Walk down Ninth Avenue in Chelsea on a Tuesday afternoon and you’ll pass a narrow coffee shop called Stone Street Coffee. You’ll see the espresso machine, the pastries under glass, the guy hunched over a laptop in the window. Nothing about the storefront suggests that a few hours later, behind a door most customers never notice, the room will transform into one of the most atmospheric speakeasies in Manhattan.
That’s Bathtub Gin. And yes — there’s an actual bathtub.
The Coffee Shop That Isn’t Just a Coffee Shop
Stone Street Coffee at 132 Ninth Avenue operates like any other neighborhood cafe during the day. Sandwiches, espresso drinks, Wi-Fi stragglers. But around 5 p.m., the back wall effectively disappears. A door that looks like it might lead to a stockroom opens into something else entirely: a dimly lit, Prohibition-era fantasia of damask wallpaper, dark wood paneling, brass fixtures, and a white porcelain clawfoot bathtub sitting right in the middle of the room.
The tub isn’t a prop. It’s the whole concept. During Prohibition, amateur distillers famously made gin in bathtubs — cheap alcohol, questionable quality, infinite supply. Naming a Prohibition-themed bar after that tradition is a little on the nose, and the owners know it. They leaned all the way in. The bathtub is the centerpiece. People pose in it. Staff occasionally climb in during performances. It’s ridiculous in the best possible way.
What It Feels Like Inside
The room is smaller than you’d expect from the reputation. Maybe 60 seats. Velvet banquettes along the walls, small tables in the middle, a long bar toward the back. The lighting is warm and low — the kind of low that makes everyone in the room look about fifteen percent more attractive than they actually are. A jazz trio sets up most nights around 9 p.m. On weekends, the programming shifts into burlesque, cabaret, and the occasional DJ set that pushes the vibe closer to a Roaring Twenties dance party than a cocktail lounge.
The cocktail menu leans heavily on the gin theme — the house Bathtub Gin & Tonic is the obvious move — but the bartenders take classic Prohibition-era drinks seriously. A well-made Bee’s Knees, a French 75 that actually tastes like champagne, and a rotating list of house originals that change with the seasons.
Why People Actually Keep Coming Back
Bathtub Gin has been open since 2011, which makes it practically a dinosaur by NYC nightlife standards. It’s survived two rent hikes, a pandemic, and the endless churn of trendier speakeasies opening a few blocks away. The reason is simple: it commits to the bit. The staff genuinely enjoys the theater of it. The bartenders wear suspenders without irony. The music is live and good. The bathtub is still there, still white, still absurd.
It’s not hidden the way a truly secret bar is hidden — the line on a Saturday night can snake halfway down Ninth Avenue — but during the week, especially on a Tuesday or Wednesday around 7 p.m., you can walk in, slide into a banquette, order a drink, and feel like you’ve traveled ninety-five years backward without a reservation.
Insider Tip: Go on a Tuesday or Wednesday between 5 and 7 p.m. The jazz trio starts warming up, the light is perfect, and you don’t need the reservation that becomes mandatory on weekends. Ask the bartender for something “gin-forward, dealer’s choice” — the off-menu pours are almost always better than anything printed.
How to Visit
Address: 132 Ninth Avenue, New York, NY 10011 (enter through Stone Street Coffee)
Nearest Subway: A/C/E to 14th Street or 1/2/3 to 18th Street — about a five-minute walk either way
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 5 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Friday and Saturday, 5 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Reservations: Strongly recommended on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Walk-ins possible Sunday through Wednesday. Book via the official site.
Cover: No cover charge. Cocktails run roughly $18–$22.
Dress Code: Smart casual. Nobody will card your outfit, but you’ll feel underdressed in a hoodie.
If You Like This, You’ll Like
Chelsea has a quiet collection of hidden drinking rooms if you know where to look — and a few blocks east, the Flatiron and Lower East Side neighborhoods hide even more. For another speakeasy worth the trip, check out Fig. 19 on the Lower East Side, tucked behind a working art gallery. And if you want the full map of New York’s hidden cocktail lounges, our guide to the best secret bars and speakeasies in NYC has the full list.
Bathtub Gin isn’t the most hidden bar in New York. It’s not even the most hidden bar in Chelsea. But there’s a reason it’s still here fifteen years in, still filling every booth, still hiding in plain sight behind a coffee shop nobody thinks twice about. Some theater is worth keeping the curtain open for.
