & cans and $3 wells. Tuesday 12:00 to 7:00 pm – $4 Tito’s lemonades and $2 Tito’s single shot any style.
Verlaine
110 Rivington St, New York, NY 10002
Phone: (212) 614-2494
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Verlaine is a Lower East Side lounge with tasty cocktails and small bites. Its dimly lit interior is the perfect setting for date night.
I was impressed by their well-rounded drink menu with classic and creative cocktails, spirits, wine, and beer. The food menu offers Pan Asian appetizers, fried chicken, Asian tacos, and stir-fries.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 5:00 to 10:00 pm – $6 lychee martinis, house red and white wines, basic cocktails, Southeast Asian sangria, Vietnamese bloody marys, and $3 Yuengling lagers.
Haymaker Bar and Kitchen
252 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001
Phone: (646) 429-8237
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A few blocks from Madison Square Garden and Penn Station, Haymaker Bar and Kitchen is a beer bar and gastropub. It has 20 rotating artisanal beers on tap plus countless cans and bottles, a full cocktail menu, and dozens of spirits.
Haymaker serves a charmingly creative menu of New American food, from pork ribs to red chili nachos.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:00 to 7:00 pm – $2 off select wine, house drinks, and beer.
Calle Dao Chelsea
461 W 23rd St, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 414-4104
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Calle Dao Chelsea is a Cuban Chinese fusion bistro and bar in a funky space with Chinese-themed décor in the bar and a gorgeous high-ceiling dining room with leather booths and wood floors.
Their unique food and cocktail menu and fun atmosphere has been lauded by Eater, The Village Voice, and The New York Times.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $9 cocteles, $7 cervezas, $9 vino, $2 oyster, $9 crispy wings, $12 lechon on tostones, $12 ropa vieja on tostones, $9 vucca fries, $9 tostones, $11 crispy pig’s ear, $13 chicken empanadas, $12 Cuban sandwich spring rolls, $11 crispy shiitake wontons, #13 papas rellenas, and $13 steamed shrimp wontons.
Jungle Bird
174 8th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (646) 868-8422
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Jungle Bird is a fashionable cocktail bar in a spacious warehouse with giant windows and an upstairs lounge with comfortable couches.
I’m a big fan of its mid-century modern décor, craft cocktails, and charming atmosphere. Five-dollar mai tais make this one of the best happy hours in Chelsea.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $5 mai tai, $1 off pupus, and $1 off house cocktails.
The Copper Still Chelsea
206 7th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (646) 596-8975
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Located a few blocks from Pinwheel Park in Chelsea, The Copper Still is a whiskey bar and Southern comfort food restaurant with a welcoming atmosphere and friendly waitstaff.
Along with over 100 types of whiskey, they have a long list of specialty cocktails, spirits, beer, and wine. Their Nashville hot chicken sliders are the perfect shareable appetizer to pair with a pint of draft beer.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday until 6:00 pm – $10 cocktails, $6 draft beer, $9 wine, $12 the Dublin duo, $7 well mixed drinks, $5 handcut French fries, $4 popcorn, $3 Nashville hot chicken sliders, and $3 Guinness braised pulled pork.
169 Bar
169 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002
Phone: (516) 986-7938
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169 Bar is a historic dive bar on the Lower East Side a few blocks from Pier 35. Founded in 1916, it’s one of the last original bars of its kind and worth the trip for any drinking-age history buff.
They’re famous for their pickle martin—well-deserved, in my opinion— but they have all the classic cheap booze lineup and an unbeatable happy hour.
Happy Hour Deals: Every day 12:00 pm – 7:30 pm – $2 off everything else, $3 beer and a shot, and $1 off can and draft beers.
Harlem Tavern
2153 Frederick Douglass Blvd, New York, NY 10026
Phone: (212) 866-4500
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Harlem Tavern is a spacious, family-friendly pub and tavern with delicious American dishes and a large outdoor patio. Teetering between Morningside and Harlem, a few blocks from Central Park, it has a long list of beer, wine, and cocktails.
I loved the rose sangria with tequila, coconut rum, peach juice, and sprite.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $8 select red & white wine, $9 sangria, $7 house mixed drinks, $6 select beer drafts, and $10 cocktail of the day.
