Dine-in
Yes
King Cole Bar in New York
Categories
Location on the map
New York, New York County, New York, US
Service options
Delivery
No
Highlights
Fast service
Yes
Great cocktails
Yes
Great wine list
Yes
Accessibility
Wheelchair-accessible entrance
Yes
Wheelchair-accessible car park
No
Offerings
Alcohol
Yes
Beer
Yes
Cocktails
Yes
Food
Yes
Food at bar
Yes
Spirits
Yes
Wine
Yes
Dining options
Seating
Yes
Amenities
Toilets
Yes
Atmosphere
Cosy
Yes
Upmarket
Yes
Crowd
Tourists
Yes
Planning
Accepts reservations
Yes
Comments (159)
Had afternoon tea here with a friend and her daughter who loved it. Good service and food offering was good. Priced a bit high but still made for a lovely afternoon.
Kudos to small business! I walk in and see the owner, King Cole Bar, working behind the counter. LOVE IT! Pat went out of his way to fulfill my requests. Great bagels and Pat makes a mean mocha!
Unfortunately we were disappointed this time. Service was great as always, but the quality of the cocktails has gone downhill quite a bit. We used to love coming here. Apparently they don’t serve luxardo cherries anymore for an old fashioned, and for $27, you’d expect a little more than a cheap maraschino. Even the gin and tonic tasted like a cheap sports bar. Vibe is great, it’s beautiful, but you just sort of look for something more here.
One of the best martinis in NYC. Prices are fairly high but, in my opinion, worth it for the atmosphere, selection, and free bar snacks
Great bar and phenomenal atmosphere. The prices were very fair for where you are. Really cool place with a lot of history.
Excellent snack foods & drinks. The service was some of the best I’ve ever had. Very attentive and very fast. Definitely recommend
Good atmosphere and drinks!
Fantastic bar. You do not need a decibel reader to understand bars will have noise. 5 star experience. Mike is awesome.
This was the perfect restaurant for us to go and grab a casual dinner in our Jeans. Its an King Cole Bar but they have a nice safe menu with good eats at reasonable prices. My fiance and I shared the New York strip dinner. The steak did come over cooked but we didnt complain and adjusted. It came with a full plate of veggies and potatoes.
Delicious cocktails in a beautiful setting. Usually busy on the weekdays around 5 but not impossible to find a seat (you can’t reserve in advance). Loved the complimentary snacks and the red snappers/bloody Mary’s are a must try.
Thank you ever so much for putting on such a fantastic bar service. All the guests were very impressed with the bar set up and couldn’t believe the bar was huge. Good drinks! Perfect place to enjoy! Amazing!
Probably great for locals, deal makers. But this iconic bar fails to live up to its reputation. Service was spotty at best, not snooty but far from impeccable. The mixed drinks were not what one member of our party expected. The atmosphere was pleasant and worth stopping in for.
We were treated like royalty. Our waiter George treated us like we were guests in his own home. This place not only has the best service, but it also has the best red wine list. Try the Duckhorn Merlot, it is absolutely delicious.
Expensive, crowded, and uncomfortable. For 25 dollars cocktails I expected more. My noise meter registered 74 db.. To loud for a conversation.
Classic NYC bar, great drinks and atmosphere.
Came here for drinks and food around 10pm. I only learned about the evening (formal) dress code later on, but am pleased to say we were treated well even though we were both wearing jeans. Dishes and drinks are pricey for the quality, but definitely worth it for the ambiance. The caviar and pommes frites was a terrific, the combination of flavors worked very well (although the fries themselves were entirely unremarkable). Would definitely recommend for those who enjoy historic bars.
Lovely atmosphere, with very attentive and discreet staff. There is no need for elegant dressing, but if you are dressed up it would look the part.We had espresso matrinis which were absolute perfection. The right amount of coffee and liquor buzz I could have asked for.Nibbles are great too.
My friends like to go here every year on New Years Day for a drink and I just dont understand why. The decor is nice and the staff is pleasant but the drinks are outrageously overpriced.Seriously, there are THOUSANDS of bars in NYC where you can hang out with friends, get the exact same beverages and they dont rip you off. At these prices, they should have someone standing behind you giving you a massage. Yes, I still go here because my friends insist on it but I never order anything. If you have more money than brains, enjoy!
Great drinks and atmosphere. Drink selection is well curated, though a bit on the expensive side, even for the area. Beers at $12 and whiskey starting over $20. Great cocktails though, not everyone can make a good Rusty Nail. Friend got a dirty martini and they had bleu cheese stuffed olives available. More 4.5 stars than 4, but not enough to get a 5.
