36 reviews for Central Bar

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  Jan 10, 2011 by by Hjk103 at Citysearch

  I had my birthday party here last weekend and had a great time. I reserved a few tables upstairs (for free) which was well worth it since it got pretty crowded by the end of the night. Regardlss, we all loved the bar, the dancing, the drink prices, and had an overall great time. The staff was very accommodating and helpful when my friend lost her purse, which was very much appreciated. I will definitely be coming back again soon, and will recommend this bar to my friends and coworkers.

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  Jan 09, 2011 by by JG81 at Citysearch

  I will never go back. Staff was extremely rude and the food was awful. It's a shame given the place has a lot of potential.

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  Mar 08, 2010 by by Athena Chang at Citysearch

  What a great bar especially for watching soccer! I know I am not European but it is always fun to come here, get Irish brunch and watch some European soccer games. In addition, they play regular football, College basketball games and so on. There are two floors and the top floor turns into a lounge/dance area on weekend nights. There is always good music, good flow of drinks going around and no cover charge at all times!

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  Mar 01, 2010 by by Ed T at Citysearch

  Could be the biggest bunch of morons handling the line in the city. One guy, who looks like Shrek, got roid rage while I was in line and chased off half the line. Will never go back, my second bad experience with the bouncers there.

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  Oct 08, 2009 by by BBarbee at Citysearch

  Loved the calamari!

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  Oct 08, 2009 by by billiejean at Citysearch

  Food and drink prices are reasonable. Cool atmosphere. Good service.

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  Oct 08, 2009 by by SavvyEventsInc at Citysearch

  I planned a very successful after-work fundraiser for a client at The Central Bar. The upstairs space is beautifully decorated, with a lounge and bar area, in addition to DJ booth. Service was great and food and drink prices didn't break the budget. I would definitely plan another event here.

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  Oct 07, 2009 by by cestlavi at Citysearch

  This place has become one of my staples - they have some of the best bar food I've ever had! Fully stacked bar, friendly staff, no attitude like a lot of other popular bars in the city. Great place to chill for a beer after work or hang out on a Sunday. Also came out to watch a soccer game, this has gotta be the best place in town to do it!

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  Oct 06, 2009 by by mandy1111 at Citysearch

  This place was awesome! I came with a group of girls for a hot night on out, we had a blast! We thought we'd stay for a drink or 2 but ended having so much fun that we stayed all night! There's an awesome DJ on saturday, we danced our asses off!! Come here for drinks, you'll definitely have fun!

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  Jan 11, 2009 by by LNO at Citysearch

  I have never seen anything in the city more awful then this....... This is an Irish Pub, Guinness Sign on the front and all, yet they feel the need to hold a line with literally black rope around it, when the bar is not even full for status quo. On top of this the door men, and yes that's right there are door men for the pub, are rude and degrading. I have been to my fair share of trendy clubs and have never experienced such awful people. The bar itself is a dingy, small run of the mill bar. I would suggest keep walking, Central Bar is nowhere to even waste your time. They might want to consider going back to their roots.

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  Nov 14, 2008 by by ohcmtemp at Citysearch

  For your big European cup events, where you have the buffer of fifty Man U. fans singing drunken footie ballads at 10 AM, it's fine & a fun place to be. The ambiance is warm, the food is good. HOWEVER. If you are even remotely pretty, DO NOT COME HERE ON THURSDAY NIGHTS. It started at the door, where the 400 lb. buffalo started my visit by telling me off just for the sake of making small talk, and made creepy comments at my friend. He then comes in the bar later in the night, hovers around us, and leers at my friend, and makes cr&p talk at her. CREEPSTER BARTENDER: all night - commented on my license, my name, my jewelry, starts touching my possessions - cigarettes, lip gloss, metrocard, waving my stuff around, picking fights with the other customers, grabs my hand. Showing off and trying to get our attention. Eewwww. I've been drinking in New York for nearly ten years, and going to soccer bars religiously for three. The *only* time I felt like my friends and I were treated like prostitutes ALL. NIGHT. LONG. Please, please, please turn the corner onto Third and go to Nevada Smith's. No food and underwhelming ambiance, but the good footie is always on, and the employees are always gentlemen.

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  Sep 26, 2008 by by aerogal619 at Citysearch

  Now this is my kind of place! When you walk in, the downstairs is a pub-style, college hangout. Mahogany wood, exposed brick and a real laid-back feel. Upstairs offers a trendy dance club where mostly early twenty-somethings come on the weekend to let loose. Great hip-hop, 80?s hits, old school rap- all the tunes I love to groove to. We stayed until it closed, which NYC bars are usually around 4 am. The drink prices weren?t outrageous, but typical New York. Take a group of friends, you won?t be disappointed!

