Blue & Gold Tavern

Cool bar that’s divey but not dirty. Cheap drinks. Good vibes. Pool table. Booth seating available.

My local in the mid 1980’s with Christina and Wanda behind the bar! From the photos it hasn’t changed at all-​In NYC that’s quite an achievement and surely A GOOD THING. If the vibe’s the same then it’s a 5 star bar. I doubt the Rolling Rock is still a dollar a bottle though.

Blue & Gold is truly one of the diviest dive bars still left in Manhattan. I’ve come here a few times for friend’s birthdays, to meet up with someone or for a quick nightcap. No need for happy hour because drinks are no more than $ 4 – 5 a pop — and this includes Makers Mark and Grey Goose. Pretty crazy, huh? This isn’t a beer snob’s bar — this is a «we’re getting turnt on liquor tonight» kind of establishment.
Pool table in the back for $ 1 games, booths for small group seating, plenty of bar stools all over the place, TVs upfront and in a few of the corners plus a not-​so-​sanitary bathroom make this one of the quintessential East Village bars to hit up in Manhattan.
Warning though if you’re traveling in a large pack — Blue & Gold does get very crowded and when people are situated inside, they usually hang out there for a lengthy period of time. I have come here with a 4 – 5 person squad and been turned away because they’re filled to capacity — so if you’re coming here late on a Friday or Saturday night, it might not hurt to have a back-​up place as well.
4 stars for the cheap drinks and very efficient bar service.

One of the best dives in the city. A Genny for $ 3 (and $ 4 for a Narragansett) and single malts for $ 5? It’s hard to go wrong with prices like that and a pool table in the back. As a result, it will be stuffed to the gills by the end of the night, but before 7−8pm the crowd is usually light even on a Friday night.
If you can score one of the few booths, you’ll be all set though. Don’t forget to BYO checkers if you want to use the boards painted on the booth tables — though I doubt many people use them as such!
The jukebox keeps the music fun and interesting, so don’t expect any top 40s when you’re there.
Cash only of course.

This place is great if you’re looking for a certain type of dive. When my roommate and I come home after a day and want to go for a drink this is our go to. 5 dollar whisky and good prices on pitchers too. Incredible prices actually. Bartender is no nonsense and the crowd is usually pretty decent quality. Come to shoot pool and drink whisky in bar that will take you back to a different time in the East Village.

Spot was good but my friend was ruthlessly tossed from the bar on the account of packing a dip.

Love this place. Well priced drinks and a relaxed vibe. Cash only but you won’t need a lot because it’s not expensive!

One of my favorite dive bars in NYC. Great cheap drinks, good tunes on the jukebox that loud enough to hear, but quit enough that you don’t have to shout to talk to your friends. They have a pool table in the back, and AMAZING bartenders. Friendly and knowledgeable.

Hands down some of the cheapest drinks you’ll find anywhere in Manhattan. A very very casual dive bar, quite popular (although we were lucky enough to snag a table and stay there for most of the night!). I’d say the average drink (no matter what you’re getting) is about $ 5…which, c’mon, you can’t argue with that!
One of the most interesting bathrooms I’ve been to. Graffiti on graffiti.

Went here with my wife who was an NYU undergrad in the 80s back when the village was the village. Stopped in for a look today Although the neighborhood has changed so much she says the Blue and Gold hasn’t. It’s the remnants of a vanishing and soon to be lost New York

Blue & Gold Tavern
NY: Manhattan: East Village
11:59pm 21^st November 2015
Five F*ing Stars
This is the best dive bar in East Village and perhaps the best dive bar in Manhattan. The Patriot Saloon is still my favorite, mainly because of proximity to my apartment. Everything is basically under $ 5 except picklebacks (its like 5 for the shot and $ 1 for juice). They sell Scotch for $ 5. I got a Glenlivet for $ 5 since they were out of McCallans. Its crowded but not crazy. We found a table in the back, drank until the table was filled with empty glass, talked until our voices were hoarse, and watched some terrible pool playing. They have the billiards rules so they isn’t any fighting. You should not come here because you will want to come back againa and again. I bet you with bring your space filling friends.
Cash Only.

This is literally my favorite bar in the city. Dive to the max with cheap drinks, cash only, appropriately cranky bartender. $ 5 scotch menu. Cheesy jukebox. And that’s just the way it is. This place is not over planned. Love love love.

