The Best Happy Hours in Midtown Manhattan
Fifteen after-work deals from Grand Central to Hudson Yards, including $3 beers at Mercado Little Spain, $1 oysters near Bryant Park and $4 vodka shots before the show, with days and hours for each.
The best happy hour in Midtown is Sangria Hour at Mercado Little Spain, where $3 beers and $6 sangria run weekdays from 4 to 8pm, a four-hour window that is almost unheard of in this part of town. Near Grand Central, go to Hofbräu Bierhaus for $7 half liters. Near Bryant Park, it is $1 oysters at Valerie. And before a Broadway show, the Russian Vodka Room sells $4 vodka shots daily from 4 to 7pm. Here are fifteen Midtown happy hours, grouped by where your office (or your theater) is, each with the days, the hours and the prices.
Midtown happy hour is its own sport. The bars fill at 5:15 with people who have been thinking about this since lunch, the deals are often bar only, and the windows are short. We only included deals published by the venue or confirmed by a 2026 listing, and where two sources disagree we say so. Call ahead before bringing a team of twelve.
For the rest of the city, see the best happy hours in NYC.
At a glance.
- 12Mercado Little Spain$3 beers and a four hour window until 8pm
- 05Valerie$1 oysters weekdays from 4 to 7pm
- 11Russian Vodka Room$4 infused vodka shots daily until 7pm
- 02The Stag's HeadThe longest window, 11am to 7pm weekdays
- Cost
- Deals include $1 oysters, $3 beers and $4 shots
- When
- Most deals run on weekdays, starting around 4pm
- Where
- Covers Grand Central, Times Square, Hudson Yards and more
Grand Central and Midtown East
A big, loud Bavarian beer hall two blocks from Grand Central, which makes it the obvious place to kill the time between the last meeting and the 6:12 to wherever. At the bar, Monday to Thursday from 4 to 6:30pm, a half liter of Hofbräu is $7, house wine is $7, well drinks are $7 and appetizers are 30% off. The pretzel is the correct appetizer.
Happy hour: Monday to Thursday 4 to 6:30pm, bar area only. Go for: a half liter and a pretzel. Know before you go: some listings say Tuesday to Thursday; the bar's own site says Monday.
A craft beer bar with a taxidermy theme and the longest happy hour in Midtown: 11am to 7pm, Monday to Friday. Select beers are $6 to $7, Pinot Grigio or Sangiovese is $9 and well drinks are $8. From 5 to 7pm, a happy hour snack menu kicks in, mostly $7, with fried artichokes, queso dip and barbecue meatballs.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 11am to 7pm; snacks 5 to 7pm. Go for: whatever is new on draft and the fried artichokes. Know before you go: the lunch-hour deal is real, which makes it a good place for a long lunch meeting.
An Irish pub two blocks south of Grand Central, reliable and unfussy. Weekdays from 5 to 7pm, select pints are $6 and shots of Jameson, Cuervo or Jägermeister are $4, per a 2026 listing. It is the cheapest honest pint near the terminal. More pubs in our Irish pub guide.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 5 to 7pm. Go for: a pint and a Jameson. Know before you go: it gets packed with commuters right at 5.
A sports bar near Second Avenue that runs one of the simplest deals in the neighborhood: $6 beer, $6 wine and $6 well drinks, weekdays from 4 to 8pm, according to a 2026 listing. The long window means you can get there late and still catch it. See our sports bar guide if the game is the point.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 4 to 8pm. Go for: a $6 beer and whatever game is on. Know before you go: the bar's own site does not list the deal, so confirm with the bartender.
Bryant Park, Times Square and the Garment District
A glamorous, gilded cocktail bar and restaurant a block from Bryant Park that runs one of the best oyster deals in Midtown: $1 oysters weekdays from 4 to 7pm, per the restaurant's own site. A 2026 listing adds $11 select cocktails, $9 house wine and $7 draft beer, though another source has cocktails higher, so confirm at the bar. Groups need a reservation for happy hour.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 4 to 7pm. Go for: a dozen $1 oysters. Know before you go: book ahead if you are more than four.
