La Biblioteca

Really cool spot to get your diversified tequilas in midtown area.
Loungey feel. I dig

The place is basically in the basement. Super dark, with the music mix that made my eye twitch– Metallica followed by 3 or 4 Shakira songs. Like, seriously? It wasn’t contributing to the way the place is designed to represent itself at all.
Drinks are expensive– $ 17, $ 18. Wouldn’t say it was something special, though.
For happy hour you get only margaritas, I think 3 kinds (regular, frozen and something else) and that’s it.
The waitress was super nice, but I don’t think I’ll ever go back.

Tamarind margarita was excellent. Reverse happy hour has good prices and menu options. Only issue was our waitress disappeared after the food came out. We had to go looking for her in order to get our check.

Crowded but a very good happy hour scene with good drink specials and small plates…
But FYI the plates are very very small. The price point is $ 5 — $ 9 so it’s what you would expect in NYC.

Stopped in on a Saturday night to celebrate a friend’s birthday. We sat down in a seating area and were there for quite some time and the waiter never bothered to come over. But he ran over to a couple that sat down across from us and was there before their butts barely hit the seats. The music was just awful. Who plays Britney Spears followed by Metallica? The mix of the crowd was just weird. I doubt I would ever go back.

I would say this place is a bit pricey for my taste. But I did enjoy the fact that my friends and I came on a Friday night yet we still were able to find space for ourselves. Also the music isn’t blaring in your ears so we could actually hold a conversation with each other which was nice.
The service was a bit sluggish as well, not as attentive as they could’ve been but our waiter was very kind so that made it a little better.
We ordered a bottle of red wine — Chardonnay — if I remember correctly and it ran about $ 60 after tax. I’m not a fan of red but I did enjoy this one more than usual. It wasn’t too dry for my taste.

Great happy hour, great drinks… The tacos were amazing (more so the steak over the chicken). All of The flat breads were good, especially the eggplant and the short ribs. They supposedly have the most tequila in this restaurant than any other restaurant in the US. we ended the night with a churro platter and it made me think if street churros, soooo good. The service was great, and overall a great dining experience. Definitely coming back

I was passing by and decided to just get a drink at the bar.
OMG! They have such good Caipirinhas!
I havent tried the food, but Ill come back for that!
Interesting and very big place. with 2 bars.

Impeccable. I am in love with this place. The service was outstanding as well as the food. The quality definitely did me match the prices as the prices were so low for such great quality food.
The ambiance was so beautiful, perfect for a date. Their selection of tequila was amazing as well– apparently they have the largest selection of tequila in the world.
Love love love, will definitely come back again and again and again!

Right before karaōke decided to stop in here for a quick bite and drink. We were a bit confused since it’s 2 restaurants in one. Biblioteca is through the first restaurant and down the stairs.
Nice ambiance, very spacious, low lighting.
We decided on margaritas, we both had the frozen mango ones and they were so good! So yummy, the right amount of alcohol. We also ordered the margaritas on the rocks and I didn’t like that one as much, weird flavor.
For appetizers we ordered the chicken and salmon small tacos which were yummy and flavorful.
We enjoyed the place, reasonably priced and a great spot to pre-​game.

Definitely think its a cool place. Came here for drinks on a friday night and the place wasnt really crowded. Reminded me of a speakeasy a little bit. Bathroom was interesting.
Would definitely come back for a drink. Nice little getaway from the hustle and bustle of manhattan.

How do you say no to a bar that boasts a tequila selection spanning over 900… yes, NINE HUNDRED… brands/​types??? You can’t! Biblioteca will convince any hater of tequila that there’s something for them!
Personally, I’m a whiskey drinker, but you’d be surprised what you can find here and the diversity of tequila that taste similar to the finest whiskey’s I’ve ever tried. Woody /​peaty aromas and smokey taste, that are complex on the palate. I’d highly suggest trying one of their «flights» which allow you 4 – 5 sampling’s of various tequilas. Tequilas distilled through different methods, tequilas from around the world, tequilas aged at various levels and/​or using different types of wood barrels. If you’re not feeling a flight of tequilas, I’d suggest trying their classic margaritas over the rocks. Very well balanced and not overly sweet. They’re also NOT made from some flavored mix. Prices per tequila flight range from $ 15 – 30 and cocktails are about $ 10 – 12.
Overall, I had a great time here with some friends. My main issue was with the waitstaff who seemed under staffed and less than friendly. We also waited over 30 minutes for our drinks, which was due to the waitstaff forgetting to enter it into their POS. Really?! Lmfao.

