So an unfortunate night led to an unhappy ending to my evening at Overlook but I have to give a huge THANKS to the owners for giving me great personal time and service helping me with the issues that happened that night. They were very responsive and helpful in resolving a credit card issue I had. Situation: Left my credit card with the waiter, next day went to go get it and they told me they didn't have it. Then the day after I found $400+ charged to my account. So as furious as I called the owner again (after I left a HATE yelp review) and he knew exactly who I was. The REVIEWS WORK! But anyway he was very kind in researching the situation and offered a refund my card with the over charge that I received. Jeff, an owner, has given complete attention and detail to this situation! I have to give complete THANKS! to them for helping me. Unfortunately, it looks like the criminal will get away with identity fraud yet again but the OVERLOOK put out a lot of effort to solve this situation and I am very grateful. In regards to the bar itself, I have only had a few actual outings at this restaurant due to a few mishaps with going there for the Oklahoma Sooner football games but as the OU alumni bar I know they put out a lot of effort to make it a good OU experience. The beer specials are reasonable especially for NYC. Wasn't completely impressed with the bloody mary's. OVERALL: You are in good company at this bar. It's a great place to watch an OU games just be sure to get their EARLY to secure a seat! NYC is crawling with SOONER FANS! BOOMER! read more

I came here twice for happy hour. It's in a great location, only a few blocks from Grand Central. The service is good. The food as bar food, is VERY good. I got a chicken sandwich which was filled with flavor and very filling. There are great drink specials and they are made pretty strong. Their drink specials for happy hour during the week are impressive ( 2 for 1 until 6pm, after 6, $5 Pinnacle drinks) and you drink for Free from 5-8 on your "name day." The roof top bar has a very nice vibe but it got very smokey. It was crowded but not too crowded. The inside has a pretty funky but nice decor. The music was just awesome- all of our favorite 80s and 90s, some classics and modern stuff but almost every time a song came on, everyone recognized it and got very excited. I definitely recommend this place and will most likely be returning. read more

Are you from Chicago? This is your bar. Great place to come for Cubs/ Bulls/ Blackhawk games. They have appropriate named special menu items like the Jay Cutler Chicken Sandwich, the Briggs Burger etc. I personally like the deep fried ravioli as an appetizer. They also have buckets of Coors light beers. During games, they will have raffle prizes if you wear the right colors. And if you wear the gear of an opposing team, you will gain the title of A hole of the day, which they will announce over the mike. I love the friendly bartenders here too. I once sat at the bar, and ordered a chicken sandwich, which I found dry. The bartender asked me if I disliked it, and didn't even charge me for it. I come here quite often, and will be back. read more

Get: ~2 for 1 happy hour. Pretty good deal, from 4-6pm. Brooklyn Lager $6.50 ~try to get on the roof deck. It doesn't have a particularly good view, but you can reserve it for groups and it certainly beats being cooped up in the dark. Skip: ~if you want to be able to hear your friends inside. ~if you want space to stretch out. ~if you want to hear good music. read more

Overlook is right across the street from where i work. It has great old illustrations along the wall. Great open deck upstairs. But it can become crowded when the weather is warm. But, i expect that to happen at any bar. Place is kind of like a frat house after work. Since all the business men like to go here after work for their happy hour. Oh yeah, their happy hour is from 2-6pm. The earliest happy hour schedule i've seen in manhattan. That's one thing I'm not a great fan of. but anyway... Burgers are not their usual size burgers that you get at a fast food joint. Their burgers are small, but fills you up like crazy. It's probably the size of a white castle burger, or maybe a tad bigger. But believe me, you will be stuffed and it is absolutely delish! Try their blue cheese burger :). Their fries is always off the hook. Nice and brown, and crispy. And gives you A LOT. It's what I look forward to every time i go there. And their dipping sauce comes in varieties: chiptole, cheese, honey mustard, and on and on. read more

I work in the area and frequent the overlook regularly. Their food is great (very good specials) and their drink prices are in line for Manhattan. They do have daily drink specials and a 2 for 1 happy hour till 6pm. The spot gets really busy sometimes so that may explain some of the service difficulties, but the atmosphere/outdoor deck/ and great food more than make up for it. The bouncer at the main entrance remembers me whenever I'm around. The rooftop is amazing. A recommended place just to hang with friends and co-workers after work! read more