A 21st-floor rooftop with an open-air terrace between Times Square and the Port Authority, and a happy hour that makes the view affordable: $12 cocktails, $10 wine and $6 beer, Monday to Friday from 4 to 6pm. Rooftops rarely discount anything, so this is a good one to know. Our rooftop bar guide has the full-price competition.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 4 to 6pm. Go for: a $6 beer on the terrace at sunset. Know before you go: the terrace is weather dependent; the indoor lounge is the backup.
Three floors and a rooftop across from the Port Authority, with 90 taps and a 63-foot mahogany bar. Happy hour runs Monday to Friday from 11am to 7pm on the bar's own menu, with discounted select drafts, shots and cocktails. Sources disagree on the exact prices, so check the board, but the window alone makes it the best bet near the bus terminal.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 11am to 7pm. Go for: something local from the 90 taps. Know before you go: it is the pre-bus bar for half of New Jersey, so 5:30 is peak.
Rockefeller Center
A Japanese robata and sushi spot on Sixth Avenue with a happy hour every day from 4 to 6pm, per its own site. A 2026 listing puts select cocktails at $8, beer at $5 and wine and sake at $10, with discounted snacks and rolls. That is well below what anything else in the Rockefeller Center orbit charges.
Happy hour: daily 4 to 6pm. Go for: an $8 cocktail and a discounted roll. Know before you go: lunch runs Monday to Friday 11:30am to 2:30pm if you want to scout it first.
A Korean pub a block from Rockefeller Plaza, with a daily 3 to 6pm happy hour per a 2026 listing: $6 beer, $6 makgeolli, $10 well drinks, $14 cocktails and wine, a $25 bucket of beers and a $22 burger and a beer. The makgeolli is the thing to order, since almost nobody else in Midtown discounts it.
Happy hour: daily 3 to 6pm. Go for: a bowl of makgeolli. Know before you go: the bucket is the move for a group of four.
Theater District and Hell's Kitchen
The dark, wood-paneled bar at the Hotel Edison is the best pre-theater room in Midtown, full stop, and its weekday happy hour makes it a bargain. From 4 to 6pm, Narragansett lager is $5, select cocktails are $10 and house red, white and rosé are $10, according to a 2026 listing. Full-price rum cocktails run $18 to $19. For more Theater District bars, see our Hell's Kitchen guide.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 4 to 6pm. Go for: a $10 cocktail before a 7pm curtain. Know before you go: walk-ins are welcome daily; reservations are taken Wednesday to Saturday.
Russian Vodka Room
A dim, time-warp vodka bar on 52nd Street with the cheapest deal in Midtown: $4 beer, $4 vodka shots and $5 flavored cosmopolitans, every day from 4 to 7pm, per a 2026 listing. The house-infused vodkas are the point. It is a one-drink stop before the show, or a four-drink stop if you are skipping the show.
Happy hour: daily 4 to 7pm. Go for: a flight of $4 infused vodka shots. Know before you go: pace yourself; a $5 cosmo is still a cosmo.
Hudson Yards and Penn Station
José Andrés's Spanish food hall runs Sangria Hour Monday to Friday from 4 to 8pm at Bar Celona, the Spanish Diner bar and La Barra, bar seating only, no reservations. A 2026 listing prices it at $3 for a caña (a 6-ounce beer), $4 vermut, $6 sangria and $6 wine. Pair a vermut with a plate of jamón from the counters and it is the best cheap aperitivo in the city. See our food hall guide for more.
Happy hour: Monday to Friday 4 to 8pm, bar seating only. Go for: a vermut and a caña. Know before you go: no reservations, so arrive before 5:30.
