2nd Floor on Clinton

We barely knew ye… perhaps it’s better to burn out than to fade away; to be set ablaze in a brilliant ball of supernova as opposed to wisping away in consistent albeit un-​spectacular fashion. Alas… this is essentially the scenario that 2^nd Floor on Clinton finds itself in.
I would bet good money that this spot has provided the venue for many a romantic rendezvous, and that a good amount of gentlemen have this spot to thank for making their respective partners (femme or homme) titillated. This particular writer, on the other hand, unfortunately has no such anecdotes to share as related to this place; my drinking partner for the evening… well, while an aesthetically pleasing specimen, one that I’ve pined for in various degrees throughout the years, has not the tact/​wherewithal/​judiciousness to pick up on any kinds of signs that have been thrown her way through the years… a pleasantly waify creature, but with too thick a head as to detect anything (I pray that this isn’t a common trait that is shared with you belonging to the more particular and delicate of masses, though as far as experience goes, to date, it appears that it is more likely the case than not that the good majority share the same general numbskullery… *kweh*).
In any event, what prompted our meeting at this location, oh so many months ago??? Her status at the time: taken. My relationship to her: bitter depths of the friendzone (but not for lack of trying); my patience had already been taken to the edge of her caustic indifference/​ignorance… so a drink was in order when trouble seemed to be brewing in paradise (i.e. her relationship with a «Greek» who was, as a matter of practicality, a refugee… now since deported, but not before the end of the relationship for reasons unrelated to citizenship status [or lack thereof]).
Any way, the spot was fantastic. Cleverly housed atop Barramundi, with an unmarked door (or a door marked «Pirate»… I can’t remember which) leading the way to the potpourri scented vestibule leading to the chambers of the 2^nd Floor. Though it was still light outside (we were well into the throes of summer, and this place opened up shop at 6:00pm), the inside was (appropriately) dimly lit; the kind of staging ground one would ascribe to the potential friends turned lovers narrative (for those who are still believe and gravitate that sort of fluff). Though her name eludes me at the moment, I remember the short haired mid-​30s server lady assigned to the two of us; she had recommended the corner seats to the two of us, as a «cute couple» (her words) such as ourselves could be squished together… no complaints here.
The tightly packaged drink menu was as handsome as the digs that accommodated our deliberately situated tushes. She… a notorious lightweight (almost a non-​drinker, as a matter of practicality), me… (at the time) high level of sobrietal fortitude (it took years and plenty of $$$ to develop, and you can too). One drink for her and three times the amount for me still equaled a relatively sizable bill (the going rate per cocktail was in the ballpark of $ 15 per…).
No new ground had been broken, I played the ever obedient and stalwart soldier, which had put me in perfect jockeying position as a consigliere, though never as anything more than such. How value is placed on such an aspect, but that’s all one could ever be… as is similarly seen with the lack of appreciation given to this place, which is made apparent considering its fate and all that. A very 2015 review from yours truly (to a place that, I assume, never made it to 2016)… some wax for both of our crosses (again, very 2015 of you).

This has gotta be one of my favorite speakeasies. After going to the same ones a million times, I was ready to find a new speakeasy that was going to impress me.
One Tuesday night after eating a really cheap dinner at Prosperity Dumpling, I wondered around the Lower East Side. I looked at Unilocal and searched for this bar. You have to go inside Baramundi’s, walk to the back, then open the door on the left and go up the stairs.
I opened the door and was welcomed to a very cute bar with jazz music. It felt as if I was transported back to the times of the Great Gatsby. Even though it was not even 9pm, the place was packed. I had to wait about 20 min for a table.
The cocktail list has lots of drinks with gin, and whisky. None with my favorite vodka or tequila. I told the waitress that I didn’t like gin and she said she would make me something off the menu that was fruity. Whatever was served to me was delicious. The drinks were $ 14 each which is pretty standard for most speakeasies. We sat near the back, where there was a huge bookshelf. I enjoyed sitting on the couch with the cushions, sipping my cocktail and listening to live jazz.
My only gripe is that there was only one waitress working that night. She took about 40 min to bring me a glass of water… I had to keep reminding her. Other than that, awesome place, and I can’t wait to come back.