I like the environment. However, the place tends to be crowded at happy hour time. The waitstaff do not have the same level of service I have experienced at other bars associated with the St Regis brand. There may be some element that they under staff this element of their operations.For drinks - I like the Old King Cole which is essentially a gin martini with some tweaks.Definitely try the Porcini Popcorn. It is pricey at $12 for popcorn, but worth it.
Great atmosphere -- small but accommodating. Make sure you sit down and are waited on. Guess ordering drinks from the bar is a no-no. But they give you bar snacks, so thats nice!
Awesome place with the best cocktails and service , I understand that some people may complain that it over priced , I think they should just go to an Irish pub !!!
Classic NYC haunt presided over by Maxfield Parrishs satirical mural. As old school as it gets. Excellent, if very pricey,, cocktails, but youre paying for the atmosphere. Great for special occasions.
Love the place usually. Great atmosphere. Rude bartender. Server went to talk on his phone in back. Bad service. He left for 30 minutes. When you are paying 40 for a drink, service should be pristine. Treated badly. Wont go back.
Awesome Bar not noisy no tvs perfect for dates. Bar tender was super nice guy customized a drink according to my taste! Inexpensive and real class to it. Looking for a bloody marry? why not go to the place where they invented it and taste the real thing! I really was happy with my experience there and would definitely recommend to others!
Come for the mural and ambience. Keep it upscale and classy if youre not a guest or you may be turned away. High prices befitting its pedigree. Main bar is tight in space but that glorious Parrish mural, with its famously flatulent monarch, is dazzling. Protip; the signature Red Snapper may be an important part of American bar history but it is bland bland bland.
Beautiful bar inside the St. Regis Hotel. Expensive is the Important Thing to Know. Dont be surprised if your bill is $75 for a couple to enjoy two drinks each. Very comfortable seats. Too few roving waiters. Life is slow here, relax and calm down.
We LOVED this bar! Our fav in Manhattan. Christine was phenomenal.
The older bartender named Bill is a racist. Me and a friend were here having drinks and because we were younger and this place is for “older people “ he began to refuse to serve us drinks. Isn’t that discrimination based on age???? Anytime I called his name he ignored me. Even tho it was my birthday he still did not care and just looked at me with a nasty face. I even tried to request water and he still ignored us. This is by far the worst customer service I have ever received in my entire life. This bartender is also racist and treats certain types of people terribly. I feel so uncomfortable just being here. No one should ever have to feel unwanted at a place where they come to relax after a long day of work. I will be reporting this because this is discrimination. Maybe it’s time for them to get a new bartender who will have no issues serving us drinks or simply water. I will be contacting my lawyer in regards to how I was horrible mistreated by Bill. I had a flash back to slavery time when the whites ignored the black people. It was my birthday and he just kissed/sucked his teeth. I tipped Bill over 20% but because I am a black younger female, he did not want to serve me. If this bar co signs on this racist behavior which is by far ILLLEGAL ... then they need to be shut down.
Staff was decent at best. Staff members grunting and pointing, nothing special about the experience. The gin drink was poor. Overcharged us 5X for our bill, corrected the bill then overcharged us again 3x. We pointed it out again. Maybe they are use to guys just paying whatever to not embarrass themselves by correcting the bill? Not impressed.
Very cozy bar, surprisingly small. Great decor and finely appointed. Upscale place so keep a dress code. Pricey as would be expected of a St.Regis.Nice staff. Wish our bartenders skills were as good as his manners. The cocktails were sadly disappointing. My Aviation had no Creme de violette and no Maraschino, but was made with Grenadine/cherry juice? My friends Old Fashioned was just average. Not something youd expect from a place that prouds itself on inventing the Red Snapper.
Quite nice classic New York style bar with great coctails and a very good service. HOWEVER, the NOISE level is beyond what is required to have a pleasant conversation. So if you enjoy your coctails silently, or while shouting at each other to overpower the noise, this is your place to go
Old (elegant) school bar with great martinis and nice appetizers- we had shrimp cocktail- calamari- cheeseboard- flatbread w/ burata- tuna tartare. All generous and delicious. The service always there. The people watching A+ not for the budget minded!!! But one of the top NYC old time favorites- plus the Famous Parrish painting of Old King Cole makes the atmosphere classic.
Nice cocktails before dinnerPerfect Vodka Martini. My wifes cosmo was just ok. Its a nice cozy place with good service. Older quiet crowd.