The lounge below the Peak restaurant is a quiet, polished room with a happy hour that runs later than most: Monday to Saturday 4 to 7pm and Sunday 2:30 to 8pm. Cocktails, sparkling and red or white wine are $12, a beer plus a shot is $12 and small plates are $5. Walk-ins are welcome.
Happy hour: Monday to Saturday 4 to 7pm, Sunday 2:30 to 8pm. Go for: a cocktail and two $5 plates. Know before you go: the lounge closes at 10pm Monday to Saturday.
A lounge built for the Madison Square Garden crowd, with a 4 to 6pm happy hour per a 2026 listing: $15.95 dirty martinis, $13.95 select cocktails, $12.95 wine, $5.95 beer and discounted snacks and raw bar. It is not cheap, but it is the best-placed pre-game drink in the building.
Happy hour: 4 to 6pm (confirm weekend hours). Go for: a $5.95 beer before a Knicks game. Know before you go: it stays open until 10pm on game nights.
A bar near Macy's and Penn Station with a Monday to Saturday happy hour, 4 to 7pm, per a 2026 listing: $10 select cocktails, $9 select wines and $7 select beers. It is limited to the main bar and high tops, so it is best for two or three people, not a team.
Happy hour: Monday to Saturday 4 to 7pm, main bar and high tops only. Go for: a $10 cocktail before the LIRR. Know before you go: Saturday is the rare weekend Midtown deal.
What is not here
Grand Central Oyster Bar, the first place people search, does not advertise a happy hour and is open weekdays only. Rudy's Bar & Grill in Hell's Kitchen does not run a set happy hour window because it is cheap all day, with free hot dogs; it belongs in our dive bar guide more than here. Several other Midtown bars that show up on older lists either stopped their deals or no longer answer their websites, so we left them off.
How to use this list
Start with geography, because in Midtown the best happy hour is the one you can reach by 5:10. Grand Central commuters: Hofbräu or Peter Dillon's. Bryant Park: Valerie. Rockefeller Center: Double Knot. Theater: The Rum House or the Russian Vodka Room. Hudson Yards: Mercado Little Spain, every time. And if you are stuck at the office until 7, The Stag's Head and Draught 55 are still pouring discounted beer after most deals have ended.
Questions, answered.
- Where is the best happy hour near Grand Central?
- Hofbräu Bierhaus on Third Avenue at 45th Street is two blocks away and pours $7 half liters of Hofbräu Monday to Thursday 4 to 6:30pm at the bar. Peter Dillon's Pub on East 40th has $6 select pints and $4 shots weekdays 5 to 7pm.
- Is there a happy hour near Bryant Park?
- Valerie on West 45th Street runs weekday happy hour 4 to 7pm with $1 oysters. Castell's rooftop on West 40th, a few blocks west, has $12 cocktails, $10 wine and $6 beer Monday to Friday 4 to 6pm.
- Where can I get a cheap drink before a Broadway show?
- Russian Vodka Room on West 52nd Street has $4 beer, $4 vodka shots and $5 flavored cosmopolitans daily 4 to 7pm. The Rum House on West 47th Street has $10 select cocktails and $5 Narragansett weekdays 4 to 6pm.
- Does Grand Central Oyster Bar have a happy hour?
- No. The Grand Central Oyster Bar does not advertise a happy hour, and it is open Monday to Friday only. For discounted oysters in Midtown, go to Valerie near Bryant Park.
- What is the best happy hour at Hudson Yards?
- Sangria Hour at Mercado Little Spain, weekdays 4 to 8pm at the bars, with $3 cañas, $4 vermouth and $6 sangria. Level 5 Lounge at Peak, on the fifth floor of 30 Hudson Yards, has $12 cocktails and $5 small plates.
Next up
Where to Eat Near Bryant ParkDan dan noodles on 37th, oyster pan roast under Grand Central, a food hall in the Helmsley Building and rooftops for after work: where to eat around Bryant Park, plus Winter Village dates.Read it Get the Shout Sheet.
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