David Rubenstein Atrium

Dragged my study buddy here on a Saturday morning (okay 11am…) in December. We’d effectively been kicked out by every Starbucks and coffee shop in town, since spots in the city are taken by 7am! :(I did a quick Google search on «secret study spots in the City» and came upon the David Rubenstein Atrium.
We went inside and were so pleasantly surprised not only at the amount of tables and space still available !! Important to note, though, is that this place is not by any means quiet. While we were there, there was a children’s birthday party, friends and family catching up, students studying – a total gamut.
That being said, we set up shop, plugged in our headphones and was totally fine! Outlets here are coveted – especially in the winter – where there are only two or three outlets in the actual atrium and then another four or five in the outer corners on the stone benches (which: 1. have homeless people sleeping on them and 2. are cold as all heck!)
My buddy was hungry and took advantage of the sandwich shop inside which was amaze!
TL;DR version“
Great place to study! Free wifi but no plugs. Make sure to charge up beforehand. Also limited seating – but there is a sandwich store within as well!

Was looking for a spot to grab coffee and have a chat with my BFF while enjoying my Levain bakery chocolate chip walnut cookie. We ended up here stumbling upon their free Thursday event.
We decided to stay and enjoy the Urban Word NYC spoken word event that was really entertaining so we got a free show with our coffee.
The Atrium itself is a beautiful space with a place wall and amazing acoustics.

Came here hungry and got food and tea from the café here. It was overpriced and the salespeople were really mean. BUT! The space is beautiful and a great place to sit and read for a while. So I will be coming back (maybe with my own food & drink next time — ha).

This is one of my go to writing spots. Especially in the summer when I need to get some AC. Even when it’s crowded, I always find a seat. And I love the living plant walls!

What’s not to like? Amazing space to get work done.
— The atrium is amazing — with tall ceilings that aren’t really captured in the photos.
— Coffee is accessible/​plentiful both inside the atrium and in the neighborhood.
— Wi Fi and air conditioning is strong.
— Tables, seating, and bathrooms are well-​maintained and plentiful.
— Beautiful music plays in the background.

I’m always looking for places to do work, so I was excited to see the reviews & check it out. I didn’t sit close to the green wall, so it was quite industrial-​feeling, but I didn’t mind. I was there for productivity, not to get distracted by ambiance.
Free wifi, public restroom, plenty of seating, friendly staff, and close to the Columbus Circle trains. There was a ‘wichcraft, although it looked like it was closing when I arrived. No fret; I had my own snacks with me.
There was work to be done, and this girl got stuff done. So happy to have found this place!

Best public bathrooms in Manhattan.
Great place to work. Free wifi is wonderful. Close to subways, easy to get a cab

Nice atrium with plenty of table seating, subdued lighting and classical music. Wich’s sandwich/​coffee concession is overpriced and service is slow but you don’t have to purchase food there. Just right if you are looking for a relaxing break.

This place is excellent to get away from the busy streets of the city and have a table to do some work at. There’s free wifi, seating, and a clean atmosphere — all for free. There will be bustling, of course, and sometimes it can be difficult to find a seat. But, it is a free space in an otherwise congested and populated area. I come here to work whenever I don’t feel like going into the library — especially since I can relax a little more and not feel judged by looking at Twitter the whole time.
Also, you can bring food into the space — there’s a café there, but they don’t have the power over the tables. Bring snacks and take a load off!

Large, vast space similar to the large atrium in the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. that sits right by Lincoln Center. If you’re looking for a relatively quiet meeting place or study space and have nowhere else to turn to, I’d recommend checking this place out.
They have free, fast wifi and sandwiches/​coffee/​breakfast foods provided by ‘Wichcraft.
I will say that it smells like old people though… so… yea.

I’ve been here a few times for their AtriumFlix screenings and, surprisingly, it’s a great space for a movie. Who knew?! They project the film onto the large wall, the seats are relatively comfortable, and the acoustics are just fine.
One drawback is that you have to use the elevator for the bathrooms. Seriously sucks when everyone needs to go at the end of the movie so you get a queue for the elevator AND a queue for the bathroom. But, if emptying your bladder in the middle of the film or when you get home is your deal then there’s no drawback for you.

++++
— Target first Thursdays, great performances by very talented talented people
— Free fast Wi-​Fi
— Clean as a whistle bathrooms
TIPS:
— Show lasts about an hour
— If you’re coming for free Thursdays, arrival by 7 should ensure yourself a seat

I love this freaking city. So often I discover new and exciting things like Target Free Thursdays at the David Rubenstein Atrium. I found out about this place through someone I met at a networking event. She knew I was always on the lookout for new and cool venues around the city so she invited me to check out the Atrium. She works there and was able to reserve seats. Good thing since the place does fill up.
It’s a lovely space. Very open, high ceilings, and there’s grass growing on the wall!!! To get back to the ceiling, what I assumed were lights on the ceilings were in fact openings that allow you to see outside. The space can be rented out for private events. It’s huge so I imagine you would need a minimum of 100 people to make it worth it.
For Target Free Thursdays the Atrium has free performances. The night I went, they had Sanford Biggers: Moon Medicin. Never heard of them, but thank you TFT for introducing me to them. It was an unbelievable performance and quite the experience. It was music, performance, history and art rolled into one. I laughed, I danced, and I cringed (very provocative imagery). I’ve been googling the group and some of the video compilations since. I can’t get enough. I seriously loved everything about this performance. If other performances for TFT are anything like this, I definitely need to make time to go.

