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    The Side Door

    4.8 (17 reviews)
    ModerateBars, Jazz & Blues
    Open 7:30 pm - 11:00 PM

    The Side Door Photos

    THE SIDE DOOR ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Live music
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - The Side Door

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    Reviews With Photos

    Stage
    Suzanne A.

    Amazing jazz club. Not a bad seat in the house and excellent talent. Ambiance is upscale with many patrons being dressed up and most likely coming from the price fixed dinner at the Old Lyme Inn. Drinks were delicious- and a cheese plate is a available at the club. Full bar list includes beer, bourbon, martinis with prices ranging on average from $9-$15 a drink. Club seats about 70. Tickets are $45 and show is about 2.5 hours total. Highly recommend- we will be back!

    Entrance around the side of the inn
    Jess L.

    Having lived in CT only a handful of years, I still love finding hidden gems in the state. We first heard about the Side Door at the Hartford jazz fest, and I'm very thankful! The Side Door has a really stellar jazz line up, and we were fortunate to get tickets to a sold out Pat Martino Trio show. We arrived 40 minutes before the show, and most of the seats were taken. We ended up sitting at the bar, which gave us a decent view of all the musicians though with no seat back The space is intimate though not stuffy. If you get there early, there are lots of great seats right in the front by the stage. The sound is overall good. There was one waitress and one bartender, and they did a pretty good job with the room, though a few of us were still waiting for our checks when the show was over. I had the French 75 and Manhattan ($14/each), which were solid. I appreciate that they don't have a minimum, like many jazz bars have. Sitting by the bar had advantages, like being higher up for a view, but the lack of back plus the sound/light associated with a bar area was at times distracting. Once the parking lot is full, it would be nice if someone put up a sign. Most of the overflow ended up in the parking lot across the street.

    Etienne Charles
    Barb G.

    Great venue! You have access to many amazing musicians here, since so many famous jazz bands travel through Old Lyme on their way from NY to Boston. Last night we heard Etienne Charles and his sextet. The music was fabulous. Don't expect dinner-- if you want to eat at the Old Lyme Inn prior to the concert that's the way to go. Drinks are good and not too expensive; dessert and coffee from the Inn available and yummy. Watch the schedule for your favorite jazz virtuosos-- sooner or later they will arrive at the Side Door!

    The great Buster Williams and his band, including Lenny White on drums!!!

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    19 days ago

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    1 year ago

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    1 year ago

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    2 years ago

    A hidden gem with amazing ambiance and friendly service. We came to see the very talented Christian Sands Trio

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    4 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Stayed for a lovely jazz performance from Jimmy Greene. Service was great. Wine was amazing. Highly recommend!

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    2015
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    11 years ago

    A great place to hear live music. They have great Jazz and one of the best places to hang in Old Lyme.

    Business owner information

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    Ken K.

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    10 years ago

    Best jazz club between NYC and Boston. Tickets are usually $40 but you get 2 sets of music every time which is unlike a typical jazz club.

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    10 years ago

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    Ask the Community - The Side Door

    Who is playing at the side door this weekend?

    Friday 2/8 NAT REEVES WITH SPECIAL GUEST KATE RUSHIN… 

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    Review Highlights - The Side Door

    The SideDoor Jazz Club is actually attached to the Old Lyme Inn where we stayed for the night.

    Mentioned in 3 reviews

    Read more highlights

    Drift - Fish And Chips Your Girl Told You Not To Worry About!

    Drift

    4.5(67 reviews)
    3.8 mi

    This was a surprisingly good find! One of the best fish & chips I've had!…read more Watch out for that Kool & Deadly, it comes with a whole shot of rum extra in it! Dog friendly, great view of the CT river. Going to be coming back for sure

    Hi, I was happy to hear back from the restaurant that they decided to refund me for my purchase. I…read morelook forward to trying again. There are some things in your video review you wrote up that are not accurate (and some things that you wrote that we're not accurate from my perspectivs) that I would like to have a chance to respond to... Whatever menu I was handed that had the lobster roll description on It did not have a description that included onions. There seem to have been multiple menus the restaurant had that day. When I was outside a server said that she would bring over the lobster menu (this menu was not given to me) when I was reading off of the original menu I was given the lobster roll did not include onion. Honest mistake of wrong menu being given, but it helps for customers to know what ingredients are in things like that when dealing with food sensitivities. The server never checked in to ask how the meal was/if I needed anything. I was a server for over 10 years and I know that's the first things I do after dropping off someone's food to ensure everything is good. There was food left on my plate, fries. Thanks for the refund, and I hope trying another time I will find it to be a better experience!

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    Drift
    Drift - Happy Hour Tuna Nachos

    Happy Hour Tuna Nachos

    Drift - Best Lobster Roll in Essex CT

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    Best Lobster Roll in Essex CT

    The Side Door - bars - Updated August 2026

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