Old Town Bar

Should You Book Old Town Bar?

Getting into Old Town Bar is not the problem; no reservation is required, walk-ins are the norm, the door at 45 E 18th St has been open to whoever shows up for well over a century. The real question is whether a bar this old, this atmospheric, this direct about what it is still delivers in 2024. The short answer: yes, with conditions.

Old Town Bar sits in the Flatiron District, a neighbourhood that has seen considerable change around it while the bar itself has changed relatively little. That resistance to renovation is part of the value proposition. The tin ceilings, the mahogany bar, the wooden booths worn smooth by decades of use; these are not decorative choices imported from a design firm. They are original, for a visitor or resident who wants to sit inside a working piece of New York history rather than a recreation of one, that matters.

On the food question, which is worth taking seriously here, Old Town Bar operates as a genuine pub kitchen, not a bar that reluctantly serves food. Burgers and bar staples have long been the draw, the kitchen has a reputation for executing them without shortcuts. If you are comparing this to the more ambitious bar food programmes at places like Superbueno or the cocktail-first menus at Amor y Amargo, you are comparing the wrong things. Old Town is the bar you go to when you want a properly made burger and a cold beer in a room that does not feel like it was opened last year. It competes on authenticity and execution, not innovation.

The crowd skews mixed in the leading way, after-work professionals, regulars who have been coming for years, tourists who found it in a book or a film, the occasional sports watcher. It fills up on weekday evenings, particularly after 6 PM, but rarely reaches the point where you cannot find a seat. Weekend afternoons are the quietest window if you want more room.

For groups, Old Town works well up to six or eight people, the booths accommodate small parties comfortably, the bar itself has enough length to seat a few more. Larger groups should call ahead, though the format is casual enough that it rarely becomes a logistical issue.

Compared to the craft cocktail bars that have defined New York drinking over the past decade, Attaboy NYC, Angel's Share, Old Town is not competing on the drinks programme. The beer list and direct cocktails are fine, not destination-worthy on their own. But that framing misses the point. Old Town is one of the few places in Manhattan where the room itself is the main event, the food and drink are good enough to justify the time spent in it.

Book it for: a low-key first drink before dinner nearby, a working lunch with someone visiting from out of town, or an honest burger in a room with a genuine past. Skip it if you need a polished cocktail experience or a quiet environment for conversation after 7 PM.

For more on where to drink in New York, see our full New York City bars guide, our full New York City restaurants guide, and our full New York City hotels guide. If you are building a longer trip, our New York City experiences guide and wineries guide are worth a look too. For comparable historic bar experiences in other cities, Bar Leather Apron in Honolulu, Jewel of the South in New Orleans, and Julep in Houston each offer a different take on bars where the programme and the room both earn their keep.