Cake Shop

I wasn’t so sure I was in the mood to go to a bar tonight, but then I walked past Cake Shop… I looked in the window and saw a beautiful, smiling bartender with bangs and glasses and just had to go inside. She was vivacious AND MORE. Her name was Danielle, and she was wonderful and accommodating. She made excellent drink recommendations, paid attention to us all night, and made interesting conversation. She is my favorite bartender ever.
Also, Cake Shop is rad. PEACE

Cool place for music. The back area is spacious and chill. Good place with a group of friends.

Love this spot, one of the few bars in the Lowa that still has its spirit! Their cocktails are yum and happy hour is amazing. Did I mention cake??? Peanut butter bomb cake from vegan treats coffee and tea. Yes!!! Saw some awesome bands downstairs :)

Oh, I’m so happy we found this place for a late night snack. Everyone was happy. The vegan was pleased with her vegan peanut bomb. The drinkers were in heaven with their wine. The dairy-​eater were happy with their latte with regular cookie and cupcake. All reasonably priced.

Possibly my favourite bar downtown.
Who can resist cake, liquor and an underground late night disco?! Stick to beer in this place and go downstairs for a dance!

Came here recently for their Tuesday comedy night. After some revamping the décor is looking good! Pretty cool that everything is vegan, I enjoyed my Philly empanada. There were a handful of comedians that dropped by, one or two duds but definitely a few good up and comers that had the crowd going and not to mention the special guest… Aziz Ansari! What an awesome surprise, will definitely be coming back!

Recently visited the Cake Shop and was not disappointed. Nice to see a bar with a unique identity in an oversatured bar area. Though I never made it upstairs, I was genuinely captivated by the energy and feel of the place. The Earl Grey Old Fashioned was delicious and made to perfection by Marta the bartender. Highly recommend and will definitely be back.

This place is the exception to most Manhattan music venues.
This venue has an intimate audience experience, fun place to throw shows. Great sound guy, cool vibe reasonable mahattan bar prices, drink tickets for bands.
The upstairs bakery area is also a good experience, though bar area can get a bit crowded when it fills up (like any manhattan space).
Room for improvement:
1. Your venue website says it has one functioning rack tom, so please repair one of your two existing rack toms so they will actually function. This may require removing the head to re-​attach the detached lug rattling around the rack tom. This will enable it to hold the tension rod and keep the head playable.
2. Please put a $ 5 Kevlar patch on the bass drum head so that it will last longer & won’t dent. and get a durable Pinstripe or equivalent 2-​ply head on one or both the toms. These will resist damage/​denting and will last a good long time.
3. Please update your backline info on website to reflect the hardware you actually have. (unlisted items you actually have: 4 cymbal stands w/​o washers/​felts, HH stand w/​o clutch, a good Gibraltar throne).
The drummers who are playing your venue will really thank you, as transporting a full bag of cymbal stand hardware via train, only to find that the venue DOES have cymbal stands and throne, contrary to website backline info, is counter-​productive.
Thanks for reading, and keep up the great work!

A dive bar with live entertainment in the lower level. A coffee shop with limited pastries (think cupcakes) on the main level. Very hipster for the 20’s. Very dark. With a friend for a cool down on a stifling hot and humid day we sipped on our respective coffee and tea. Rustic wooden sticky table and chair. The pastries appears to be sitting in the glass case for sometime and probably stale as the baking preparation whereabouts is unknown. Self-​serve of course for a bakery/​coffee shop. The same counter is where patrons order libations. One uni-​sex restroom facility is available on the premise that contains all the staples of a dive bar– stickers, graffiti all scrawled on the walls, ceiling including the door.

Friendly, good service. Chill atmosphere on top floor. Good place to have a first date or small friend gathering. Low lighting. Reasonable prices: got a cup of coffee and a cupcake for 5 $. Delicious vegan desserts!

The venue is great for small intimate shows and the have a wide selection of craft beers, but the bartender downstairs was the rudest person I have ever met, and made my night very uncomfortable and made me feel awkward for asking for a glass of water.

I like this place. It usually isn’t too crowded, but when it is crowded it is really annoying because it’s kind of tiny. The space downstairs for music is cool and they have some pretty cheap drinks. The bartenders are usually always nice.