Well this was one of best spots in the city. It was a great place to go and get a great sophisticated cocktail. As of today, they are closed for good. Glad my buddy and I got to close it out last night. Thankfully though they are opening a spot in harlem on the upper west side. Can’t wait to see what creations are in store.

Closing? Say it isn’t so!!! Sadly this is what New York is coming to. Great places closing to make way for mediocrity. I have been to many excellent cocktail bars in NYC. However this place will always be my favorite. The cocktails are unique and inventive. Also they are executed perfectly Many contain fresh herbs from there rooftop garden. These are drinks you just can’t get anywhere else. I recommend the William Blake, Little Gidding, Marie Lavoi to name just a few. The space is unique. It’s like sitting in someone’s super cool living room. Bookcases, couches. Just nothing like it. Ektores and Sarah are both super cool. They will give you great recommendations on drinks. I will really miss this place.

Place to impress a date but not for a big group. The staff was super nice to accommodate my big group and did not give us attitude for trying to fit seven people in a speakeasy, so I appreciated that. The whiskey based drinks were good but they did take forever to come and the place was just too dimly lit and loud for a group bigger than four to fully interact. But I guess that’s not the place’s fault, so four star still for the atmosphere, friendly staff, and good drinks.

2^nd Floor on Clinton is an amazing, cozy date spot. My boyfriend and I came here for drinks right as they opened on a weekday and had the place to ourselves. It was a chilly evening and the atmosphere here was exactly what we were looking for — relaxed, dim, and most importantly, quiet — after a hectic day of work for both of us. I loved the comfy furniture, lamps, bookshelves, and framed artwork. And yes, the stairway that comes up from Barramundi does smell fantastic.
Our server recommended the Billy Budd and Last Word cocktails and we thoroughly enjoyed them. By the time we finished up, most of the seats around us had filled up. It looked like everyone was here on a date. I’ll continue to lean towards outdoor spots while the weather is warm, but I look forward to coming back here come fall.

Amazing hidden gem in the city. I loved the speak-​easy feel of going through a back door up a staircase to find this lovely location. The mixologist was great and made us some delicious cocktails. The atmosphere was dim and quiet. Perfect for relaxing conversation with good company.

As per the other reviews, enter via Barramundi, straight to the back of the room as if you are heading to the restrooms, turn left and through the door marked ‘Privat’.
You will smell the awesome ‘spa like’ smell as you climb the dimly lit stairs and enter into a really relaxed, nicely decked out little speakeasy type bar. Great knowledgable server and comfy little seats.
I had the Amazonia, a delicious well made cachaca/​lime condition. We also had something with beet juice in it — name escapes me — but equally as tasty if not a little strange at first.
Can definitely see why this would be a date spot or for people just after a couple of relaxed hassle free cocktails.
Highly recommend and I would return in a heartbeat!

This place smells so beautiful and the ambiance is so romantic and intimate.
I went on Valentine’s Day night with a guy friend and it was just a little too awkward because we didn’t know what kind of environment this speakeasy had. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed this place, but I probably would have enjoyed it more if A) we weren’t sharing a small end table with a never-​ending PDA couple on the couch, or B) if I went there with an actual boyfriend so I can have never-​ending PDA.
The drinks are all $ 15 each, and crafted all very well. I had two drinks and loved both of them. Just don’t try to eat the raw mushroom used as a garnish. I don’t know what I was thinking.

