Live Rock
18 bars that New York on Tap listed under “Live Rock” around 2008, with what's licensed at each address in 2026.
Manhattan
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95 Stanton St. · Lower East Side
Still pouring
The oldest and also the number one music venue on the Lower East Side. Covers tend to be cheap, the acts tend to be well above par, and people are there to have fun. There's even live band karaoke on Monday nights.
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B.B. King Blues Club and Grill
237 W. 42nd St. · Midtown West
Closed; now Target
The accoustics are some of the best and the space manages to be small enough to be intimate, but big enough to draw some big names.
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155 Bleecker St. · Greenwich Village
Closed
Enjoy unlimited free peanuts and no cover live music. The peanuts are excellent the music however is mostly country and folk.
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Bowery BallroomPick
6 Delancey St. · Lower East Side
Still pouring
The best music venue in the city - hands down, and the likely locale of your favorite band's best set ever.
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Cafe Wha?Pick
115 MacDougal St. · Greenwich Village
Still pouring
Home to the best cover band in the city. Which may not sound like much of a recommendation, but trust us. It is.
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168 Delancey St. · Lower East Side
Still pouring
$7 bottle beers, velvet rope roof access, overrun by UES and BT posers. Whatever appeal this place once had has evaporated.
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859 Washington St. · MeatPacking District
Closed
Tourists looking to score, drunk women dancing on the bar, batenders who trade flirtation for drinks, shots ordered by the dozen, and an occasional bared breast. Sounds awful right? The strange thing is we've really only ever had a good time here.
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17 Irving Pl. · Union Square/ Flatiron
Still pouring
Infinitely preferable music venue to the Hammersein. A pale second to the Bowery Ballroom.
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Knitting FactoryPick
74 Leonard St. · TriBeCa
No license found in 2026
Great place to see a show. And an all ages policy means this is the bar to take your underage niece/nephew to give them a taste of New York.
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217 E. Houston St. · Lower East Side
Still pouring
Music venue with cheap covers, reasonable drinks, good sound and a mixed bag of acts. There is great music here, but you may have to work to find it.
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ProhibitionPick
503 Columbus Ave. · Upper West Side
Still pouring
Candle light, dark wood and crimson walls set the tone for this sexy spacious lounge. And with nightly live music, a consistent kitchen, and a full menu it's no surprise that Prohibition is one of the most popular lounges on the UWS.
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96 Greenwich St. · Financial district
Still pouring
Sleezy in the best possible way. A strip club that attracts as many women as men, books rock bands, and where people actually dance together at the same time without exchanging cash.
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151 Bleecker St. · Greenwich Village
Still pouring
Live music, a central location, a friendly crowd, and sadly Thurs-Sat a cover.
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239 W. 52nd St. · Midtown West
Closed
Super giant performance space draws huge crowds for indie rock shows. Unfortunately with a 3,500 person capacity and all ages admittance vying for a good position to hear the band can quickly become as big an aspect of the night as the music.
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214 Sullivan St. · Greenwich Village
Closed; now The Dermatology Specialists - Greenwich Village
400 capacity live music venue popular among NYU students.
Brooklyn
Already closed by 2009
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Retox Rock BarPickClosed by 2009
511 W. 28th St · Chelsea
No license found in 2026
A study in constrast this hard rock club partly owned by Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian has a dingy dimly lit stage rock vampire go-go dancers, a tight door, bottle service and strangest of all a lounge.
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SiberiaPickClosed by 2009
356 W. 40th St. · Hells Kitchen
Moved to Turnstyle Underground Market, Columbus Circle
An "in crowd" dive, that somehow manages to fend off pretense with strong measures of eccentricity and grime to form an oaisis of downtown cool in the 40s.