My boyfriend recommended this place after 4 friends and I found ourselves looking for a place to chat business. This place is amazing. Clean, cozy, quiet. Free WiFi and very convenient. It is now our go to meeting spot.
Great for groups of 5 or smaller to meet on a weekend. We went on a Sunday since the Wix lounge was closed and while all tables were taken it didn’t feel crowded. Staff was nice. Ordered a soup from the Witch craft. It sufficed.
This is now my go to spot.

Nice place to park your butt and rest your legs before a show at Lincoln Center. They have a cool stage here, which had a jazz setup when I visited, and host many events, which I have not yet explored, but there is a little chain café where you can grab a sandwich, soup, salad, or even a table wine.
The vertical patch of grass on the wall is kind of cool, too.

This review is for the concert series on Target free Thursday.
I came here last Thursday with my friend to see the Juilliard Jazz ensemble. I had never been to the David Rubenstein atrium before. The space was very large with high ceilings and the wall of vertical foliage was very interesting and provided a nice contrast to the modern design of the rest of the building. There is a Wichcraft inside that serves a variety of food and drinks including a couple of beer taps.
If you are coming here on Thursdays to see a concert, I would highly recommend getting here by 6:30PM to get decent seats for the 7:30PM concert. I got here at 6:30 PM and most of the good seats had been taken. I was able to find a seat in the back and saved one for my friend who got here 15 minutes later. Even within those 15 minutes I had a number of people come up to me to ask me for my free seat. Needless to say, a lot of people come here on Thursdays to see these free concerts. By the time the concert had started, there was a hoard of people outside the doors listening in.
The concert itself was amazing. The Juilliard Jazz ensemble that night played a set list entitled New Orleans: Then and Now. They started with a few oldies and finished with a couple of contemporary pieces. The musicians were all virtuosos and so young!
I can’t wait to come back another Thursday to check out some other cool performances. Events like this are one of the major perks of living in New York city.

This place seems to fly under the average NYC tourist’s radar. Although Lincoln Center tour groups occasionally meet up here, they do not stick around for long. The vastness of the space itself allows for both socialization and concentration.
If you are looking for a place to get some work done, the free wifi, mellow Jazz, and close by supply of reasonably priced coffee make it easy. I have limited experience with their food selection, but I can tell you with certainty that their banana walnut bread is top notch.
Bringing your own food and drink here is not frowned upon. This is also a rare quality for any place in Manhattan that does not go unappreciated.
There are a few negative aspects that may seem negligible, but I will mention them here in the name of science.
There is a strangely civil battle constantly being waged for access to one of the few outlets. Because so many people use their laptops here, the tables up against the projector screen/​wall are prime real estate because most plugs are located there.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the tables located in the middle are often reserved for private events at random times throughout the day. The staff is very polite about this, but it can be annoying if you do not plan ahead.
Overall, I am very grateful that this place exists. It is a great place to hide away from the noise and chaos of the city.

I was meeting some friends at the Starbucks on the corner, and as usual, it was overflowing with people. So we wandered in here on a whim. We ordered coffee because it is awkward to go somewhere to hang out without buying anything. Haha. It was cheap and good, and we got to socialize so it worked for us. The space is very serene and cool, and I will definitely continue to meet people here. Plus one bonus star for the fountain.
I am all about free large spaces with free wifi, and thank you to the David Rubenstein Atrium for doing so. My ONLY complaint is that single people camp out here all day and take up the tables so it can be really hard to find somewhere to sit.

Pretty chill place just to have a cup of coffee while catching up on some reading. The place offers free wifi and has a large seating area.
The coffee is full of flavor and is only $ 1.

Oh man, my iPhone is running out of juice. I am ashamed of the codependency that I have developed with my iPhone. I admit it. I have no personality outside of my iPhone. The moment I am disconnected from the world according to my iPhone, I cease to exist. I become one of those people who actually start conversations and give real eye contact. Sounds awful. Alas, the David Rubinstein Atrium has plenty of outlets, several underneath the cement slabs that serve as seating there.
What a joy to see such an oasis in the middle of urbania. It serves as a starting point for the tours of Lincoln Center. But the atrium offers more than outlets and tour groups. It features these two amazing vertical gardens with all sorts of green foliage to admire on the walls. There’s also a floor-​to-​ceiling fountain and a media wall that not only provides comprehensive performance information but also a blank canvas for original video presentations. There are lots of tables — all occupied, of course — and free WiFi that make this a laptopper’s wet dream of a hangout.
But there are also solitary benches to ponder life and watch your iPhone battery image go from red to green. There’s also an information desk, a clean restroom (just one!) and free weekly musical performances by local artists on Target Free Thursdays at 8:30PM. You can also pick up a sandwich, salad or a cup of joe at the adjacent ‘wichcraft inside. OK, I am recharged. I am whole again. Besides, it’s just a nice break from all the traffic noise on Columbus.