Review

The exterior appearance of the John Street Bar & Grill may cause the average tourist to pause and think twice before entering, because this looks like a biker pub. If you choose to descend the steps and venture inside you'll see an interior decor to match your expectations. But that doesn't mean to say you'll see a gang of New York bikers. The only one in evidence on our visit was the long haired, leather clad, tattoo sporting barman. To be fair he was the archetypal biker, about as biker as you can get, but he was alone in representing his kind. When his brethren join him is unclear, but early on a Friday evening the drinking crowd could have been from any New York bar; tourists won't look out of place and the atmosphere is a welcoming one.

The proximity of the John Street Bar & Grill to 'Ground Zero' is astonishing; looking westward from the entrance, it's clearly obvious that where you're standing and the Bar itself would have suffered major collateral damage during the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Centre. This is quite alarming, considering life goes on inside the bar - the heart of New York continues to beat.

The bar is divided into two areas, a standing section near the bar and a seating area with at table service for both food and drinks; to the benefit of the totty rating, the waitresses are not cut from the same biker mold as the barman and there are enough to keep your table stocked with four pint jugs of beer even in busy times. As for the beverages on offer, there are the usual collection of five or six beers on tap, a multitude of bottles and the usual vast selection of whisky to choose from.

For entertainment the John Street Bar & Grill cannot be faulted, it has a pool table, two dart boards, multiple TV's and a jukebox. As you would expect, the jukebox is filled with classic biker tunes, although this is biker music with a definite American slant. Unlike a British biker jukebox, you're unlikely to find any Motorhead, Hawkwind or AC/DC; this is classic rock, 1970s American style heavy-blues, such as The Allman Brothers and Raging Slab. There is nothing on here that sounds like it was released later than 1976.

The John Street Bar & Grill is a good New York bar that's worth a visit on any day of the week, but on Thursday evening it becomes the best bar in New York by far, because of the Happy Hour. On Thursday night, between 5pm and 8pm the offer is 'all you can drink for $10'. Now, since most pints come in at between $4 and $5 you only have to drink 3 pints and you're up on the deal. That's three pints in three hours, any lightweight who can't manage that is probably best not going into bars as the fumes from a spilt drink may be enough to send them into a stomach churning, room spinning, drunken stupor. How the John Street Bar & Grill is not yet bankrupt is a mystery. This can only be a loss leading venture designed to engender loyalty, but loyalty is not something you have to give as a tourist so you might have to overcome feelings of guilt as the empty four pint jugs mount up and the tab doesn't. But hey, it was their idea and they'll probably learn soon enough, so best get down there while the offer lasts.

Review by AJS