I just love this bar...always my favorite stop when in city...Service is impeccable and drinks always good...my husband loves their burgers...stopped in today had good time. Angel the bartender made us so comfortable and welcome. Bravo
Ok, wine menu could be better.
Great class bar but Place were really crowded during the night time and the drink is excellent perfect especially Bloody Mary is one of their famous, will definitely come again
Save your time. 24 dollar bloody Marys with no pizzaz or service. Had to ask to order a drink and to tab out, service was no good, drink was below expectations. Better bloody Marys down the street at a local pub. Local bloggers should re-review this spot.
It was a full bar seating. We just so happened to be standing by a couple who were leaving the head waiter was very rude and menacing .he asked me for my drink order I asked about the Pinot noir he said I have 3 dropped the wine menu and Left
Great place for a private party! They have an awesome area upstairs with various seating and space enough for dancing if thats the vibe youre going for... Very friendly service! Great location.
Gorgeous place. Drinks were average and very expensive even for NYC standards. Bartender was not super attentive nor very friendly.
Lovely, but bring your wallet
An opportunity to sit in this bar is well worth the time. Prices are reasonable all things considered. A plus establishment. The bar mural is worth the stop.
Stay at the hotel occasionally but never come to this bar - so crowded, incredibly expensive (a glass of Duckhorn is $35, a soda is $8) and overall pretentious. Skip it.
This is the first time that Im in the States so here, were exploring some great food and drinks to vibe with the breath taking view and the amazing weather. King Cole bar is a gorgeous place with some amazing drinks. We only tried their Bloody Mary. It was indeed a MERRY experience!
Very classic location looking straight out of the 1920s with jazz music flowing and incredibly friendly bartenders. Be prepared to pay top price for top quality though.
I arrived at the St. Regis early for my afternoon tea reservation and they told me to head over to the bar until my reservation time. I had a glass of champagne and I loved the bar so much I really wanted to stay.
Great service, free snacks, beautiful venue, delicious cocktails. Very pricey, but a good spot for when you feel like being fancy.
One of the best bars in Manhattan!🌟 Always great public, drinks and service. I advise you to try Tuna tartare😊
Stately, historic hotel bar serving classic cocktails beneath a famed Maxfield Parrish mural.
Nice place. We just had one drink each. Drinks were good as the service.
Once you can get over the shock of a 25 dollar cocktail, its a wonderful place to sit back, relax, and feel rich for an hour or two.
Every bit as classy and cozy as I thought it would be. I could stare at the King Cole painting all night. Great place to just sit back, relax and people watch.
Interesting and cool setting, but very expensive.
Gorgeous setting, friendly staff, drinks were just ok, nothing too amazing. But the venue makes up for them
Perfect hidden bar in the lobby
A bit of a boys club at times, but a historic and upscale spot in a gorgeous 5-star hotel with excellent service and frequent celebrity sightings.
Birthplace of the Bloody Mary,. Great bar staff ,accommodated a large late night crowd past normal hours , much appreciated!
Make sure you’re dressed appropriately as there’s a strict after 5 o’clock dress code. Once here ask Gavin to make you a Bloody Mary (they were born here).
Excellent service and the staff is superior. Friendly and helpful. Drinks are great and the maxfield parrish mural is amazing!!!
Ultimate New York atmosphere
Classic NYC bar with expert historians mixing your drink while offering their knowledge of how the flavors interplay and who invented it.
Super-chic. Be sure to dress the part in order for the barmen to remember that youre there.On the upside, its relatively low-volume, which is welcome.
Nice ambiance. Life harp music nearby at the Astor Court. Go before the normal, crowded cocktail hours!
I was here last winter. Service was spectacular, despite my date and I being the youngest people there. Would definitely be back
Class and elegance as always. Love having a martini at this iconic NYC bar!
A great lounge in the St. Regis hotel. Extremly attentive service, relaxed atmospher and great city street views of all the comings and goings
Amazing bloody marys
Wonderful watering hole. Away from the crowds at mid-afternoon, even during the holiday crush.
Its ok. Very overpriced. I got a lemonade lolBut as a hotel it might be a nice hotel.
Service is slow and totally unfriendly. I’m staying at the St. Regis and totally unsatisfied with service in the main restaurant and bar.
The best Bloody Mary in America!
What a classy place! Love the ambience and the energy. Great place for a night out with the girls
Great people watching place. Excellent service and superb drinks . $$$$
Smaller than I thougt, since I came back home, I allways dream to taste their red snapper one more time!