Every time I go here it is raining. Not sure what that means. Either way — decent little spot. It’s dark, there is booze. We actually ordered two cupcakes (vegan) and they were okay. I mean, awesome because I ordered them at a bar-​like place, but as far as vegan desserts go, average.
Basement has shows, typical kinda scene down there, guess it depends on the actual act to make you like it or not.
It has a laid back feel about it, not for a first date, but definitely a good spot to relax over a drink or coffee and chat privately.

Incredible! The chocolate peanut butter bomb cake is to die for. Large selection of vegan dessert options. Try a fresh Whoopi pie and coffee, yum

Better than average hipster joint. Can’t attest to the music venue, was just at the bar. Can say that the bartender, this girl named Vanessa, was super pompous and annoying. If I wanted to compete with a cell phone, I would have dated a banker chick, but really just trying to get some drinks. Seems sad to thank people for doing their job, poorly, but whatever. Makes me sad.

We were here on a Friday night at around 12 am amongst loud music and a drinking crowd. We, on the other hand, got a cupcake, cake, and coffee. It was interesting to sip coffee in that kind of environment.
There was plenty of seating, but we left when we couldn’t yell our conversations at each other anymore.

I don’t know why it took me so long to review the Cake Shop. I’ve been going here on and off for over eight years now for live music and it has never left me disappointed. If I’ve ever been disappointed it was most likely the music act and not the venue itself.
This is one of the few venues where you’ll see bands at their most sincere. Everyone from Vampire Weekend, The Black Kids, and more have started here. I can’t even count the amount of great music that I’ve seen here if I had 100 hands and feet. On top of that, the atmosphere you’ll experience is one of the things you won’t really experience in the city of Manhattan anymore. Andy the owner, staff and all of the people involved have really kept the «DIY Punk Rock» feel, vibe, aesthetics and ethics of the music venue. Sure, you won’t be getting some insane sound system banging the loud music down in the basement of the venue — but it’s legit. It’s not some pseduo superficial venue that tries to pass off as some rock arena concert venue.
But what makes it even cooler is that the bar/​cake shop portion of the venue is just that. There’s a full bar and a ton of delicious baked good. There used to be a much bigger assortment of records to purchase, but there’s still some great vinyl to be found there. If you’re a real music aficionado, the Cake Shop is a must experience venue. It’s also a must experience New York City landmark. Why bother going to Times Square and then eating at Red Lobsters? Or why bother surrounding yourself with what «isn’t» New York City.
You’ll have good times here and the alcohol and price of admissions for shows are cheap. I hope that the Cake Shop will remain as a staple music venue and bar in New York City for many years to come.

Cute! The street-​level floor looks more like a coffee shop or bakery than a bar, which makes it a good daytime spot. No idea about concerts. Music-​wise, the upstairs played 60’s to present-​day rock.
They’ve got coffee, drinks, some food. Drinks ran a little pricey — $ 7 for an 8oz-​ish drink? Meh… I do prefer Local 138 nearby, but Cake Shop opens earlier.

Crampt sweaty basement concert venue, limited sight lines, okay sound, some cake.
I’ve been here 5 – 6 times both for special events, regular concerts, and CMJ. Never one of my favorite venues, they do book good bands so I keep it in the rotation.
Divey place with okay beer and mixed drink options, the basement is where most of the shows take place. Long, skinny, like a frat basement, viewing angles on the stage are brutal unless you are a giant like me or can get up close to the stage. Sound is never great, with boomy bass and weak mids at times. Bar service is efficient and they understand how to read lips because it’s impossible to hear anything in there.
The biggest issue here is common to any basement concert venue — the heat. Sweaty, humid, even in the dead of winter. Nothing can do about it. Just dress in layers and figure it out as you go.
Net net, if a good band is here it’s a great intimate place to see a show, but bring earplugs and a towel. And try the baked goods, they’re decent.

Where can I get freshly made hot chocolate or hot tea at 3am? Cake Shop.
It’s super divey scene, and even though they have cakes and pastries (hence, the bar name), it didn’t look very appetizing. Plus, I needed a hot chocolate. Two, in fact. Naturally. Everyone does that after they drink alcohol.
Very friendly bartenders, by the way.