Fantastic tequila library themed bar.
Amazing dimly lit ambiance with tequila shelved throughout, within the walls, very cool.
I never knew how many tequilas there were until seeing the countless bottles as part of the décor… And an interesting selections of tequila samplers.
We had a tequila sampler of 3, and the bartender knowledgeably told us which were aged most to least, then later an agave sampler of 4.
My friend was able to distinguish the flavors, saying they were all wonderful, but I had a cold so could only differentiate based on the sensation/​sting… I ordered a fruit/​Mezcel margarita which was delicious.
They close early, kitchen closed at 11 and bar at 12 on a Friday which was disappointing.
Highly recommend as a bar to visit with friends or a date.

MEH. I was underwhelmed by the tiny size of the bar, the stressed out bartenders, and the rowdy crowd. Bathrooms needed bleach, and I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. It’s TOO DAMN DARK. If I wanted to have drinks in a cave, this is where I’d go — when would that be? Well. when I look like absolute dirt. Yeah. when I don’t want to be seen and I have no one to impress, this takes the top spot on my list.
Drinks were fine and we were going to go out for dinner have happy hour anyway, so I didn’t get to check out their guac but with the tip about dry AF chips that come with, I think I might pass altogether. Besides, how can I read a menu in the dark?
Since it’s near my office, I knew I’d try it one day — I had heard good things but my opinion is, you’re not special. In fact, you’re off my list forever.

Went here for happy hour on Saturday night and it was Awesome! Very few places offer happy hour specials on a Saturday, but La Biblioteca did. My friend and I didn’t even go for the happy hour we just found out they offered one when we arrived. There’s a few small places and drinks offered for the special.
We ordered a spicy tuna roll, chicken tacos and edamame. I personally thought for $ 5 the roll was excellent. The chicken tacos and edamame were mediocre, but they were also in a similar price range to the roll. We also ordered frozen margaritas and they were very tasty! Overall you can’t go wrong with decently priced appetizers and drinks. Now that I know about this awesome happy hour special, I’ll definitely be visiting more frequently as my office is one block away. Would highly suggest visiting after work for happy hour or going on a Saturday night for happy hour specials before a night out!

Drinks and food were pretty delicious but a bit pricey! The crab guacamole was very good but the chips that came with it were so dry. We also tried their tuna roll, steak and fish tacos. The fish taco was very good!
They have reverse happy hour starting at 9:30pm but it’s not for all their menu items. There are only certain items on the happy hour list.

A group of my college buddies and I descended on this location for a mini reunion. The place is very modern and clean. While there is a bar and restaurant on the main floor the basement has a bar lounge which is where we congregated.
The service was quick and helpful. I was so pleased that I mentally bookmarked this place as a place I should return to. What was wonderful about the lounge was that it was centrally located and close to all trains. In addition there was ample free parking after 7p. m during the week.
So… While I loved 90% of my experience I hated the checking out process. While we were a group of ten we all arrived at different times. In fact some people got there at 6 pm and others as late as 8 p.m. A few of us asked for our bill so that we could leave. We were surprised when we were told that there was one bill for the table and that the bill would be brought out and we could divide it as we saw fit. This was confusing because while some were leaving others wanted to stay…
In addition, we then had to write the last four digits of our credit cards with the amount due on each… I have never seen this happen in a bar. People should be able to order and buy a drink separately especially when they leave and arrive at different times.
Based on the paying system I will not return.