Such a great bloody Mary selection, & sevice. Recommend for special occasions!
Great service. Pleasant atmosphere.Great drinks.
Amazing staff. Go every year for burger and a bloody mary.
Great old school bar with storied history , where they remember your name !
Big drinks in a classy place, under unforgettable Maxfield Parrish mural.
Classic bar,great Bloody Mary, nice bar tenders.
Loved it there. Brought back wonderful memories. Beautiful property
Cool mural and great service. Strongest vodka sodas ever.
Service isnt as good natured as it used to be pre renovation, but its still a New York icon.
Beautiful and historic bar. Apparently the Bloody Mary was created here.
I like the opulent decorations, very lively with decent service!
Lovely meal! Warm friendly staff.
Beautiful cocktails,dining, staff was great
Very simple I work there Im one of the four Bartenders!!
Meh, despite claiming to have originated the Bloody Mary, others have perfected it.
Really good service, makes paying the high prices worth it!
Amazing place you have to go in to experience. Pricey.
The painting makes any visit worth the effort.
Afternoon tea and best bloody mary in NYC!
Good food, but very pricey
Drinks and decor were on point.
The bar is simply awesome.
Great drinks, historic, classic.
Great cocktails, great atmosphere
Great service , cozy bar
Good vibe.
A must-do in New York! Historic. Classic.
Love hitting this bar when Im in NYC
I tinkled here
Best slicers Ive ever had
Love the drinks and atmosphere
Classic, great cocktails, expensive.
Great bloody Mary, excellent staff
A NYC Tradition
Was there a while age and the Bloody Mary 👍👍👍👍👍👍
Good spot for a restaurant week.
Classy, quiet, reserved at a great location.
Bit of old NY. Some good small plates.
Great place for drinks!
Great service and food!
Wonderful bartender service!
Great space and drinks but $$$$$$
Red Snappers (Bloody Marys)...Yum!
Great cocktails!
Deafeningly loud. A poor value.
Pricey but a NY establishment
Classic old school NY hotel bar
Beautiful location.... Expensive
Great.
Very nice bar
Great stop for a drink
Good place for apps
VERY slow service
Great hamburger.
Nice
Cool
Pretty classy.
Go, youll see
Wonderful!
Beautiful.
Nice place
Story in NYC
Attentive service
First off, this is an unspoken gem of the city. Secondly, my fiancé and I had a drink with Alton Brown and his wife Elizabeth here, greatest experience one can have at King Cole Bar.
Really not very friendly staff! A very pretty place is sumptuous but with prices that are not up to the service. No more food and overpriced drinks. Finally, even if its super top as a place and well the rest do not have it. I was disappointed as well as but. Its up to you to test this address ...
Old School Bar, home of the Bloody Mary drink - but here its called Red Snapper. A little high price, which is normal for a bar in such a hotel. Everyone comes in, even with sneakers, etc.
A place where you must definitely try the Bloody Mary, a mandatory stop in NYC
We sat and waited, but towe were never approached, so we left for dinner at a restaurant. The service does not match the prices. Surprised by the coldness of the staff. Disappointment.
Great service and drinks. Beautiful and very cozy environment. The best
St. Regis Bar. The atmosphere is good but the drink is too expensive.
The decoration is legal only the kitchen. exeptionnel
A dream 😍
Always worth a visit
I loved
Total reviews rating
159 Reviews for King Cole Bar 2023:
Review №1
2021-12-12Enjoyed as always! Of our many visits to King Cole Bar, this is first time we had wait to get in! It was like being in line to ride the first car on a rollercoaster, but in the end you get the privilege of buying $27 drinks (yes, the price has increased from $22, but $17 is going rate for fancy cocktails nearby. You are paying for the atmosphere and mural. The bar nuts continue to rock but now lack the little sourdough slices.) It was Christmastime in NYC and I realized later that many people make an annual pilgrimage this time of year, and it was closed March 2020 to August 2021 (thanks Covid). The service and quality of cocktails remain impeccable. One sour note: while waiting, a foursome seemed to cut ahead (not wearing masks) and they managed to get seated. We could only guess that they were rich and rude hotel guests who felt entitled, and the hard working staff did their best to hold the line and not give away our table while accommodating the foursome. Keep the light on King Cole Bar - we enjoyed our visit and will be back again.
