My love for Big Bar has only increased since my first visit. They make a mean vodka martini with plump, juicy olives that still have the pits in them. $9, I believe. There have been no more setting-fire-to-sweater incidents and in fact the two other times I've gone there haven't been candles in the bathroom. It's always been the same bartender when I've gone and he is warm and not pushy at all about getting you to order more drinks. Extra points for that. One note: the ADDRESS IS WRONG on Yelp!! It's 7th st, not 75th st! read more

Oh I get it... It's actually NOT a big bar. Heh. Clever! Seems like the crowd is composed of half regulars and half randoms, but it wad a good mix of people. The drinks were pretty standard in price and preparation. And the barkeep was a little frazzled. Dude- take a deep breath and make a little eye contact, you're not that busy. But I'll agree that this is a decent first date bar considering it isn't so loud that you can't hear one another, plus there are a ton of other interesting places nearby. read more

Small spot, with a lot of character. The bar itself is off the hasty, crowded avenues and instead sits between them. Just like its location, Big Bar is a laid back, mellow, retro feel bar with dimmed red lights and intimate booths. Big Bar is worth a stop by if you're in the area. Definitely a good spot to go to with a lady friend, she'll appreciate you finding what seems to be an exclusive hipster spot, even though it's really not. Drinks are not expensive, nor cheap, I can't really remember but somewhere in the $7 range, but definitely go for the ambience. read more

Short version: quiet, small place in a vibrant neighborhood with a completely standard selection of cocktails and a subpar beer selection. Long version: This is now my favorite manhattan, first-date bar. That does not mean that it is a particularly good bar in terms of drinks; it is a good option because of its location and atmosphere. The location is great because you are in a very fun neighborhood and can easily transition to a whole bunch of interesting activities. Atmosphere wise, the bar was only half-full on a friday night, which I like because it means you can actually having a conversation. The bar has basic booths, wooden tables, and ugly kind of gross bathrooms. The music level was a little too loud but you can still have a conversation without shouting. The only interesting thing about it is the red lighting that pervades the place. As far as the drink selections go, they have an atrocious beer selection that is overpriced. They also have a decidedly mediocre selection of liquor. I cannot judge the cocktail mixing talents of the bartenders, as I ordered my whiskey neat. read more

The East Village can get overrun with NYU kids, especially on a weekend nite. But Big Bar has proved immune to this. True to it's GEN X roots, the bar remains pretty much the same as when it opened in 1990. Awesome find. A tiny bar with a big personality. Good drinks, music and always a mellow, fun time. One of the NYC bars I truly love! read more at my blog: http://iheartnycbars.wordpress.com read more

I should be kicked in the head.. yes i should. So I hardly remember writing this review (that's how bad MY memory is.. hows yours?) but it turns out i was so wrong about the lime juice that when my roommate went back to Big Bar this evening, she was reprimanded on my behalf as the bartender apparently had read my review and remembered who i am... so much for internet anonimity. so now i make a full apology... Big Bar does use fresh lime juice. My eyes deceived me... I am sorry Big Bar... and i am sorry, friendly bar staff... please don't hate me. read more

My favorite bar in the entire world. Best bartenders, great vibe, good people, a lot of locals, amazing music and most of all no tv ! People actually talk to people !! I've met so many cool people at this place ! You'll probably see me there if you come one night! read more

Was here for the first time recently. Nice bar, with a very cool (romantic?) red glow. Great first date place, although I was with a buddy. Drink prices are nice on the wallet as well. Good vibe. read more

Big Bar is nothing you'd stop in your tracks for. You would not think twice about this bar. It is: Unnotable Unimportant Easily Overlooked But it's a veritable watering hole that serves up friendly drinks and oldies for the East Village drifters and vagabonds alike. And I just happen to love it. read more

This place is cozy, like a secluded cabin in the woods. Its probably a good place to write. Anyways, friendly bartenders and good crowd, but the budweiser bottles smell like cheesedoodoos. Peace read more

things you need to keep in mind when you're going to a bar: 1. is the bartender funny? 2. Are the people AT the bar with you groovy? 3. Is the beer flat? Big Bar - the bartender was a trip, the people AT the bar (aside of the awesome-ness of me and boo) were hilarious, and the beer was not flat. A+. BTW, if you hit this joint up and there's an older fella with glasses and a weird accent, youre gonna want to listen to his stories because he is fun-KNEE. And there's a book of jokes and what not chillin on the bar. But if you need a joke, you can borrow one of my favorites: Q. Whats green and says "Hey, I'm a frog?" A. A talking frog! read more

Big fan of how quaint it is. Had amazing deals, beer and a bump for cheap! Absolutely loved the bartender, she was super cool and we loved chatting with her. Definitely have to go back next time I'm in NYC. read more

A nice bar with a pink accented interior. You;d think by the look of it that it was a gay bar. But its actually just a small casual hangout kind of place. The kind of place that you'd go if you wanted to have a few drinks, relax with friends and still be able to carry on a conversation. This is very difficult in NYC because all the bars are so crowded and loud with the sounds of music turned up way to high and screaming annoying NYU Students. Of course, now its going to be crowded on Saturday nights. read more