I came here 9:30pm on a Saturday night and was anticipating a long wait to get in for two people. It was only 20 minutes, which was a nice surprise. I did not go through barramundi, but through the apartment entrance next door. Upon entering, it had a little more of a café feel than a bar. It’s actually pretty cozy and I liked the décor. The noise level was too loud, and not conducive for conversation making. My friend and I were seated opposite each other over a small coffee table and it was difficult to sit back on the seats because we were just leaning over to try to hear what we were saying to each other. It’s cases like this I wish I were a lip reader. I think this may be the loudest speakeasy I’ve been to.
I ordered two drinks– frida’s thorns and the Black Forest. Frida’s thorns is perfect for the margarita lover and I think the smoked sea salt adds a fantastic touch to the citrus taste.
The Black Forest came with a few little mushrooms in the glass, which was very cute. But tastewise, it was too sweet for my liking.

Loved this tucked away speakeasy! This place is ideal for a date or small gathering for close friends. It’s certainly a place where intimate conversations thrive.
Although quite pricey at $ 15 per cocktail, the mixologist did a great job at crafting the menu in a creative and diverse way. Although both me and my plus one got vodka cocktails (we ordered the pear and yuzu ones), I’m pretty confident that you can’t go wrong with anything that you decide to order.
I’ve been to a good amount of speakeasies and bars around Manhattan, and 2^nd Floor is definitely one that stands out in vibe, class and drink quality. Highly recommend!

** A Pre[r]amble **
The chances of me loving this place were low.
My Unilocal cocktail gurus Jess C. (
) and Ju L. (
) had recommended it, so I had very high expectations coming in and thus was primed for disappointment.
And I’d been to enough speakeasy and speakeasy-​ish spots that they were starting to blur together and get a little tiresome, with their $ 16 admixtures of liquors with ingredients so self-​consciously colorful and rarefied that they’d perplex even a veteran naturalist.
To boot, the dinner I’d had immediately before coming here, with tip, cost not much more than just one of these drinks, and while it was admittedly a small dinner and was about as fancy as a can of soup, it still was enough to feed two human beings and leave them pretty happy, the sum up here being that I was also primed to be cranky about the prices.
And yet!
** The Actual Review **
The drinks I got were very, very well done. I can’t remember the details, it’s been a while, but I ordered both menu drinks and bartender’s choice drinks, giving the bartender very little instruction (e.g. «more ginger than they stock at your typical Chinese apothecary; no whiskey»). Each drink had nicely balanced flavors, not too sweet, not too bitter, not too heavy, not syrupy – it all seemed pretty much just right.
Beyond that, the place itself is swell. It’s delightfully hidden behind a door that might actually stump some trying to find it, it’s pleasantly dark, and it’s both cozy and cool at the same time. You could come here for an intimate date, or with a small group, and feel at home. I was here on a Tuesday, when they have live music. It was a pianist and a clarinetist, that night, playing jazz in what I think is a 20’s style – I recognized a loose variation of the Charleston at one point. The waitress joined them a few times, singing with a clean, appealing voice. The music was loud enough to enjoy, but still yielded to conversation. Basically, perfect, the only place I can think of to match it is Little Branch on the other side of town.
The only off note was the food menu, offering items like Sausage on a Roll, which seemed more suited to a beer bar.
I’d place this up with the best lounges and cocktail bars in the city and hope to be back.

I love Speakeasy bars and lounges and this is my favorite one in NYC so far. My friend’s brother brought us here after a late dinner. I love the intimate atmosphere upstairs with vintage bookcases, 1920s style lounge chairs and a dimlit vibe. It’s the perfect place to bring a date as many reviewers had said. In fact, over half the people there are coupled up, some never took a break from kissing as were the couple from our right while we were trying to not look at them all over each other like teenagers under bleachers.
Cocktails were $ 15 each and they had some really lovely concoctions. I was glad we got a seat by the window. For being a Friday night at 12am, this place was filled with just the right amount of people, warm and not too loud.
I’ve been to a number of speakeasys and this one definitely takes the cake because you do feel transformed into one of those historical houses’ library room while you are there… with a heavy dose of romance of course.