Review №2
2021-12-28A beautifully decorated bar. Our drinks were very good. We enjoy this bar for drinks and the atmosphere. They served us mixed nuts with our cocktails. We had to queue up but we dont mind. You have to show your vaxx card to enter.Nat King Cole bar is located at Two E. 55th St. New York City in the St. Regis
Review №3
2022-06-22Good service, less than sub-par cocktails.This is absolutely a destination if you want to tick off that box for possible birthplace of Bloody Mary. Used to be very upscale service and very good cocktails but those days are gone. A friend and I first ordered Old Fashion and Aviation. Old fashion came with muddled neon pink cherries and Aviation was Aviation gin with lemon twist….this is a bartender who obviously has no clue. Muddling cherries was an early 90s thing when the bourbon was so bad, you had to mask it with sugar. Aviation is a gin based cocktail with crème de violet, lemon juice and maraschino liqueur, which if done right comes out purple. We each had couple more drinks but it was disappointing. My New York sour came out a pink mess with those damn neon cherries. Proper New York Sour is dry shaken lemon juice, bourbon, simple syrup and egg whites followed by shaking with ice, strained into glass and then you gently pour red wine over the top using the back of the spoon so that the drink has two layers. When an amateur like me can do better than a pro, that place as a cocktail destination is done.
Review №4
2022-04-20Very welcoming, customer friendly, and easy to find seating during a week-night evening. Good times!
Review №5
2022-05-04The bar and ambience are great given the historical background but the servers were very disrespectful, one of them even told me “is this your first time at a bar?”. I am pretty horrified, its elegant atmosphere wasnt quite worth the pricey drinks and service.
Review №6
2022-05-29My two female friends went to the King Cole bar on April 12, 2022 by themselves and were served one drink each by a grey haired, circa 40s-50s, white bartender.After a single drink, both of them felt incredibly drunk and asked him what he put in the drink; he just laughed and walked away.The one friend ended up throwing up 5 times the next day, the other blacked out and had no memory of what happened after visiting that bar.Highly recommend for management to do a full investigation; that bartender has roofied my friends (without clear motife, they were able to order an Uber and leave) and you need to do your job of protecting your patrons from predators like the person working for you.
Review №7
2022-03-20Classic NY! Always great to pop in a have a red snapper. Its delicious
Review №8
2018-01-14Afternoon is very tasty here. Nice mix of sweet and savory. The clotted cream, jam, and lemon curd with the scones are very tasty and well presented. Only detraction from the experience was the service. The waiters/waitresses constantly disappeared and was not around to provide extra hot water for the tea.
Review №9
2019-04-18An icon bar that you just need to pay a visit if you are in the area and have seen the movie The devil wears Prada or Gossip Girl! We had to wait for a while to get a spot. The drinks were great and the bartendera very knowledgable. Apparently very popular doe dates...
Review №10
2018-05-13A Pleasant Time for TeaAs the big birthday travel continues, I jetted off to New York City for a whirlwind two-day fun trip of discovery.As a belated birthday gift, my sister treated me to afternoon tea at the St. Regis. She ordered the Lady Astor’s Tea, among others listed. It is said that Lady Caroline Astor reigned as the social leader of the 1890’s during what was known as the Gilded Age. If you were lucky enough to be a part of her group, “The 400” also known as “The Patriarchs,” you were considered what she called, “The Old New York.”The following are my thoughts of this pleasant experience.Pros:We were seated promptly but it took our server at least ten minutes to acknowledge us prior to taking our order.The presentation of the meal was pleasing with a sense that there was plenty to eat.I tried the tropical oolong tea. It’s light fruity flavor did not disappoint.We were able to substitute the Scottish smoked salmon for more egg salad sandwiches which turned out to be very light and tasty.With the raisin and traditional scones, I was delighted to find that double Devonshire cream and lemon curd were served. My sister loved the fruit preserve that accompanied our meal.Regarding the sweets, my favorites were the Lemon tartelette with toasted meringue and Dark chocolate mousse presented in edible cups.The harpist added a refined, soft, musical background giving the experience more pleasure.Cons:I was disappointed that our server was not more attentive. In most tea rooms that I’ve attended, the hostess would explain the items that are presented on the tray to prepare you for your meal. Our server just placed the items on the table and off he went. Twice he stopped by after long intervals to see if we needed anything. By that time, it was too late because another server, Kenny, had already cared for our needs of more water for the tea and removal of dirty plates. It just felt like our server was there because he had to and couldn’t wait to leave.The area is one for dining and not just for afternoon tea. Others were having lunch which distracted the mood of “afternoon tea.”Overall: I would still suggest the St Regis for tea for it’s food. You are sure to leave full and satisfied.