New York's bar scene ranges from dive bars that have been serving the same neighborhood for a hundred years to hotel cocktail lounges where a drink costs as much as a meal elsewhere. The best neighborhoods for a night out are the East Village, the West Village, and the Lower East Side for downtown; Hell's Kitchen for pre-theater drinks; and the Flatiron and Murray Hill areas for something a little more polished.
Most bars stay open until 4am on weekends, and the city is genuinely lively until the early hours.