The $5 margarita Happy Hour lured me in despite the place being almost completely empty. Once inside, the bartender couldn't have been less welcoming. When she wasn't glaring at us, she was standing in the doorway smoking. Unfortunately, the margarita didn't make up for anything- it tasted like a glass of Pine Sol infused salt water. Now I know why the bar was empty. read more

i'm not sure why this place is considered french. i stopped in here with my little sister before dinner on a friday night. it was small and cute with excellent lighting. i took some nice pictures here so i know it's flattering. they were playing reggae covers of various hits of the 70's, 80's and 90's. the bartender was cool and i liked the really mellow vibe. one star off because jen said the bathroom was disgusting and it's a cash only joint. read more

Best place to go in the city if you want to have conversation with your liquor. A lot of people mention it as a great first date bar, but I think it would be intimidating in that department because the burden of the night would be placed solely on the conversation. Not to mention that nearly everyone in this tiny bar would be able to overhear you make an ass out of yourself, it's that small. Best reserved for good friends and established significant others. read more

Cute bar, anyone who appreciates irony will enjoy the name and size of this bar. Great for meeting a couple of friends, cool bartenders too.

I came here for a going away party...which is probably a good thing, because once my friend moves I can't envision any scenario in which I'd ever come back to Big Bar. I walked in, greeted my buddies and ordered a drink. At some point I let slip to our stupendously vapid bartender that, "this is pretty much my buddy's going away party and he chose this place because its small and close to his place," she blinked at me. Shortly thereafter, we watched amazed as she practically counted on her fingers what she was owed (a whopping $17 bucks) for three beers. Later in the evening, my buddy inquired as to the status of his buy-back (I know, I know, you're not supposed to ask for a buy-back, but c'mon, it's the guys going away party and our business accounted for probably 50% of the bar sales), she told him, "if you have to ask for one, you're not getting one." Apparently Big Bar has instituted the seldom-used buy 20 get one free policy... This was later confirmed when I made a show of having the going-away-boy put his money away, because he'd been PAYING FOR DRINKS ALL NIGHT and bought our round (on top of the 3 Maker's and 4 beers I'd already purchased, sans a buy-back); guess what...no buy-back. In short, if all the other bars in the East Village were wiped out and Big Bar somehow survived...like a cockroach...I'd go to the West Village to do my drinking. read more

Don't let the name fool you as this place is very small, quiet and intimate. From what I've witnessed and been told, it seems to be a rare gem in the area. When visiting, it made me think of a small college town bar, shoved into the East Village. The drinks were cheap and we were the only people in there on a Sunday night. It was a nice starter place for our evening. read more

Great classic East Village dive. Small place, small booths, big personality. Great place to catch up with a friend, bring a date, or black out on a fri night. Whatever bro. read more

Great, underrated bar in EV. Best kept secret! Came for late night drinks - super chill bartender who has been with the place nearly since its inception. Small but great variety of local draft beers. Got much more packed when we were leaving, around midnight. Highly recommend for chill drinks, low key people. read more

This place is great. It is very small, but cozy and not claustrophobic. I think it used to be a small restaurant because they have booths, which are fun to sit in while having some drinks with friends. The lighting is all red which creates a really cool atmosphere. There was only one bartender on a busy Friday night, and she was ON POINT. I never waited too long for my beer. They have Blue Point on draft, some wine (which my friend said was meh- but this isn't the type of place to come for wine), and a full bar. The draft beer was cold and carbonated well. The cocktails the bartender was making looked good too. I was here early-ish (around 9pm on a Friday), so I'm not sure if it gets super packed later. But before 10pm it was lively without being annoyingly crowded. I'll definitely be back to this place- had a great time! read more

Tiny, intimate, with a great bartender. I just kept asking for surprises for myself and friends, and kept getting excellent creations (and one classic Manhattan). Prices were reasonable and company was good. Highly recommended. Best part? The corpse-reviver-spin-off. Second best part? My friends were buying. :) read more

We had a really bad time here Saturday night. The bartender was rude and so were the other staff. We were giving the place good business, but they had snotty attitudes, and didn't seem to like the fact that we were there. I would not recommend this place, all in all its not even that interesting, or exciting. read more

Big Bar: Kelly Gorman, hangovier to the stars, backs this Est Villáge hot spot filled with Cartier crack whores, junkies jubilee, and gabanna gogos in a baccarat bacchanal. Pack your hiking laboutin and a goyard puke pack cause this hot spot is as sure as swarovski. read more

I'm not sure why I was expecting this place to be more divey. Maybe because its name is so generic and uncreative that I wasn't expecting a more romantic and intimate interior. It's actually pretty decent inside. The lighting is dim and red, there are booths, there are stools - it's more of a date/small group sort of bar where you can chit-chat while still being audible to each other. read more

This is always one of my favorite spots to stop in the E. Village. Its just so damn cute!

