The Library

They’ve the greatest punk juke box in the city, a real juke box with genuine CD’s interior. I kept flipping back and forth in complete amazement. And they were running Sid & Nancy on a projector also. Yet somehow it was not pretentious or striving overly hard to be cool. And the drinks were wild affordable, which is the determining factor in the five stars.

I do not recommend. The place was crowded and it took us way too too long to get inside. The drinks felt water down and not that tasty.
I will not be coming back until management changes their drinks.

Meredith and Remy have changed my life. So chill and so funny! I need this place so much for my sanity.

I ain’t here for a long time, I’m here for a good time.

Very chall. Buddy and myself stopped in to holler at Hendy. Bud is always a great dog at the bar. He’s a real ladies man. One time I was here and saw a pregnant woman taking a shot of something. Not sure if it was whiskey or what but Jesus Jason that’s gnarly. Askeddit.

I mean… Definitely up there on my list of most loved dive of all dive bars. This place is awesome for the following reasons:
Brilliantly colorful staff.
Old films playing on giant screen in back
Dirty, beautiful bathrooms covered in graffiti from the past 50 years? It’s beautiful, and disgusting at the same time («art»)
The most comfortable but worn in and Tattered up banquettes
Bartenders look like they were picked right out of a rave or a mosh pit (I say this endearingly)
Great value for your drinks
Dimlit, could be intimate but also good for debauchery
The place has character. It’s not a ritzy titzy bar and if you are there to appreciate that, that’s what you will get.

It was a very crowded Friday happy hour and they only had one bartender (brunette with tatted arms). But my God, did she kick ass. I’ve never seen one person tend to so many patrons, so quickly and professionally — especially when doubles were offered and everyone was trying to get their orders in before the witching hour.
Most barkeeps can only manage and order or two at once, and close a tab or two at once. This talented pro kept everyone well lubricated, with their drinks of choice delivered at rapid pace, and tabs were effortlessly presented and closed out without s sip being missed. She did last call and had 50 people settled within minutes. Out-​fricking-​standing.
I’;; give it another star if they shift some staff to San Diego!

A couple of friends and I had stopped in one day as we started on this list of «50 NYC Bars to Drink in Before You Die». This place was on it so naturally we had to make a stop. What a dive bar indeed! It’s super dark; they have B-​Movies projected on the wall at the far end of the bar, it’s dirty, and the bathroom is covered from floor to ceiling in graffiti. There are bookcases on the wall housing a few decorative books, giving the bar’s name some relevance. There are a couple of tables and booths in the back in the pitch black where you can catch some of the movie and chat amongst friends over candlelight.
They had a decent selection of beers, and their 2 for 1 happy hour is M-​F but starts at 5pm. We were there a little too early to take advantage of this (no judgment zone here).
Visiting was an experience to say the least, and that is one more bar that has been checked off the list.

Good place and good punk rock music!
Interesting meeting, cool cheap beers !
I suggest you!

Oh the wonderfulness that is the Library! Literature meets punk rock meets cheap drinks, what more could a gal want?
This is definitely one of the most loved watering holes in the neighborhood. Most likely because of their two-​for-​one happy hour. Yup, from 5 – 8 everything in the bar is buy one get one. They give you little plastic toys to catch in for your second drink, which is both efficient and fun!
It loses a star only because of the bathrooms. They are unbearable. I have seen a lot of terrible terrible dive bathrooms, but library’s is probably the worst of them.
Tip: $ 10 card minimum during happy hour, $ 20 dollar minimum after happy hour.

Library Bar begs fragmented sentences. Old stomping grounds. Cheap a$$ drinks made only cheaper thanks to an excellent Happy Hour (not on Saturdays). Friendly bartenders. Old school Alphabet City vibe. Fabulous juke box. All kinds of crazy stuff projected on the screen on the back wall. Grosser than gross bathrooms.
Dive bar? I mean, this is how most East Village bars used to be. I’m so glad it survived after all these year when similar venerable institutions are long gone. The Library, Mona’s, Manitoba’s, Otto’s. May they live forever!

