No Nightlife on the Upper West Side? Let’s Bust That Myth

By Jensen Bird

At long last, New York City is beginning to thaw. While the city is hustling and bustling all year around, it’s much more pleasant to brave the nightlife scene without a jacket or a winter coat in tow.

But where to go for that nightlife? Williamsburg, the East Village, Hell’s Kitchen, and the Lower East Side hold the city’s reputation for being the best spots to hit bars, clubs, and restaurants. Most New Yorkers probably don’t even consider the Upper West Side when planning their evening festivities; some might even argue that the UWS is devoid of nightlife altogether.

I took to UWS streets to see if that nightlife myth could be busted, and the businesses I found delivered. Sure, people aren’t dancing down the street until the wee hours of the morning, and many venues wrap it up around 1 a.m. rather than downtown’s 3 or 4 a.m. But I found that if you wander down Amsterdam Avenue between 8 and midnight, it’s just as alive as the rest of the city – just with a touch of Cinderella Syndrome.

Although there are dozens of spots to choose from, I’ve compiled a few local favorites that’ll keep you out all night – or at least until the quiet side of the city heads to bed.

Prohibition 503 Columbus Avenue Hours: Tuesday and Wednesday 4:30 p.m. to midnight; Thursday 4:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Friday 4:30 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Saturday noon to 2 a.m; Sunday 3 to 11 p.m.

Located on Columbus Avenue, Prohibition is a 1920s-era bar with a pretty standard drink menu, but the atmosphere is hard to match. Though the Upper West Side isn’t much of a club neighborhood, if you’re looking for somewhere to get up on your feet and enjoy some excellent music, Prohibition is where locals boogie down.

They host cover artists like Alex Miller Duo, playing folk and rock hits, and Victor’s Vintage Vipers, who fill the space with jazz classics. On a Saturday night, you’ll find a full crowd of patrons – not necessarily dancing but bouncing and bobbing at the edge of the stage. Prohibition has diverse live music every weekend; the schedule can be found on their website.

Tiki Chick 517 Amsterdam Avenue Hours: Sunday noon to midnight; Monday through Thursday 3 p.m. to midnight; Friday and Saturday noon to 2 a.m.

Tiki Chick is a rare UWS spot that has made a name for itself outside of the neighborhood. The viral tiki bar offers tropical frozen cocktails and $5 chicken sandwiches. Best of all, it’s located on the corner of Amsterdam and West 85th Street, making it the perfect spot to begin an evening jaunt down Amsterdam Avenue.

Tiki Chick’s line wraps around the corner starting at 9 p.m., and according to the bouncer, it stays that way until the door closes at 1 a.m. Unlike most other places in the neighborhood, the crowd skews a little more commuter, earning a 50/50 ratio between Upper West Siders and New Yorkers from the rest of the city. Inside, you’ll hear the loud vibrations of whatever the top songs of the day are. They often have a movie projecting on their wall, and by 11 on a Friday or Saturday night, it’s standing room only. But the moody lighting and spot-on beach bar decorations make it the perfect destination for a frozen drink.

The Dead Poet 450 Amsterdam Avenue Hours: Saturday and Sunday noon to 4 a.m.; Monday through Thursday 2 p.m. to 4 a.m. Friday 1 p.m. to 4 a.m.

After you’ve finished pretending you’re on a tropical beach, while sipping pina coladas at Tiki Chick, just a few blocks away is the eternally chill and cozy atmosphere of The Dead Poet. Here, you can sit and drink for hours and enjoy the patio on a warm spring evening until it closes at midnight.

To an unassuming eye, this may seem like just another bar, but the spot combines a classic Irish pub atmosphere with adornments of literature; their signature cocktails are named after literary favorites. Even their drink menu is organized in chapters like a book. Patrons sit firmly between the Gen Z and millennial range, and most seem to live in apartments just a few blocks away. The bar is alive and well even around midnight on a Saturday night and may inspire a mid-evening break to discuss Edgar Allen Poe or just to enjoy their signature dish: microwave popcorn.

Owl’s Tail 215 West 75th Street Hours: Sunday 2 to 10 p.m.; Monday through Wednesday 4:30 to 11 p.m.; Thursday 4:30 p.m. to midnight; Friday 4 p.m. to midnight; Saturday 3 p.m. to midnight.

Owl’s Tail is the perfect place for people-watching. The open patio and windows are a great environment for observing the neighborhood, and their long menu of specialty cocktails gives you plenty of choices as you plot your next move. Especially when the weather is warm, the place can get pretty crowded, and the air is full of music and laughter floating from one table to another. Seated at the bar, outside, or at one of their many tables you can freely chat with your friends or the locals around you.

The decor is creative, with photos of owls of all kinds, and the lighting is a cozy level of dim. On a Saturday night, most of the customers are groups of girlfriends or couples trying the restaurant’s Guinness Espresso Martini, small plates, or lengthy wine menu.

Dive 75 101 West 75th Street Hours: 4 p.m. to 3:59 a.m.

To end the night, turn the corner onto West 75th Street and enjoy the whimsical dive bar atmosphere of the appropriately named Dive 75. In my experience, it gets crowded a bit later than other UWS venues and has no-skip 2000s music, with more of a millennial crowd.

The bar serves palomas with a rubber duck on top, grown-up Capri-Suns, and free candy alongside its impressive collection of beers. It’s dimly lit with red lighting, highlighted by the bright light of a real fish tank smack dab in the middle. As the evening creeps toward closing hour fewer patrons trickle in, but the friendly dive bar atmosphere continues, with a fun twist of adult-friendly nostalgia.

Salt & Straw 360 Amsterdam Avenue Hours: 11 a.m. to midnight.

If you take a stroll down Amsterdam Avenue after 10 p.m. you may notice that some of the most crowded places serve no cocktails but still draw a nightlife crowd – one hungry for ice cream, gelato, or frozen yogurt. The Amsterdam Avenue location of Salt & Straw is open til midnight, offering an Upper West Side way to end the night and still get home by 1 a.m.

There’s no reason a night on the UWS should mean a night in. Enjoying a break from the drunken crowds of downtown means taking a late-night stroll with Millennials, Gen Xers, and the occasional Columbia student. You’ll be surprised how late the restaurants and bars stay busy, but by 1 or 2 a.m. you can shuffle on home without the faintest hint of FOMO.

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