Nothing is actually big here in terms of space, but it's fondly big and grand in service and over-all ambience. i think it's the predominant red lights, but they're not really red, red lights as in those you see in christmas trees. here, it's the red light that makes you see more warmth among patrons and servers here. it's fun to be here, and i like their music. the lady bartender does a great job--she's very much in charge during that thursday night. we showed up when it was almost full, then suddenly one by one left, until only 2 or 3 tables had people on them (including ourselves). and i noticed, in a matter of minutes, patrons gathered here again---i think it can be the quaint color of white set against red light without much decor, not much of a pretense of a bar like this one. and i got a clue how people come here to meet up, and be introduced to new people. i think this is a safe place to go alone drinking by yourself, until you get a date from one or two other lonesome bodies here. i'll be back one of these days..... read more

The last & final stop on a recent bar journey. Big Bar was a great place to end the night. While the bar itself is anything but Big, the friendly service by the bartender (Tracy) was a great way to knock back a few cocktails before calling it a night. read more

Tried the margaritas here a few nights ago. Now, I'm not normally a fan of non-blended margaritas or margaritas in general, but now I kinda like it. The place is super tiny and made me think clockwork orange...don't know why. read more

Came here randomly after work with a friend. The place is small and cozy, and definitely the least intimidating bar I have ever been to. The bartender was super nice and friendly, and drinks are delicious. I like the small booths a lot, perfect for catching up with friends. The restrooms are tiny and barely lit, but they were clean and kind of cute. read more

I'm being generous with two stars... after this having been my favorite bar in NYC, a horrible experience with the blond female bar tender had me leaving the joint without even wanting to finish my drink. This happened end of March, 2011... She was the worst ever, to the point of insulting me and my friend telling us we brought bad vibes; she served a warm coctail, hastily put together, practically thrown at us... she spent her time chatting with a client (a fellow bartender from some other joint, who chimed in to insult us), and was obviously bothered to have us interrupt asking for a drink. My girl friend and had walked over to the big bar, after a great Peter Luger's lunch, feeling wonderful, to have a couple of afternoon drinks. When we ordered, she didn't know how to make a couple of specialty cocktails that we would normally ask for in this same bar (Aviation and another one I can't remember right now). Instead of trying to look it up, find out, she just shortly said "I don't make those!" - she obviously had an issue with the other bartenders that worked there (Stefan, Ozzie). When I went over to the owner, who was there and had seen what was going on (hey, it's really small and it was almost empty), and let him know how his waitress had treated us, he began accusing me of having treated his bartendress improperly; when I explained how she had thrown away most of my cocktail when I asked her to re-chill it, her sour responses to our requests, how she was practically throwing the drinks at us, then the owner said "sorry, I hadn't noticed" and just came up with sorry excuse about how she was having a rough day and that "let me tell you buddy, we're making some changes from Stefan".... well, whatever, I don't need to know about this, it's not my problem, I just want a good drink and nice atmosphere. Anyway, while I was over talking to the owner, the bar tender and her friend were both telling my friend off, basically ganging up on her and telling her what bad vibes we had brought in to the place, how we should know how to mix our own drinks, finishing with "and all you leave is a $1 tip!" (BTW, a $1 tip was generous considering how we'd been attended to thus far.) That was the last straw, we walked out, didn't finish the drinks, weren't offered our money back or another drink, or credit for another day... what a lousy experience, the worst I've ever had, a real downer. Too bad: as I said, it was once my favorite bar, I raved about Big Bar and the Aviation coctail to all my friends, would gather groups of friend there for drinks, and have personally spent around $1,000 in cash each year... Well, no more. Patron beware! read more

This is one of the few bars in NYC that I can count on as a standby. Great for quiet first dates or having a drink with friends where you can actually hear each other... really well. It's almost never crowded or give it five minutes and you'll get a seat at one of the booths. A few times, I've been one the only patrons there. But, I love it for its easiness and cheap drinks. read more

How have I not rated Big Bar yet? I've been going here on and off for the past three years, and Big Bar in all its boozy, cozy glory is like an old f-buddy you just can't quit. If I lived remotely nearby, it would be my local--and when I'm out drinking in the E Vill I always get sucked into its vortex of goodness. Trust. read more

Walked in here about a week ago after having a minor procedure done. I was in pain and needed a drink ASAP. Bar was tiny and the dude serving drinks looked a little sketchy but after three killer Rum and cokes, I was feeling no pain. read more

Irony is key at this teeny-tiny hole-in-the-wall of the place. Go for the lack of crowds, the great martinis and the terrific location.

Nice little small hangout bar. Totally digger the atmosphere and the drinks were good.

I'm really not THAT particular! Good booze selection, friendly bouncer and bartender and nice crowd and I"m one happy chick.

Friendly bartender. Sixpoint was the only thing on tap. Quiet music. Very relaxing on a Saturday afternoon.

This is one of my favorite bars in the East Village. It's super tiny, but so cute! Good drinks, nice staff with good service, and decent (average) prices. I don't know what exactly it is about this place, but I just love it! If it's too crowded, it can be a bit annoying since it's so small, but if you are in the neighborhood, and it's not packed, stop in for a drink, it'll be well worth it! read more