The best cocktail bars in the West Village - NYC

This Japanese-inspired drinking den ranked 3rd in North America's Best 50 Bars 2023 and can be found under an atmospherically pleasing flashing neon sign on Hudson Street.

With vintage posters of 80’s blockbusters splattering the walls, a checkerboard floor, and upbeat tunes, Katana Kitten blends grunge with a sweetness that results in a cheerfully deranged vibe.

A healthy assortment of sake, Japanese beer, and whisky is served by bartenders that, given a nudge, look like they can tailor a drink off the fly. The concise drinks menu is divided into highballs, boilermakers and signature cocktails featuring Japanese ingredients like their Amaretto Sour with wild turkey rye, honey, salted plum and yukari. The kitchen matches this, serving dishes like miso-mustard devilled eggs.

For a playful experience in an often overly serious bar scene, inquire now about exclusive hire for your next private event. And if you really like it, you can get yourself a Katana Kitten-themed baseball hat.

Kanpai!

A bonafide classic, Dante needs no introduction... and yet here we are.

Dante, nestled in the heart of the West Village, is less of a cocktail bar and more of a time machine, taking you back to an era when cocktails were king and Instagram was just a twinkle in a tech developer's eye. This century-old establishment has seen more trends come and go than most of us have had hot dinners. Here, the cocktails are crafted with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker and the flair of a Broadway showman.

The menu reads like a novel, with classics and Dante originals that might make you ponder life's great mysteries, like "Why have I never put a Negroni on tap before?" It's the kind of place where the bartenders likely know more about bitters than you do about your family history. A visit to Dante is not just a night out; it's a crash course in cocktail culture.

Once an East Village trailblazer and leader of the craft-cocktail renaissance, Tony Yoshida’s bar ended a three-decade run back in 2022 to the disappointment of many New Yorkers.

A few years later, Yoshida’s daughter, Erina, moved and reopened this snug speakeasy to a basement on Grove Street, with its old door and chandelier in tow.

Dimly lit, with an almost church-like atmosphere, Angel’s Share operates on its original strict Japanese-style etiquette. Smartly dressed bartenders cradling cocktail shakers work off a tight list of exceedingly nerdy cocktails. Blow torches, immersion blenders, a quick swish of the tweezers to perfect a garnish, and all under a mock-Tiepolo mural.

It's a mellow place of both formality and intimacy. Cocktails are taken seriously,—no Long Island iced tea here. Hard spirits are carefully smoked, infused or iced with ingredients such as soy sauce powder or rye whisky. Small bites include sashimi or crudo to accompany exotic plum wine.

Just remember, there are a few rules that are strictly (to put it mildly) enforced. Walk in only, no standing allowed and max. 4 people per party.

But, once you're in, count your lucky stars.

When the beloved local watering hole ‘Daddy O’ became victim to the pandemic, it was a tough act to follow. But a revamp brought Bandits to the WV drinking scene.

On a scale of ‘a nod to vintage New York’ to ‘some crazy 70’s dream’, Bandits sits firmly in the center. Yellow frilled light boxes and rotary phones adorn luxe booths as swivel bar stools sit below a gold disco ball. It’s a kitschy diner vibe, crossed with a dive bar, all while feeling like you've been dropped into a Jimmy Buffett song.

Plenty of cocktails are on offer, such as the popular Truth or Pear; chili-infused mezcal, pear, rosemary, lime and dehydrated blueberry salt. Diner-style dishes include loaded tater tots and a smash burger. Wash it down with a ‘dressed up beer’, aka beer and hot sauce.

Private hire is available nightly for groups of all sizes. Well, for up to 62 guests (30 indoors, 32 en plein air) so book now for a drink or two in the midst of busy Manhattan. You thirsty, thirsty New Yorkers.

Just across from the leafy Jefferson Market Garden, The Happiest Hour brings an easy-breezy-tiki-lounge-on-the-beach vibe to the West Village bar scene.

Opened by the brains behind NoMad Hotel and Pegu Club, it is said to be inspired by Mid-century California resorts. Picture flamingo tchotchkes, waiters in Chuck Taylors and bar staff grinding ice in short-sleeved Hawaiian shirts as drinkers guzzle mai tais and the “slushy du jour.”

But what anchors this place is how seriously it takes its grub, particularly the burgers, which is potentially (medium) rare for a cocktail bar. And while the visuals are strictly West Coast-inspired, the burger is 100% New York. Imagine the lovechild of I'N'Out and Shake Shack. It's extra cheesy with an onion confit and gets a lot of good press. Seriously. Loads. Google it.

Private or semi-private hire is available for up to 300 guests. And yes, there is happy hour from 5.30-6.30 on weekdays. So, if you can imagine yourself, rum cocktail in hand, thinking whimsical thoughts about palm trees, this one's for you.