Bar B
84 7th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 229-1888
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Bar B is a quaint and romantic wine bar and Italian eatery in Chelsea, a block from Jackson Square. The food and drink program is modeled after Italian and Spanish tapas bars, with a full cocktail bar, a large selection of Italian wines, and Italian espresso to accompany an upscale menu of authentic Italian small plates.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $7 chianti ‘19 red wine, $7 pinot grigio ‘18 white wine, $9 nebbiolo suasi ‘19 rose wine, and $8 prosecco extra dry sparkling.
Cull & Pistol
75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (646) 568-1223
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Cull and Pistol is a family-friendly seafood restaurant and bar in Chelsea, a block from Little Island and Pier 57. This Michelin-acclaimed restaurant sources its fish from its sister fish market, with the freshest catches each day.
I think their New England clam chowder is the perfect happy hour bowl in which to dip a delicious parker house roll.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm – New England clam chowder $10/$14, oysters Kilpatrick (3/order) $15, fritto misto $17, pistols on horseback $16, New Caledonian blue shrimp (3/order) $18, little gem lettuce $16, parker house rolls $8, Old Bay fries $8, grilled broccoli rabe $9, and shishito peppers $9.
Vinatería
2211 Frederick Douglass Blvd, Harlem, NY 10026
Phone: (212) 662-8462
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Located a few blocks from Morningside Park, Vinateria is an authentic Italian and Spanish restaurant with a lively atmosphere and a family-friendly menu.
The interior has quaint old-world urban décor with a large streetside patio for al fresco dining. Their tropical pina coco mojito was a fabulous way to end my visit.
Happy Hour Deals: Every day 4:00 to 7:00 pm – $7 wine by the glass, $5 beer, $8 cocktails, $8 bites and oysters.
Cooper’s Craft & Cocktails
Multiple Locations
Phone: (646) 661-7711
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Cooper’s Craft and cocktails is a Chelsea gastropub with over-the-top pub fare and expertly mixed cocktails. The beautifully designed interior is a modern, industrial chic take on an Irish tavern.
I thought its extravagant food menu was worth the trip alone, but the happy hour draft cocktail menu is in a class all its own.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday 12:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $10 draft cocktails (pineapple passion fruit margarita, mezcal negroni, lost Irish old fashioned, botanical spritz), $7 draft selections (Sixpoint crisp, Ommegang Witte, Interboro Lifted IPA L.L.C. beer project, summer beats), and $9 house spirits and wines.
District Local
72 7th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 930-6677
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Teetering between Chelsea and the West Village, District Local is a tapas bar in a stunning industrial chic space. Their outstanding cocktail menu has been featured in Forbes, Eater, and the New York Post.
The small plates menu runs the culinary gamut from brisket sandwiches to carne asada, to, my favorite, Spanish-style meatballs.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $10 cucumber gimlet, $10 spicy margarita, $8 house wine, $8 well drinks, $6 Five Boroughs Tiny Juicy IPA, $6 weihenstephaner, $6 Stella, and $5 Bud Light.
The Mermaid Inn – Chelsea
227 10th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 999-5939
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The Mermaid Inn is an upscale seafood restaurant and cocktail bar in Chelsea, a few blocks from Chelsea Waterside Field and Hudson River Park.
They offer the freshest catches elaborated using flavors and culinary traditions from around the globe. I recommend a margarita with mini mermaid fish tacos to ring in the end of your day.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm – $1.50 chef’s choice oysters & little neck clams, $10 salmon tartare, $3.50 mini mermaid fish tacos, $9 artichoke and spinach dip, $11 fried calamari, $8.50 grilled shrimp & avocado slider, $3.25 mini New England clam chowder, $10 happy hour cocktails, $9 the pink flamingo, margarita, hot & dirty, daiquiri, aperol spritz, happy hour wine, $6 white/red/sparkling, happy hour beer, and draft.
Cedric’s at The Shed
545 W 30th St, New York, NY 10001
Phone: (646) 860-4813
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Located a block from Hudson Yards and Hudson Park, Cedric’s at The Shed is a whimsical and upscale cocktail bar inside one of Chelsea’s prime event and music venues.
