septuagesimo uno upper west side quiet spot in new york city untapped cities alex mcquilkin

Let’s face it: Manhattan is loud. Get in touch with your inner zen for a second and avoid the screeching noise of the subway at these five spots on the quieter side. Check out a bar opened by monks, a room filled with dirt, the smallest park in NYC, and more!

1. The Burp Castle, East Village

Burp Castle east village quiet bar artisinal beer untapped cities samantha sokol

Founded by Belgian monks, this bar in East Village has an exquisite craft beer selection as well as free pomme frites. Most importantly, this quiet New York City bar is probably the only bar at which you could actually hear your friends speak. The walls are covered with absurd paintings of drunk monks resembling pirates, going bananas on a medieval ship. The legend tells the monks also served drinks here in the nineties, but now they just have regular waiters. Allegedly, the monks want their beer to be enjoyed in silence, which basically means you’ll be shushed every once in a while by the waiters. As one Foursquare reviewer noted “You can find a 1000 noisy bars in NYC but only one quiet one.”