There is a particular kind of warmth that only exposed brick delivers. Not the polished grandeur of marble or the cool minimalism of poured concrete — but something earthier and more honest. In New York, where every neighbourhood once housed garment factories, printing houses, and livery stables, bare brick walls carry a century of city memory. The best bars understand this. They build their whole atmosphere around it.
We spent three weeks revisiting 28 bars across Manhattan and Brooklyn, specifically hunting for spaces where the brick is not a design afterthought but the centrepiece. These 12 bars are the ones that got it right. Candles on the bar, amber-soaked lighting, and serious cocktails in rooms that feel carved out of the city's own bones.
Why Exposed Brick Works in a Bar
Brick absorbs sound. It softens the acoustic edge that tile and glass create, giving a room a warmer, more intimate register. That matters in a city where every new bar seems to echo. The best cocktail bars in New York know that what you hear is as important as what you drink.
Brick also holds heat. In winter, a room with exposed masonry stays warmer in a way that feels genuine rather than engineered. And under the right lighting — low and amber — the texture of old mortar and fired clay becomes genuinely beautiful. It rewards the second look.
"The brick is not decoration. It is the room. When you take that seriously, everything else follows."
The 12 Best Exposed Brick Bars in New York City
01 — EDITOR'S PICK
Attaboy
Lower East Side$$$No reservations
The room is small enough that the brick feels close — almost intimate. No menu here. Tell the bartender what you like and they build something for you. The combination of that policy and those walls creates an atmosphere unlike anything else on the Lower East Side. Go before 10pm to actually get in.
02
Maison Premiere
Williamsburg$$$Reservations recommended
Absinthe and oysters in a room that feels like a Parisian garden house translated into Brooklyn brownstone. The exposed brick archways at the back of the room are among the most photographed architectural details in Brooklyn. The cocktail programme is serious and the absinthe selection runs to 37 labels.
03
The Dead Rabbit
Financial District$$$Walk-in, first floor
Three floors, each with their own personality, all wrapped in brick from a building that dates to 1828. The taproom downstairs is pure Irish pub warmth — rough brick, low ceilings, and a Guinness that justifies the detour. Upstairs, the Parlour serves a drinks programme that has placed on the World's 50 Best Bars list five times.
04
Employees Only
West Village$$$Late night kitchen until 3:30am
Behind an unmarked door on Hudson Street, the original speakeasy-chic cocktail bar that influenced a thousand imitators. The brick here is plastered in parts and exposed in others, creating a patchwork texture that somehow feels exactly right. The bartenders are among the most technically skilled in the city and keep working until nearly 4am.
05
The Wren
NoHo$$Open 4pm daily
A neighbourhood bar with serious cocktails and one of the most satisfying brick walls in the city — deep red, slightly rough, lit from below. The cocktail list changes seasonally. The spirit list is longer than most restaurants in Manhattan. This is the kind of place you tell people about when they move to the city.
06
Amor y Amargo
East Village$$Bitters-focused menu
A 20-seat room with brick walls painted black, a menu built entirely around bitters and amaros, and one of the most knowledgeable bar teams in New York. Everything here is intentional. The bar itself seats 8, and if you sit at it, you will learn more about spirits in one evening than from months of reading.
Lower East Side Standouts
The Lower East Side has more exposed brick per square block than anywhere in the city. The neighbourhood's former tenement buildings — built with the red clay brick fired in upstate New York kilns — are now home to some of the city's most celebrated bars. If you are planning a night in this part of town, our hidden gem bars guide for New York has 12 more worth knowing.
07
Forgtmenot
Lower East Side$$Open until 4am
The name has no space and neither does the bar. At capacity it holds perhaps 35 people, and the brick walls on either side make it feel even smaller — in the best way. Strong cocktails, a playlist that is always correct, and a staff that remembers what you ordered last time.
08
Nitecap
Lower East Side$$$Reservations available
The brick ceiling — vaulted and cream-painted — is the architectural feature at Nitecap. The bar sits below street level, which gives it the light-sealed quality of a proper late-night room. The cocktail menu is structured around strength: it tells you which drinks are lighter and which are built for the committed drinker.
Brooklyn's Best Brick Bars
Brooklyn's bar scene grew up in converted factories and warehouses, and brick is fundamental to the aesthetic of neighbourhoods like Williamsburg, Bushwick, and Red Hook. Many of the city's finest craft beer bars in New York are located in these converted industrial buildings, their brick walls original and unretouched.
09
Threes Brewing
Gowanus$$Walk-in, all ages until 9pm
A brewery and taproom in a converted industrial space in Gowanus, where the brick is the original factory wall from 1907. The beer is excellent. The room is large enough to move around in but small enough to feel like you have found something. The outdoor space in summer is one of the better places to spend a warm Brooklyn evening.
10
Lot 45
Williamsburg$$Open until 4am
One of the original late-night bars in the neighbourhood, and still one of the best. The brick here has been painted over twice and the paint is now chipping off in long strips, revealing layers of history. The effect is entirely accidental and entirely perfect. Strong cocktails at prices that make you appreciate Brooklyn.
11
Weather Up
Prospect Heights$$$Cocktails and beer only
A neighbourhood cocktail bar that punches above its classification. The brick walls are original to the building and lit with a warmth that makes the amber spirits glow. The menu is short — 10 cocktails — and every one is considered. It is the kind of bar that becomes your local if you are lucky enough to live nearby.
12
Clover Club
Carroll Gardens$$$Reservations recommended
A properly grand bar in Carroll Gardens, with Romanesque arched brick and a cocktail programme that draws on the history of the American bar. The vintage spirits selection is exceptional — the bar stocks pre-Prohibition bourbon and rum that you genuinely cannot find anywhere else in the city. Go for the atmosphere, stay for the Clover Club itself.
When to Go and What to Order
The best time to experience these bars is during the week, between 7pm and 9pm. The rooms are quieter, the lighting settles into something more atmospheric, and the bartenders have more time. Weekends at most of these places become crowded enough that the architecture disappears behind the crowd.
At the cocktail-focused bars on this list, order something spirit-forward: Old Fashioneds, Negronis, and Manhattans all look exactly right in these rooms and give the bartenders something serious to work with. If you are at Threes or another brewery taproom, ask what was kegged that week. The freshest beer is almost always the best thing to drink.
For more ways to spend an evening in this part of the city, our guide to the best date night bars in New York covers 14 rooms across all five boroughs. Several of them overlap with this list.
Getting to Know New York's Bar Districts
Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn's northern neighbourhoods contain the highest concentration of historic brick architecture in the city. If you are planning a bar tour focused on atmosphere and design, start in the West Village, work your way east through NoHo and the East Village, cross into the Lower East Side for the late-night options, and finish in Williamsburg. Most of these stops are within walking distance of each other, or a short subway ride. For more in-depth planning, see our bar-hopping guide to Manhattan.
