The Elgin

The Elgin sits at 64 West 48th Street, south of Rockefeller Center and a short walk from the Broadway houses and Times Square. One note before you go: despite how some listings file it, the room is in Midtown West, not the Upper West Side. If you are heading uptown, this is not your stop. If you want a solid bar inside the theater-and-tourist grid that locals still rate, it is.

The format is upscale American tavern. Elevated plates from the kitchen, a long bar, and a drinks list that leans hardest into whiskey, classic cocktails, and a wide beer roster. The building carries a small piece of city history: the site was once part of the Elgin Botanical Garden that Dr David Hosack founded in the early 1800s, which is where the name comes from.

Who would love it: anyone needing a dependable, grown-up drink near 49th Street before or after a show. Who would not: anyone after a scene or a destination cocktail den. The Elgin is a well-run neighborhood bar dropped into one of the busiest blocks in the country, and it plays that role rather than chasing the World's 50 Best crowd downtown.

Lead with the whiskey list; it is the deepest part of the program and the reason to sit at the bar rather than a table. Order a classic built straight, an Old Fashioned or a Manhattan, and judge the bar on the pour. The cocktail menu rotates by season, and there is a broad beer selection for anyone who wants to keep it simple before curtain. Pair drinks with the kitchen's tavern plates; the food here is a real part of the visit, not an afterthought.

Expect a mix of after-work Midtown professionals, theater-goers timing a pre-show drink, and visitors fresh off Fifth Avenue. It runs busiest in the early evening on weekdays and around show times. Best for a pre-theater drink, an out-of-towner who wants a reliable bar near the hotels, or a relaxed dinner at the bar. Less suited to a quiet late-night nightcap, since the block empties after the shows let out.

Keep the night in Midtown. Walk to Bar Centrale in New York, the discreet industry haunt above Joe Allen in the Theater District, settle into the St Regis classic King Cole Bar in New York for a Red Snapper, or go deep on the spirit at The Flatiron Room in New York and its hundreds of whiskeys. For more options nearby, see our New York cocktail bars guide and the full New York bar guide.