Overview
New York on Tap listed this bar without a review.
History
Fifty years of Levi's, leather and bears
Ty's is the city's first and longest-running bear bar, and it was one of New York's first gay bars to open after the Stonewall riots of 19691, 2. It opened in 1972 and has been gay owned and operated ever since1, 3.
Over the years it has catered to the Levi's-and-T-shirt, leather and bear crowds1. Eddie Ford bought it in 1984 or 1985 and owned it until he died in 20112. The man everyone takes for the owner, because he's always there, has been involved since 1995, and became a part owner when Ford died2.
The pandemic shut it for fourteen and a half months, and its customers backed a GoFundMe for the bar and its bartenders2. It has since marked fifty years in business, and it's still serving the gay community from 114 Christopher Street, until 4 in the morning on Fridays2, 3, 4.
Sources
Researched October 2026.