Welcome To Our Website

Established in 1908, our bar has become one of the most renowned and revisited bars in Manhattan. Located in the heart of Little Italy, we are visited by local residents and international travelers daily. Over the years, we have added a touch of the twenty first century to the original features of the 98 year old establishment. From the tin ceiling to the original bar and tileing we have preserved the feel of the old neighborhood place once known as "Mare Chiaro", meaning clear water.

Reviews

Here's what the New Yorker had to say about our bar: "If you had to whack a mob boss, you'd probably take him to this Little Italy gem. At least that's the popular wisdom: Donnie Brasco, The Sopranos, and Law & Order have all set scenes in this bar, and plenty of photos capture the moment, among them one of Frank Sinatra from Contract on Cherry Street. Formerly called Mare Chiaro, the place has a social club décor that's barely changed since it opened in 1908: a towering, ornate wooden back bar with inset mirrors at the top, a subway tile floor, and swaths of pressed tin along the ceiling and walls. When its previous owner moved to Florida in 2003, Little Italy native Ed Welsh bought it because, he says, he always wanted a place to drink for free. He's nudged it up to date by installing five plasma screen TVs and adding beer on tap, but kept the soulful jukebox, filled with the Four Tops, Connie Francis, Elvis, and of course Old Blue Eyes. The bartender mixes a lively mango cosmo and tops a dirty martini with nice, fat olives as he serves the enduring gold-necklaced regulars, sports fans, and yuppie sightseers among the eclectic clientele." — Karen Hudes

Shecky's City Review also payed us a visit and had this to say : "The next time someone annoyingly bemoans the gentrification of New York City, bring them here. This old-school joint has been around for almost a century and looks it. From the straight-talking name to the bare-bones décor—a worn bar, a couple of tables, and little else—this good-natured dive is Little Italy’s quintessential cheap liquor shack. Through the decades, wiseguys, locals, and cops have warmed the barstools and longtime regulars still come by for a cold one, but these days the bar also draws hipper downtown types who like to think they’re slumming it for the night. Lots of them commit karaoke crimes on the weekend until somebody has the sense to put Frank on the jukebox."

Links

Here are links that you might find useful if you are planning on visiting Little Italy.