Love Overlook! This is one of the official Bear's bar in NYC. Come here for any Bears game and I promise it will be a blast. The fries are AMAZING! Seriously, you must get them. All of the other food is very good as well. They have a good variety of beer as well. I have been here a few times when the Bear's were not playing as well and still, a great time. read more

only been in the bar on the main floor, but the overlook is great. nothing super unique about the place, but very comfortable, traditional bar. enter through front door and the bar is on the right (east) and there are a few high tables along the west wall. brick walls throughout and a dark black floor. black ceiling is decorated with small balls that you'd traditionally use to decorate a Christmas tree. Except the are the colors of mardi gras, purple, gold, green, & red. the bar itself is a battered medium wood with a large rail. black wooden stools. standard foot rest. tremendous bar back with large mirrors divided by a large brick arch. bottles and HDTVs are scattered above & to the side of the mirrors. in front of the mirrors are traditional bottle shelves. window in the front lets in the perfect amount of light. lower eating tables and the stairs towards the rear of the bar (north). food is above average, stick with the sandwiches. more of a beer & shot bar, but a good beer menu as well. strong drinks, good service. good music (rock). crowd is like most of your other NYC pubs that shows up after work. read more

See all

Came here several times for lunch and happy hour. Just an average post work happy hour spot. 2 for 1 well drink specials were weird. You'd assume it meant buy 1 get one free, but nope. Here it means each drink you buy comes with double the amount of liquor. I don't know why that's a thing because then you're just stuck with a really strong drink when all you wanted was a normal drink. They have an upstairs with some outdoor-sy space that overlooks the street, hence the name. Anyway, the food was good too. Just your average bar. read more

Overlook is one of my favorite bars in NY. Can't imagine my work neighborhood without this one. when you go home after long and hard day and you desperately need to take your mind away of all those problems- here it stands. you enter and it seems like all your worries have been left outside. i feel comfortable there. like at home. Love the second floor open area. I'm a smoker and a lazy person.:) So sitting and having your beer and cigarette at the same time is perfect for me. Once I've been there with my friends and one of them had a Bday. The owner gave us free shouts of vodka. Not mentioning that we were happy as kids to play together in billiard and dart. read more

Great bar for a hangout, to watch a game, or to throw a party. I had one last night there, and Jeff -- the owner -- as well as all the bartenders could not have been nicer or more accomodating. They reserved a private area for me, were great to my guests, and gave me a few drinks on the house! There was also a nice outdoor roofdeck area for my guests to go out on if they wanted. Although I didn't personally eat there, a few of my friends ordered and were actually raving about the quality of the bar food. Will definitely go back and would absolutely recommend it for any casual party or fundraiser you might be having. read more

I wouldn't necessarily choose this bar if given the choice, but it is close to my work so I end up here on happy hours somewhat often. The drinks are fine, but the downstairs smells like piss. I was however pleasantly surprised by the Chicken Bites - they were actually yummy and quite filling. It's a fine bar, but I usually go more for a cleaner and more creative atmosphere. If you are a sports person I imagine this bar would be a top choice as all of the booths downstairs have their own television that you can control -- that makes it pretty hard for someone to be in the way. With that said, definitely don't bring a date here this is a dude's bar. :p read more

It almost feels unfair to review this place just because i love it so much...after starting to work in the area 2 years ago the Overlook has quickly become my regular spot. I can honestly say i have made legitimate friends out of a lot of the employees and owners . There are lots of good things about this place. The bartenders are all great both personality wise and pouring wise. The food is actually amazing. And i say actually because usually bar food is just passable when you're drunk . This is not the case here , there have been times where we've have just gone there for dinner. oh they also have Karaoke every tuesday night with cash prizes every week if thats your thing. i almost forgot in the summer there is an awesome outdoor deck on the second floor, great for getting some sun during a long lunch. all in all great bar if your looking for a fun time with good people and good friends. Edit Remove read more

They only get two stars because they were playing host to all the NYC Islanders fans. We went to watch the Islanders-Capitals game 7 and despite the food being semi-decent, the service wasn't good at all.. And they had the NERVE to add a surcharge to each drink we ordered on the rocks or neat, simply because it was "straight up" and they overpour.. If they advised us beforehand, it would have been understandable but NOWHERE on the menu did it say there was a surcharge for those kind of drinks. Now that the Islanders are moving to Brooklyn, I'm going to "overlook" this bar and bring my following to a more deserving venue. read more

This place has cool bartenders and the drinks are strong. The karaoke can be pretty hit or miss though as with any other bar.