Oh man this place is DANGEROUS — in the best way possible.
Went there last night for HH drinks with my gals. HH lasts until 8pm and is 2 for 1s on all drinks. Needless to say we were sufficiently toasted by the time HH was over. Oh man.
The ambiance is dope, great jukebox selection (mostly old punk rock and hardcore), cool paintings, tons of books/​bookshelves, and they project films on the back wall. It’s honestly one of my fave watering holes in the city.
But WARNING: enter if you dare. Drinks are cheap and strong and guaranteed to turn your «casual happy hour drinks» into a full-​on dancing on stage at the Pyramid club to 80s music with some guy in ass-​less chaps kind of night. Proceed at your own risk.

Odd name for what is a down-​scale dive bar. I had a Stella; one of five or six beers on tap. Limited seating. Best to go elsewhere.

If I lived in NYC, this would be a bar I would strive to be a regular at. The music is great (punk-​rock and hardcore heavy), the regulars are goofballs and the bartender was super friendly.
Drinking way too many whiskeys and still only $ 40 at happy hour? Perfect. The ambiance was great, dim lighting, cute lamps, the random projector movies (still being rocked via VHS) are a nice touch.
Coincidentally, I ran into a Brooklyn dude wearing my friend’s band shirt and we sorted out we knew all of the same folks. The world is small and that guaranteed I’ll be back– and soon!

I spent the day exploring the Chelsea area with a dear friend of mine, and all day he was talking about his favorite lil dive bar called The Library, and I knew we had to check it out! We came during happy hour when the bar has this cool offer where if you order a drink, they give you an action figure. Once you’re done with your drink, you bring the action figure back to the bar to get a second one FOR FREE. Pretty cool deal!
The bar is adorable, and definitely on the divey side. The décor was pretty awesome, it reminded me of some bars in SF. We ordered multiple drinks, including but not limited to– vodka tonic, gin tonic, and multiple shots of tequila and fireball. All the drinks were very reasonably priced, considering the special offer they were doing for happy hour!
Major kudos for the bar playing a movie during happy hour! The Last House On The Left is a horror classic, and one of my favorites.

Admittedly, I didn’t drink a drop here when I went (…namely because I had half a carafe of soju in KTown prior to arrival. Haaa…) My friends sure enjoyed their Tecates en masse, however.
Awesome digs, books lining the walls, «Lost Highway» being projected on the wall, and I’m in love. I look foward to returning someday and get my drink on with some other weird movie being projected on the back wall.

Very spunky bar. Nicole the bartender was very friendly. Free condoms. Buy one get one free (any drink) happy hour. Projector with an old school movie playing. Rock music. I can dig it. Only downfall is that the bathrooms smell, are very tiny and are filled with flies.

This is a definite locals bar. The people who hang out here have been hanging out for a very long time. They know each other well. They know what the other likes to drinks. What’s new in their lives. But most importantly, if they want whiskey in their coffee? And where is the latest He-​Man VHS to start the morning off on a Saturday. Nothing says morning like whiskey and 80’s cartoons. One of the regulars travels an hour and half every Saturday just to spend his day here. Lucky for us we live a block away and we can roll in and out as we please.
The happy hour is a total steal. You can buy one and get one free. They give you little toys for your second beer. If you drink $ 3 beers then you are really getting more bang for your buck.
In the wee evenings on weekend warrior time, there is an extreme mixed crowd from, a 44 year old divorcée, bike riding hipsters, regulars and people who are completely obliterated. I am a little too old for all that and I prefer day drinking myself.
This place is also great for groups. But good luck finding a spot at the bar.

This is a go to spot for my husband and I for happy hour. We used to go to double down across the street but that bar is just a little too dirty and bothy/​biker for me. We still wanted something really low key and this place is perfect. There’s an old movie projected on the back wall, little booths for couples or small groups (mostly men standing up in the front). And 2 for 1’s with little plastic planes as your free drink token. Extra credit for Edgar Allan Poe’s Raven painting on the wall yet loses a star for drinks that don’t seem to be that strong.

Ew bleh. I feel neglected.
I went to The Library for a drink. I sat at the bar and waited for the barkeep to notice me. The bar was empty and the bartender was talking to a friend a few seats further down the bar. She talked to him for about ten minutes, turned, walked past me and served someone else at the other end of the bar. Then she passed me again and went back to her conversation with her friend.
So I got sad and left after about 20 minutes of waiting for a drink.