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  May 09, 2008 by by Shuhlay at Citysearch

  On a Thursday night around 230 am, my girl and I were finishing up our tab and were kissing on one of the back couches. Not making out, not groping, nothing gross. The bartender shouts from across the bar "GIRLS!" (in that mother scolding tone of voice). I ask him what was up and apparently he was worried that the 5 other guys there would get "too excited seeing 2 girls make out" so we needed to stop. We argued, I asked him for his name so I could speak with manager the next day and he refused to give it. Luckily, he was hitting on my friends earlier in the night so I got his name from them. I went to college in the area, I mostly go out to straight bars, and I've never encountered anything like that before.

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  Apr 04, 2008 by by rt246 at Citysearch

  I hate this place. I was there on a saturday night with friends. Beyond the fact that the place has no real ambience at all, it was really crowded, and everyone there looked about 12. If you want to be in a crowded bar with a bunch of college kids, this is your spot.

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  Mar 31, 2008 by by JohnnyCaz at Citysearch

  What a fest. Went to Central Bar on a Friday night to meet some college friends in from Boston. Lets just say that I hope they went to another spot before they left NYC or else they would have left with a negative view of NYC nightlife. Arrogant bouncers, slow service, and the feeling of being in a tropical forest forced us out after one drink.

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  Mar 29, 2008 by by EdTravis at Citysearch

  I went to a birthday party at Central Bar on a Saturday night. First of all, the bouncer was nasty. Had an attitude from the time that I first stood in line. When I finally got to the door, he put a stamp on my hand, that faded when I washed my hands in the place. After finishing my first drink that I waited atleast ten minutes at the bar for, I went outside to smoke a cigarette, and when I tried to get back in the bouncer gave me a hard time and said that I drew the mark on. I convinced him that wasnt the case, closed out my tab, wished my friend a happy birthday and left. A real downer to what should have been a great Saturday night.

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  Apr 01, 2007 by by pjancz at Citysearch

  Central bar is ok. It's generally a pre-gaming place and the crowd turns over after mid night and not in a good way. If you are a guy, expect the bartenders to make you wait until he's served every girl that cuts ahead of you, so guys, send your girls to get the drinks. Drinks are average, crowd is average, bar itself is pretty roomy but it can get really crowded on some nights.

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  Mar 12, 2007 by by cobraman332 at Citysearch

  Central Bar doesn't excite the New Yorker who has been around for more than six months. It's your average college-type party scene with an upper level dedicated to dancing and 18-23 year-olds mixing, mingling, and possibly making out. The drink prices are the same as other similar locations in Murray Hill like Mercury Bar, but a little less than Tonic. Central Bar isn't as trendy or edgy as those since it is advertised as an "Irish Pub"... but although this place may be Irish by day, at night it slips into the mainstream of NYC meet markets. On nights when the place isn't packed you won't have any problems at the door but if it gets crowded you may be in a difficult situation. A great place for meeting friends, Central Bar gets pretty hot inside when the air conditioning isn't on full blast. If you're in the area, stop by and gauge the scene... it's frequently filled with the NYU crowd (often the dorkier crowd unfortunately) looking to get lucky... in that case I'd say move on and head to any number of better bars in the area. At least there's no cover...

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  Dec 30, 2006 by by b00pi3flak3s at Citysearch

  Central Bar is all about reliving your college days while bopping your head to 80s music. This place most definitely rocks but only when its not overly crowded.

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  Oct 19, 2006 by by mnasatka at Citysearch

  If you can bust a move, the upstairs has a roomy dance floor where the early 20s crowd gets loose on the weekend. Only a handful of "bars" have this kind of open dance space in the city. And the music is a great hip-hop, pop, dance blend. Be forewarned, you might feel out of place after a few years out of college. Until then, enjoy the friendly crowd and mix it up with the many singles here.

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  Apr 15, 2006 by by essenzeit at Citysearch

  Okay, I have tried this place twice, both times for brunch. Maybe the mangement does not really care about brunch business, but the service was a nightmare. The friendly but a.d.d. bartender/server was kind of hard to track down. If you wanted anything you had to find her. On both of my visits I went for Irish breakfast and to watch premiership football. The food was mediocre, there are definetly better ones in town. As for the game the first time they did not have it on, the second time the turned off Everton-Tottenham on the 79th min 1-0! For espn sports center. What kind of so called soccerbar would do that?

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  Mar 08, 2006 by by j91979 at Citysearch

  To start off, the service was extremely slow. The employees could have been more attentive and polite. They never came to us to see if we needed anything we had to keep getting there attention, 15 minutes later our drinks would come. Drinks were pretty expensive, with no buy back deals. More of a place to go to lunch then to hang out at night

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  Feb 16, 2006 by by lindseynagel at Citysearch

  I had fun at Central... I was with a large group and they played good music. The crowd seemed fun. It was really crowded but drinks were pretty easy to get. We spent most of our time upstairs. It had more of a lounge feel to it and there was room to dance. Downstairs had a bit more of a bar atmosphere. My only con is that the bouncers need to check their egos at the door. They were rude to my friends that were being polite at the door as well as inside. Considering the fact that this is Central Bar and not Marquee, I would think the bouncers would be a little more friendly.