A great bar if you are into whiskey. Prices are very low. This looks like a very poplar bar. When I was there, it was extremely crowded, but not to there point where the experience was bad.
If you are not into whiskey, they also have beer and other choices so you can still hang out with your whiskey loving friends.
In addition, they have a pool table in the back so you can do more than just hang out, drink and chat if that’s what you’re into.

I’ve found my soulmate
Drinks so cheap you will detest
Every other bar

This is a pretty mediocre hole in the wall place to go if you somehow have no other place to go in the city with the most active nightlife in the US. Sorry if you are in that spot.
I had been to this lil shithole a few times before with no problem. But this time I had the pleasure of dealing with a particular asshole bartender. When I presented my very legal ID to the guy, he asked for a credit card to confirm my identity.
I’m sorry I am Brazilian and may not look like an indigenous latin person that you imagine when you hear such a last name, but I assure you you don’t need to give me a credit check to make sure I am who I present myself to be. None of my other friends had such an ordeal but I guess its an ok practice? Not racist right?
So the night goes on and I tip the lovely bartender every single drink I order [about 4], because I am not an asshole and I am with friends.
Towards the end of the night I order another drink and he says I shouldn’t leave my drinks on the floor– I had played pool for 10 minutes and alternated between putting it down and drinking it after my shot each time. I told him that and he just scoffed despite my consistent tipping and otherwise fine attitude. Then he went and played pool himself, leaving the bar unarmed. That’s ok yeah?
Moral is: if you are unfortunately coming to this terrible bar, hope that the white racist guy isn’t the bartender, otherwise you are in for a lot more of a headache then it seems to bargain. Cheaper bars in manhattan seem to generally be suspect

It was a simple bar that did the job.
My friend and I came in here to get some drinks before heading to a hookah bar to end our night and it was just that. The bartender made some solid drinks so I wasn’t disappointed and they weren’t served in plastic cups like a dive bar so that’s a bonus. The pool table looked well maintained so I do recommend this for people who want to drink and play pool and they had the house rules listed on the wall which means some people actually care about the sport. The bathroom was a little messy but it’s NYC so yeah that’s no surprise and the bar top was quite small so be prepared to stand. The low light and the dingy alternative feel isn’t the worst and it definitely feels like a bar you can drink your sorrows away in lol
My big complaint on this spot is there above bar menu. It’s super complicated to read or to even see at that. Definitely go into this bar knowing what you want to drink … Not a place I would leave it up to the bartender. Also though good job with the beer selection and the spirits where basic. so maybe jazz it up a little. You guys look like a perfect neighborhood bar so I’m sure your regulars must love you but for a person just walking by it would be great to enjoy this bar more then just for the aesthetic and more for the experience.

Great place to party, bartenders are a lot of fun. Drinks are perfect. Words can only speak so much go and tey it for yourself

I love you. Classic dive bar, amazing bartender (even when you get locked in the bathroom), friendly people…
Please never change.
Don’t come in here if you’re looking for a dance party — you’ll ruin our fun.

Five. Dollar. (almost) Top. Shelf. Scotch. Here’s looking at you Laphroig. A decent pour of Laphroig neat for five dollars. Yes. Yes. Yes.
High gravity beer and Jäger or Fireball for 7 $ or 8 $
It’s not so great when it’s crowded.
It’s freaking brilliant when you and your friends want to drink like kings but have jobs that pay you like paupers.
It’s brilliant if you are middle class and have alcoholic tendencies.
If you’re rich you should only really be here after you’re already drunk and you and your rich friends are slumming it.
Here’s to the bourgeois!
Thanks Blue & Gold!

The Blue & Gold might just be THE quintessential East Village dive bar.
Located on a quiet stretch of East 7^th, you pretty much know what you’re in for as soon as you step through the door: absurdly cheap drinks, horribly cramped pool table (sooner or later, someone is gonna get whacked with a cue stick), and bathrooms that should be declared a Superfund site.
I’ve been here at least a half dozen times over the past few years and never had a bad experience (well…there WAS the shot of warm slivovitz, but that was my own doing). $ 3 house lager, $ 5-​$ 6 shot and beer combos (the Genny Cream and Jim Beam «Redneck’ is a favorite) and healthy pours of top shelf liquor & single malts for $ 5 a glass.
It’s rarely over-​packed though fair warning when frequenting in the summer months: even with the air conditioning and rickety fans, it can get downright sweltering in there.