“Hello, Suckers!” – this is the way you would have been greeted if you entered the club in its heyday in the 1920s. The greeting would have been delivered by the infamous Texas Guinan. Texas Guinan came from Texas (thus, the nickname) to take New York by storm. Starting as a simple showgirl she worked…
Tag: NYC Speakeasies
Employees Only
EMPLOYEES ONLY 510 Hudson St Exquisite cocktails and delectable food in a sensual Art Deco atmosphere. Even though Employees Only is a modern-day speakeasy (it opened in 2004), the building it occupies dates to 1827. Initially, it was intended as a simple residential structure for working-class families. As it changed hands, the ground floor was…
The Back Room
The Back Room 102 Norfolk St In the 1920s it was the headquarters of Murder, Inc., deadly Italian-Jewish Mafia headed by Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano. The Back Room is not your average speakeasy-themed bar – it functioned as an actual speakeasy that secretly operated at the back of Ratner’s kosher restaurant. Ratner’s, a vegetarian…
Chumley’s
Chumley’s 86 Bedford St Once a celebrated literary speakeasy, whose patrons defined 20th-century American literature, it is now an upscale restaurant. All one has to do is to find the entrance. Don’t be surprised if you don’t see a Chumley’s door sign. There never was one… A flaming radical, Lee Chumley came to New York…
City Beautiful Blog 