Pretty solid midtown bar. Tuesday night karaoke nights are pretty fun. A little on the pricey side, but they do run some specials if you're on a budget. The food is definitely above average for bar standards. read more

Waitress was super nice! Good happy hour deals ($5 craft beers and $6 house wines). Enjoyed the Tex mex quesadillas and fries!

We ended up at Overlook because we were looking for a sports bar on Halloween. Not the easiest thing as you can imagine on one of the biggest party nights in NYC. We wanted to see Halloween in NYC, but also wanted to watch the World Series game. Is it possible? A friend suggested we go to Overlook, because it was close to our hotel in midtown. We arrived and good signs all around - 10+ TVs on sports. We could see that most people were dressed up in their Halloween costumes and were ready for a party. The host asks us if we wanted to be seated. We spotted a corner table that's emptying, and he's great about having it cleared. We get seats and they put the World Series game on for us. While we watched the game, the place got busier and busier as the night goes on. It worked out perfectly - we had our own World Series corner while they move the tables and then the Halloween party happens right in front of us. We got to see all the customes. read more

Great place for happy hour (2 for 1) or if you have some down time at work. Love the rooftop seating. The bartenders are pretty friendly and the service is quick. Great place to getaway from the office. read more

Overlook - Ceiling - American Near Me - New York, New York

I had a fundraiser at Overlook and it was wonderful. Out of about 9 bars I contacted to try to find a location that was suitable, they were the only ones who were genuinely helpful and considerate when it came to planning the event for a good cause. They were fair, provided a lot of options, and delivered when the time came. Great bar, nice staff, good prices and really accommodating for events! read more

2 for 1 beers is hard to beat. Fries with tons of dipping sauces are also hard to beat. TVs at the tables are nice. Service is spotty, good while it is empty, then almost non-existent once it get crowded. A crowded deck with a miniature bar serving it, not that awesome. The restrooms are tight little private stalls, not bad, clean for the most part, but not so much toward the end of the night. Stocked well. 3.5 Flushes. read more

Horrid service - slow and unengaged. Burgers are pretty solid and always taste fresh, but you may have to wait long enough where it kinda doesn't matter anymore. read more

Finally, after living in New York for a year and a half, I made it to the official Mizzou Football bar to watch a game (my alma mater). I'm not exactly a sports enthusiast, but I had a really great time (despite Texas winning). Both the first and 2nd floor were packed with Mizzou fans decked out in black and gold. I appreciated that the bar let the alumni association adorn the tables with pom-poms and other MU regalia. The servers were really attentive and the 5-for-$17 Miller Lite special was pretty cheap. I'd definitely come back for another game or for an after work happy hour. The pomme frites looked awesome and I can't wait to give 'em a try. read more

Ehh. This place is adequate. I had the Buffalo Chicken salad - it was $13 and the chicken was pretty much fried to oblivion. A few crumbles of bleu cheese, which was fine by me, but others might be disappointed. A local brew, Brooklyn Lager set me back $6 which I found somewhat surprising. We dropped by on a Tuesday night and they were doing karaoke - the folks participating in that biz seemed to be enjoying themselves quite a bit. Very little room to actually perform, though. All in all - nothing to rave about. It's adequate. Whatevv. I wouldn't recommend anyone go out of their way to make a stop here, by any means. read more

A 3-3.5 bar in New York City. They have karaoke every night, but it's hard to really enjoy it unless you're right by the karaoke machine (the bar is long and skinny). They offered drink specials every night. I went on a Tuesday and the special was a $6 Margarita (tasted good but mostly ice). Just want to warn people that there is a $20 minimum if you pay with card. The place was busy when I went, but I also went with a large group. read more

What a great bar! Found it while looking for a burger and somewhere to watch the soccer on a Saturday lunchtime. The barman Josh couldn't have been friendlier or more helpful! The burger was great and good value! They also found the soccer so happy days! read more

One of the few decent bars in midtown. They have great pulled pork sandwiches, and their fries are amaaazing. Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Get the chipotle lime mayo for dipping. Who knew this place was classy enough to serve pomme frittes? The crowd can be a little weird at night, but hey, its midtown. Better than the Irish dive bars or pretentious fancy lounges, if you ask me. Oh, and they have a quieter seating room upstairs, along with a nice outdoor area. Hence the "overlook." read more

