Neir's Tavern
Neir’s has been serving since 1829, making it the oldest continuously serving bar in New York City and one of the oldest in the entire U.S. The clapboard corner location in Woodhaven is weathered but well-loved, having survived the turbulence of the horse-track years, Prohibition, ownership churn, and cruel indifference from a Manhattan-centric City Hall. Whatever else it may be, Neir’s history makes it a treasure to be cherished lest you’re eager for yet another op-ed lamenting the old New York’s disappearance.The bar itself is, at base, a little neighborhood joint with a low ceiling, a little dining room, and an L-shaped bar. It’s not precious but it’s cared for and dearly loved, which you can feel in every corner. The long bar stretches like a bowling lane (this location was a bowling alley at one time), and the walls are a scrapbook of Queens history: racing ephemera from the Union Course days, snapshots of neighborhood lifers, stills from Goodfellas for the pilgrimage crowd. It’s got a couple TVs to watch the game and a cabinet of books and boardgames for passing the time.
The original draught system still pours a cold beer, so you can’t really go wrong there. If you tend more toward liquor, there’s classics on the menu and they’re accomplished nicely but don’t go too far afield–this isn’t a mixology bar. Many if not most of the people here (both patrons and staff) are from the neighborhood i.e. they were raised in Woodhaven and will likely rear their kids here if they a