What a nice little gem in the lower east! 2^nd floor on Clinton has no sign and no doorman so you have to know where to go in order to get in.
When you walk in you feel like you are entering your cool uncles stylish living room filled with books and interesting décor. It is quite small but very cozy. It feels very 1920s esque and the service feels personal. Our waitress was extremely knowledgable and welcoming. I told her my usual drink preference and she recommended a great refreshing option.
We came on a Tuesday so it wasn’t that busy bit I assume it gets quite packed on the weekends. This would be a great intimate drink spot for a date. I’ll definitely be back!

Cool date spot with great drinks.
This ‘speakeasy’ above Barramundi is a great little date spot to come and unwind with some good music, ambiance, and large menu of carefully crafted cocktails. When you get upstairs, there is small service bar on the right. The rest of the one room establishment makes you feel like you are in someone’s private tasting room. Comfortable seating allows you to get a bit cozy with your date while you sample any number of creative, intelligently crafted cocktails.
They do offer limited food items if you are feeling a bit hungry, but I think you really come here for the drinks and the ambiance.

2^nd floor on Clinton is a great spot for a date or a casual night out with sophisticated friends who like cocktails!
This isn’t the place to go for a mojito or sickly sweet strawberry daiquiri but more like a place where you would enjoy a classic, hand made Old Fashioned … Or a Sidecar, or a Last Word.
The place has a real speakeasy feel — you enter through the back of a bar called Barramundi. There is a door marked «private» and you pop up the stairs.
It’s not super secret since the bartender will tell you where to go but what is nice is that everyone who is there has sought it out on purpose. There is no riff raff from walkins off the street.
This place is for cocktail fans.
Inside is a dimly lit room with comfy couches and chairs, small candle lit tables, and a mixologist /​waitress to take care of you.
The service isn’t quick but that’s because everything is made by hand. — it’s worth the wait.
Bring a date; she’ll be impressed for sure.

— Cue Marvin Gaye’s «Let get it on»
Ah, now the mood is set.
If you didn’t know any better, the door towards the back of Barramundi which is labeled «private» would deter you from going any further. For people in the know — they’d open that door and walk up the steps into what seems like someone’s living room in the LES. Damn the stairway smells good up in there! Welcome to 2^nd Floor on Clinton.
Came in after dinner on a weeknight and were the first one there. It really felt like we had the whole place to ourselves minus the hostess and bartender. Dimly lit w/​candles scattered around, jazzy music playing makes for baby making time. wait what?
For about 15 dollars a drink, they make some strong albeit tasty concoctions to boot. With the default bourbon being Michters in their old fashion, the choice was easy. The only downside I can see is when this place gets packed which shouldn’t be too hard. Come early to get a seat on the couch. Place opens at 7pm.

Fantastic spot! The music on a Friday night was an incongruous mix of late 90s rock, but the cocktails were quite the production! I had a Jesuit. It was a good mix of unexpected flavors, though I could have done without the poppyseeds on the rim of my glass. Still, it’s been a long time since I ordered a crazy-​sounding cocktail and was impressed. When I finished the drink, I realized that there was an orange peel carved into the shape of a cross at the bottom. I repented for having a glass of bad wine at the bar below. The hubs had something literary-​sounding which I sipped and deemed good, but unfortunately I don’t recall much as it was our last stop for the evening. Next time I’m in the neighborhood, I’d much prefer to start the evening here as the cocktails deserve to be remembered. Though I did find myself very grateful for the spinach pie at the end of the night.
Just a word of advice: this spot is small, so be prepared for a wait. I would not recommend going with a party larger than 4.

Loving the secret speakeasy vibe. You need to go towards the back of the bar and there should be a door on the left that says «Private». Open that and you’ll be led upstairs where you’re teleported to a modern like living room. Super comfy couches, soft throw pillows and a cool bookcase to complete the living room look. We were tucked in the corner couch, giving us a full view of everything. Luckily, we came on a low key night and it was just us occupying the entire bar. But my beb’s reason was «he rented the whole bar out so we can be alone» lol. Brownie points for being cute.
The drinks were $ 15 a pop. Overall, drinks were good and vibe was cozy and intimate. Must come back!