This is a cool place to hang out with some friends in a more mellow atmosphere. This does not mean that this place is quiet, by all means it's still fill with loud obnoxious people and music, but the people here in general along with the staff and bouncers on a more laid back trip. Hanging out on the roof while throwing back a few is always fun, especially if you smoke ( I'm an ex-smoker) but I still enjoy the fun, always good to meet some new cool people on the roof who enjoy shooting the breeze, its a good time, not my favorite place to go to, but i've always had a good experience. I've never ordered food from the menu, maybe I'm one of those guys who doesn't believe that you should order food from a bar, I mean, I prefer to drink at a bar and eat at restaurant or food establishment. - that's just me though. read more

Interesting place with an outdoor area on the second floor. The buildings that once surrounded Overlook have been demolished, and it now stands alone on a block filled with rubble and construction equipment. People are still flocking here. The beer selection is great -- plenty to choose from, even a few Octoberfest brews. The burger was decent, not the best but not the worst. The frites are what you need to try! With each order of frites you get to choose a sauce -- the sauce that we chose was really yummy but I can't remember the name of it now :/ We had a waitress who was great. The music was a little loud for my taste, but good songs. The only negative thing: When we first walked in, the door bouncer asked for IDs. That's pretty standard. However, when i opened my purse to grab my ID, the bouncer looked into my purse, saw that I had a water bottle, and told me that I couldn't come in with outside drinks. I told him it was just a water bottle that I always carry around in my purse (I like to stay hydrated, I'm not trying to sneak booze into some bar). He insisted that I dispose of the drink before I enter. So I did. But the whole thing was very off-putting. Why was he looking into my purse at all? It's not like I was flaunting the waterbottle for all to see, it was just discreetly tucked away in my bag. read more

I've been to this place twice. It's pretty awesome. The drinks are very well priced. But, my favorite thing about this bar is that the music is great and for every song that is played, the video is shown on all the booths they have. A very fun spot :-) read more

Overlook - American Near Me - New York, New York

See all

Good: There is a roof where you can chill and enjoy the weather. Their happy hour has a two for one deal. The waitresses and bartenders are friendly and make good drinks. The music was nice and not deafening. Bad: The roof gets really crowded, really fast. Although there is a two for one deal, the drinks are already on the pricier side ($8 for a stella?). Not much of a view on the roof (small building surrounded by large buildings). All in all, a nice bar with a chill roof -- you will have a good time. read more

it's not the fanciest of places, but definitely a decent Happy Hour spot. Drink specials are 2-for-1, however I do wish Happy Hour would end a little later than 6. If you end up working late, you miss it! Although, its still reasonably cheap. Food is not bad. I didn't really care for their buffalo chicken nachos, but I think that was me more not expecting bleu cheese on nachos, i will have to thry them again though. Definitely worth checking out though. read more

There were more TVs in this place than in my local BEST BUY! Every booth had its own set. Never saw anything like it before. Besides the TVs, the bar had a nice 365-Day Xmas decor, with a ceiling full of colored balls. The beer list was fair, with Blue Moon on tap. I wouldn't want to be here on a heavy sports night, but on a mild-Tuesday it was peaceful. The food was okay, but nothing special, slightly on the pricey side... but that's Midtown NY. The waitstaff was friendly and efficient. The crowd was mostly 20 to 30 somethings.There's not much more to say. --Drink Club NYC is a roving group of NYC drinkers. --Saying more: on a return trip (2014) we got to sit on the roof... great spot, though it closes at midnight. Our waitress Saudi was terrific, as was her replacement. There was an extensive beer list... with very few of those beers actually available. I hope the tip was included in the bill (it usually is when there are more than 5.) We were told the "SERVICE CHARGE" was included, but Saudi's late-nite replacement didn't look too happy with our lack of additional tip. I hope we didn't cheat them out of their well-deserved due. --MB for Drink Club read more

A+ for effort to the manager/owner Pat. He's very diligent in following up I see here on Yelp and have personally experienced. In my first encounter, I wasn't left with a good first impression. And initially I wrote about my experience, sitting in a cold room eating not so good food. Pat immediately jumped on this and took it as an opportunity to engage a disappointed guest. He invited me back for lunch and I enjoyed it sooo much more. He recommended the daily specials and the appetizers so my friend and I ordered crab-cake to start.. Good, although I think next time I'm going to order more tartar sauce (big sauce fan). I was pleased with what I got, a chicken hummus wrap (great level of spiciness and amount of hummus/chicken). I'm looking forward to exploring the menu. My conclusion, I'll be back to try more things. A friend of mine in the area says she loves this place- it's a neighborhood gem so definitely worth a visit. read more

