6. One of New York City’s Oldest Surviving Bars is in Greenwich Village

New Yorkers and most Greenwich Village residents have been anxiously awaiting the return of Chumley’s at 86 Bedford Street. The property on which Chumley’s sits has seen the ebb and tide of history in New York City, serving as a blacksmithery and later as a stop on the Underground Railroad before the Civil War. The bar opened in 1922, with guests that included literary greats like F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, E.E. Cummings, and Willa Cather.

The watering hole shuttered in 2007 following a wall collapse, but co-owner Jim Miller and partner Alessandro Borgognone, an owner of Sushi Nakawaza, are restoring the space, amidst some controversy in the community.