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  Feb 08, 2006 by by salzere at Citysearch

  why the line to get in? noisy, crowded, tough to get drinks - there are better places to go without waiting to get in...Pass it. It's not even a real Irish bar!

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  Jan 18, 2006 by by jewelz129 at Citysearch

  Went to Central for a friends birthday. Downstairs is a really laid-back bar, upstairs is where the dancing action takes place! DJ played eclectic mix of music from hiphop, reggae, top 40's, to really old school stuff as well. Got really crowded from 12-1:30, then crowd lightened up a little bit. Loved how the atmospher was super casual, no fuss getting in. Reminded me of a cooler/nicer version of a college bar.

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  Aug 31, 2005 by by jackryan at Citysearch

  I've been here quite a few times and don't have that many complaints about it. It's a good irish place with a lot of beers on tap. Young 20's crowd. Music is the hip/hop, new with some retro in. There is a dance floor upstairs you can mingle on... Only downside I think is that sometimes it smells like cow pasture. I checked the floor but didn't see any meadow muffins.....maybe they're hide someplace else but I definantly smelled em. You'll see random people you know here to. People pop in and out all nite.

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  Aug 05, 2005 by by return_of_the_can at Citysearch

  Hosted a birthday party here with a friend and reserved the upstairs lounge - no open bar needed, and no drink minimum. The music was good, everone was dancing, and the drinks were well priced. More than a few people who had never been told me they'd be heading back the next weekend with their friends. Good for both large groups or intimate nights out if you don't mind the music or the crowds.

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  May 09, 2005 by by dtushing at Citysearch

  I was there last Thursday, the place was hopping and the DJ was spinning 80's and Disco music. Great nite. Thanks guys, I'll be back.

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  Mar 27, 2005 by by punky21 at Citysearch

  We met some friends here on a Saturday night at around 10pm. The music was good and the bar seemed pretty laid back. BUT... the barback took away a friend's glass that was 3/4 full. When we explained the situation to the bartender he grabbed another half empty beer from the end of the bar and suggested she drink that. That could have been anyone's beer! He was extremely rude and told us to talk to the other bartender. The other bartender was much nicer and gave my friend a full beer... and even a buy back later on. The rude bartender continued his miserable attitude all night.

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  Jan 03, 2005 by by sumeetee at Citysearch

  i end up at this bar at least once a week it is so great. as packed as it always gets, i never wait for a drink and the prices are reasonable for the area. the DJ is great too. i always end up bringing my friends there and have yet to have a bad experience. the setup is ideal, downstairs offers a spacious bar and if you feel like gettin a little crazy and dancing, just head up upstairs.

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  Dec 06, 2004 by by leschukm at Citysearch

  This bar is great but it gets ridiculously crowded. Very cool space and pretty cheap drinks but the service definately suffers as the hours go on and more people come.

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  Oct 20, 2004 by by imanning at Citysearch

  My husband and I arranged to meet a group of friends here before dinner and we loved it. The service and atmosphere were great. The bar is casual, fun and had the New York feel that we wanted since we were visiting from out of town. The crowd didn't make us feel too old or young. We'll definitely be back next time we come to the city!

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  Oct 04, 2004 by by chewypie at Citysearch

  Stay far away from here on Saturdays nights unless you like a meatmarket with bridge and tunnel kids, annoying R&B music and to wait 20 minutes for a drink.

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  Aug 20, 2003 by by Mr_Fredo at Citysearch

  Ordinary is the only word I can think of to describe this bar/pub. We have Puck Fair already, go there if you like this type of crowd/place.

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  May 21, 2003 by by briangormally at Citysearch

  I found the music and the service very refreshing from the usual irish watering hole. The Central Bar has a very relaxed vibe, that is condusive for good drinking.This joint has a kickin' dance space upstairs which is open every thursday, friday and sat. night. On a busy night this bar looks like an out take from cocktail. These guys have the flips , spins and catchs (and looks) that Tom Cruise would be envious of. Central Bar is truly a revolutonary Irish bar for the 21st century. Its only a matter of time before thje lower east sides' best kept secret is exposed, so check it out before the b+t crowd take over

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  Mar 12, 2003 by by ckienle at Citysearch

  Ahh, the Central Bar. I just relocated to the area and am a 30something -- not a 20something -- so I suppose I'm a bit older than the average demographic in this perfect setting for everything from drinking to playing chess to dancing. The bartenders work hard to provide attentive service while revelling with the customers both in front of and behind the bar. If you have a large group and everyone wants something different -- some want food, others a lounge, others to dance -- this is your best bet. Drink prices are higher than your average Irish watering hole, so watch out - a long night here will definitely cost you. And even though the young self-important suits from NYU business school can rile nerves, the place draws an eclectic crowd and caters to everyone. Give it a shot! (And have a few too!)