They serve creative cocktails, a well-rounded beer list, wine, spirits, and a full food menu. Whatever you do, I heartily suggest their gooey grilled cheese sandwich!
Happy Hour Deals: Wednesday to Friday from 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm – $5 beer, wine, or cocktail of the day, $8 beef in a blanket, $8 fried chicken lettuce wraps, $8 Cedric’s caesar, $3 grilled chicken, $8 gooey grilled cheese, $8 smoked turkey sandwich, and $8 sesame-crusted eggplant sandwich.
Porchlight
271 11th Ave, New York, NY 10001
Phone: (212) 981-6188
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Porchlight is a classy, hip cocktail bar in Chelsea, a block from Hudson River Park. Porchlight manages to fuse New York urbanity with Southern comfort, offering high-end cocktails with sumptuous Southern bar food.
You can also hear live music on Mondays. They made me the smoothest dirty vodka martini I’ve ever tasted.
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Saturday 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm – $11 salty dog, $11 daiquiri, $11 mint julep, $11 dirty vodka martini, $5 flask of punch, $6 Coney Island IPA, $6 Coney Island pilsner. Sunday 1:00 pm to 9:00 pm – $11 salty dog, $11 daiquiri, $11 mint julep, $11 dirty vodka martini, $5 flask of punch, $6 Coney Island IPA, $6 Coney Island pilsner.
Keybar
432 E 13th St, New York, NY 10009
Phone: (212) 478-3021
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Keybar is a funky and rowdy cocktail lounge in the East Village with all-night DJ-fueled dance parties on the weekends and different themed DJ sets for every night of the week.
If you’re looking for a party, Keybar starts early with music-fueled happy hours that last for an incredible five hours.
Happy Hour Deals: Everyday 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm – $4 bottles, $5 drafts, $5 shots, $6 mixed drinks, $6 wines, and $9 martinis.
Huertas
107 1st Ave., New York, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 228-4490
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Located in the East Village, a block from Tompkins Square Park, Huertas is a Spanish tapas bar in a fashionably designed space with an open kitchen and industrial chic décor.
I’m not surprised Food and Wine, The New York Times, Zagat, and New York Magazine have all praised Huertas for its delicious and authentic Spanish cuisine.
Happy Hour Deals: Every day until 6:30 pm – $7 huertas vermouth (red or white), $5 beer (lager or IPA), $6 cider (Basque-style cider), $7 sherry (manzanilla), $10 huertas gin-tonic (housemade tonic), $8 house wine (red, white, rosé, or cava 8), $12 can & conserva (narragansett & mackerel tin), $5 Basque dog (chistorra sausage, piquillo mostarda, aioli), and half-off menu price for pinxtos.
Seamore’s Chelsea
161 8th Ave, New York, NY 10011
Phone: (212) 597-9222
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Seamore’s is a high-end seafood restaurant in a modern, nautically themed space.
They source their fish sustainably, featuring the freshest wild-caught fish and seafood to adorn a superb menu of New American seafood favorites. There’s even a charming speakeasy-style cocktail bar on the premises!
Happy Hour Deals: Monday to Friday from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm – $1.50 oyster 1/2 dz, $7 wine, $5 beer, and $9 mixed drinks.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re looking for a high-end restaurant, a romantic wine bar, or a rowdy dive bar, Chelsea has no shortage of fun places to go out for happy hour.
After drinking your way through my list of spots with the best happy hour in Chelsea, I’d love to hear your opinions in the comments below.
Best Happy Hour in Chelsea
- Fish Cheeks
- Dante NYC
- Crown Alley
- Worthwild
- Skinny Dennis
- Verlaine
- Haymaker Bar and Kitchen
- Calle Dao Chelsea
- Jungle Bird
- The Copper Still Chelsea
- 169 Bar
- Harlem Tavern
- Bar B
- Cull & Pistol
- Vinatería
- Cooper’s Craft & Cocktails
- District Local
- The Mermaid Inn – Chelsea
- Cedric’s at The Shed
- Porchlight
- Keybar
- Huertas
- Seamore’s Chelsea
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