Darkness and everything else already pointed out by others on here aside, this is a great place to sample a variety of tequilas. They have more than you will ever be able to try without destroying your liver.
If you are a newbie I recommend starting with the preset flights. Once you have narrowed in on your preferences you can sample various producers from that region and of that style. Who knew cactus juice could be so varied.

La Biblioteca is a kind of hidden (but not so secretive) lounge downstairs inside of a bar called Zengo. They have apparently over 400 bottles of tequila and upon hearing that I must go to have the full tequila experience a few months ago with a friend and his girlfriend, I hesitantly agreed to go along. I say hesitantly because tequila really isn’t my thing. But the amount of persuasion went along the lines of: «Its so insanely smooth and delicious. You will change your mind about tequila once you go here.» Okay, okay. Verdict? I didn’t change my mind about tequila at all. Lol. But the ambiance is nice. It’s dark and bougie. Probably perfect for a date. Or perfect to call a prostitute. I kid you not. This guy at the table next to us had a date come in, she ordered a drink, left a few minutes later and he calls up another girl that showed up promptly a few minutes later. Wowzers.
Let’s jump to the drinks. I came here later at night on a weekend so missed out on any happy hour action. BUT, they have from 4−7pm Mon-​Fridays $ 8 cocktails and $ 5 small plates. Which already sounds ridiculous but their drinks are typically expensive as hell to begin with. I went with a tasting flight because I was told that it would give you a broad selection of figuring out what you like and don’t like. Specifically, I went with the Vertical tasting ($ 18) for three different tequila pours: Blanco (2 months), Resposado (2 months to a year), and Anejo (1 – 3 years). The blanco was probably my favorite as it was the less severe. You get your choice of several distilleries: avión /​don julio /​fortaleza /​semental/​casa noble /​el tesoro /​partida /​tapatío. Unfortunately, I have no idea what I had. I imagine Don Julio because I let my friends do the ordering. They also recommend that the margaritas are fantastic here. I wish I had gone with that instead because I don’t particularly enjoy sipping straight tequila.
What they do have here is an unlimited brunch. It sounds incredibly tempting because it is free flowing on all brunch cocktails and unlimited small plates. UNLIMITED EVERYTHING. But the catch is that it is pricier than most brunches and clocks in at $ 39 minus tax and tip. Whatever, on my list of things to do for special occasions.

I came here at about 530 on a Friday night for Happy Hour… Like what everyone said, it’s located inside Zengo. There are a total of 3 levels in the restaurant– from my understanding of it La biblioteca is on the first level (basement) but the other two levels also offer happy hour. I migrated to all 3 levels because I didn’t know where I wanted to sit but then my friend directed me to the basement.
The area is very dimly lit with music playing at a good volume. The décor is pretty cool– they have liquor cabinets that are lit up surrounding the room as well as a lit up bar when you first enter. I wouldn’t say it was too loud to talk, but it’s definitely up there in volume. I really liked their music selection, I would describe it as top 50 hits. I would recommend getting there early, the booths and tables along the side start to fill up. Luckily I got the table in the very back and center. There is also seating at the bar and then there is a long, picnic like table in the center that is waist high for standing only. I also noticed a room that was reserved towards the bathroom. Not sure if this is normally open, but on this night it had a private party.
The happy hour is decent– I started out by ordering their $ 8 margarita but it was a little on the sweet side for me. Then I just switched to the $ 5 corona. I also ordered the $ 5 rib flat bread and it was TINY! Definitely tasty but only about 4 bites.
The crowd there was actually really great– a good male to female ratio and most people looked well dressed and classy. It started to get pretty packed by the time we left around 7:30.
The only reason why I deducted one star is because they overcharged my friend and I by one drink each. There were two waitresses walking around and both were taking orders from us. I think they duplicated a few of the drink orders and ended up charging too much. Luckily when we pointed it out to the girl she was sweet about it and took it off, but just beware of this because when you’re in groups something like that can be overlooked. Other than that it was a good time so I’ll definitely be back!