Ear Inn

I really do not recall ever thinking to myself, «I want to find the oldest working bar in all of Manhattan» at any point in my years living here; fate just happened to bring me there at the end of a whiskey crawl that started at some much more cosmopolitan establishments.
A stroll to the far west side of the West Village brought me to Ear Inn at around midnight on a Friday. The entire bar was packed, the rear even more than the bar, patrons drinking and eating on in the very unassuming rear, old tables covered with white paper, glasses holding crayons topping them for any aspiring artists. We eventually just posted up at the bar and ordered some fried pork dumplings; for what they were, they were pretty tasty! Drinks were good and cheap; $ 7 for a pint of cider was okay, though, at that point in the evening, I was sticking strictly to water. (Haaa.)
This place is pretty cool, the history is long, and though it’s a pain in the butt to get to, transportation-​wise, I’d want to revisit to really see what it’s all about.

Since when does a dive bar decide to prohibit talking on your cell phone? This is not fine dining. Just stupid. The Bass Ale was flat. Bartender did not impress but she did offer to trade off my Bass for a shot or another beer which was considerate.
Moderately busy on a Wednesday afternoon. Local dive bar; not worth a long walk. Been around forever. Did not try the food. Don’t recall the background music.

Love The Ear
Besides McSorley’s, the Ear Inn is my favorite bar in Manhattan. The quintessential old school New York joint. Small cool bar area, hard working kitchen banging out some really great simple dishes, and an eclectic rowdy clientele to say the least.
Distressed original wood floors from the 1800’s, the floor is a bit slanted due to how old it really is. The bar is still using the old register from the I think the 50’s. I think they finally take credit cards now.
It really is a must visit if you want to experience what makes New York such a great place.
If you a beer, steak, potatoes, and nostalgia kind of person. You’ll love The Ear
Thanks, don’t ever change

Had a great time here the other, I love old school bars that remind me oh things used to be, and should be. The bartenders were awesome, and they had Leffe and they made me a wonderful Manhatten, the best part of the night was when they handed out musical for everyone to sing along with the live band.

This place is pretty cool. It’s your average dive bar with historic value. There’s tons of stuff hanging on the walls like a garage sale exploded here. The place was pretty packed with customers on a random weeknight. My friend and I came in here to get out from the rain and have a couple beers. The prices were average about $ 7 – 8 for a pint. The waitresses were old school and could probably be considered «career waitresses» at this point. There’s nothing trendy or hip about this place. There might as well be a sign that says «If this isn’t your scene, fuck off.»
I could see this becoming my neighborhood bar if I lived around here. Nothing to come across town for though.

Nice chill place to be. Out of the way from most things so it seems like lots of the neighborhood folks are here. Bartender is very sarcastic so takes a bit to warm up to him. My friend wasn’t having it and he changed it up for her. Cuz he could tell she was turned off overall we had a good time. I would go here again when someone wants to go check out Jazz in city.
They have food. So I may eat there next time I go.

The Ear Inn is a reminder of the old New York, when Cornelius Vanderbilt hustled his trade on the Battary, poling his scow across the waters of the harbor, long before Grand Central Station was built and the Bowery was still a farm.
We came here last night. At first I was a little turned off by the people milling around outside: I thought it was a line and I was like, «I aint waiting in line for anything in this city.» But it was just people standing outside drinking their beers.
Inside, it’s a chockful of stuff crammed into the shelves collapsing off the walls, covered in decades upon decades of dust. The floorboards are worn and crooked, and everything seems to be creaking and on the verge of collapse. The building itself is a two and half story Federal era house, with the dust too being from the Federal era. There’s a history written on the menu, but I was too busy slugging back pints to care — and the Guinness is the best in the city, the head carefully crafted, and they let it sit FOREVER, but it was well worth the wait. The pints are huge, real pints, not the rip-​off pints peddled elsewhere.
I would describe this place as possessing the same «charm» and atmosphere of McSorley’s, but minus the tourists (I still love McSorley’s, though).

Although the music was great it was one of my worst bar experiences in NYC so far. The bartenders, yes plural, where very rude! The whole atmosphere at the bar was dominated by it. So for great music, please go and see it somewhere else!!!
It’s not worth the annoyance…