A New York on Tap pick

Comedy Cellar

117 MacDougal St. · at Minetta Lane
Greenwich Village, Manhattan

In 2026

Still pouring

Checked October 16, 2026.

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Overview

Located in the basement below the Olive Tree Café this top comedy club attracts tourists and locals alike with its terrific atmosphere and premiere talent.

History

Downtown got the joke in 1981

Bill Grundfest founded the Comedy Cellar in 1981, when New York's comedy boom had begun but hadn't yet reached downtown¹. It got there. Comics like Ray Romano, Chris Rock and Jon Stewart spent years growing their material in the room, got big, and came home¹.

Estee Adoram started at the Cellar as a hostess in the early 1980s². She never intended to become the booker for one of the most respected comedy rooms in the world, and did².

When we listed it, we placed it in the basement below the Olive Tree Café. The two are joined by a narrow back staircase in bright green paint, lined with decades of comedian headshots², and they still share the entrance at 117 MacDougal Street³.

Sources

Researched October 2026.

What's nearby

Village Ma under 0.1 mi A different business is licensed at this address: The Grisly Pear
MacDougal Street Ale House under 0.1 mi Still pouring
Luxor Lounge under 0.1 mi Licensed here under the same name
Off the Wagon under 0.1 mi Still pouring
Cafe Wha? under 0.1 mi Still pouring
124 Old Rabbit Club under 0.1 mi Still pouring
Alibi under 0.1 mi Closed; now The Up & Up
99 Below under 0.1 mi Closed; now Greenwich Village Comedy Club
Slane under 0.1 mi A different business is licensed at this address: Maestro Pasta
Rumor under 0.1 mi Closed; now Village Underground