Coming to this bar to see a game was a very bad decision. After telling me they would put the game I wanted to see, the "DJ" (who's in charge of changing channels) just stood there talking with his friend. The bartender was also very rude. UPDATE: In reply to "Patrick E. of Overlook". The truth must be told. Just by the length of Patrick's response to my initial review, it is evident he is trying to justify the unjustifiable: *) " why not ask for a manager to get him some help" As I explained to Erick, the second half of the game had already started. I couldn't waste 10 more minutes talking with him, after having wasted 10% of the 2nd half of the game waiting for the chatty DJ to stop talking to his friend. I rushed to another bar. *) "The guest instead ordered a beer, ran over to the DJ and asked the DJ to turn on the game and ran back to the bar area " I ordered the beer just AFTER the DJ told me he was going to put the game. But he wasn't to concerned about turning on the game, he preferred to chat with his friend. *) "Since the DJ was busy at the moment" "Busy", chatting with his friend. He could punch the remote to a standard DirecTV channel. *) "The bartender was considered rude, because he had an issue with the customer" Yes, he **threw my credit card at me**. Is this a way to treat a customer over a beer? *) "refusing to pay for his half drank beer" First, I **never** touched the beer since the game was NEVER turned on. Second, I was clear to the bartender that I wanted a beer to watch the game that the DJ had already told me he was going to turn on. 7-10 minutes passed and he didn't turn on the game. *) "Do not (...) expect to have a dj, who is mixing songs..." He was NOT mixing. I would've understood that. He was CHATTING WITH A FRIEND instead of taking 15seconds to turn on a game on a DirecTv channel. *) "look for a obscure game that he would have to search 500 channels for" It was a main game, in channel 620 of DirecTv. Information I told the 'DJ'. Also, it is fair to say I had called before going to this bar to check if I could see the game there, and they told me I could. It is also fair to say that the venue shouldn't be characterized only by the DJ and a rude bartender. Overall, it is a big place, with very loud music, not specially good if you want to see a game. Instead, it is perfect to try to chat -yell- over the loud music and have the game as a background thing. If you like that atmosphere, go for it. To me it was quite annoying since I first stepped in. Turns out, I wasted 10 minutes of my life coming here, and a good part of the game. Good news is, we won :) read more

I've been to Overlook many times over the last several years but never took the moment to make a review! Great vibe and space if you're looking for something more dive-y and chill. Prices are very reasonable and you can't beat the 2 for 1 happy hour special. I recently planned a happy hour for come work visitors from out of town, and as expected we had a fantastic time. Pat was super easy to work with to set it up, and very accomodating with all of our requests. The drinks were great and the food was delicious (especially the buffalo chicken nachos!) Our server Nicole was just fantastic and so much fun! The location being on the same block as my office is helpful, but even if I were further away, I'd make the trip :) We will definitely be back!!!! read more

Jim the bartender Is 5 damn stars. Awesome service. Awesome wings. Jim literally deserves a 1000% tip. He made our experience amazing.

Great happy hour, took co-worker who was leaving and had a blast. Manager Mark really took care of us... Great burgers and good size drinks. Nice beer selection read more

I like this place -- I've only had good experiences when frequenting this establishment. There are several pros working in favor of Overlook, firstly it has a solid roof deck, and there's nothing like a little outdoor day drinking in the summertime to really kick start an evening of adventure -- one neat aspect is that they have projecters set up to show sports on the back wall which I though was very cool. Food here is very solid. I think the bartenders are some of the friendlier ones you'll find (especially in the often pretentious Midtown east). I looooove the happy hour specials (2 for 1 -- first time I walked in during happy hour I was unaware of the special and a little perplexed when given two Sierra Nevadas instead of one!) As far as the negatives go, the roof deck can get impossibly crowded, getting a drink on the 2nd floor (where the roof deck is) can also be a bit of a struggle due to the crowd. All in all though it's a really good place -- a good friend of mine recently threw a charity fundraiser at the bar because we like it so much and the staff is so accomodating Check it out read more

What an awesome find! Great food, service, crowd etc! Went there for the first time a few weeks ago when I was in NYC - loved it :D Love the $5 Absolut drinks on Wed nights :-) read more