124 Old Rabbit Club

Evan47

New Jersey

5/5  rDev +14.7%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$$

Rabbit Club is an amazing "den" for beer drinkers. I call it a den, because it truly is. If 10 people were in this bar it would crowded. They do not have much in terms of draft beers, but they have an extensive bottle menu. They also have very high quality Belgian styles and great IPA's.... perhaps a little pricey, but you have to keep in mind you are in manhattan after all....great neighborhood also.... when you are done drinking go across the street and get an awesome falafell from Mamouns

12-15-2012 02:20:22 | More by Evan47

DoubleSimcoe

New York

3.8/5  rDev -12.8%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | $$$$

Finally made it to the Rabbit Club with a beer-loving friend of mine. The place is a true speakeasy, so easy to miss... open the door and enter this gritty-sweaty-dark club that could easily double as a sex dungeon. The place looks like CBGB, not that much cleaner. Nice African music playing, though, and a helpful bartender. The place was empty at 6:30pm on a Tuesday, except for two patrons.

Only three taps (disappointing): Smutty Pumpkin, Avery White and Smutty Brown.

The deal is in the bottles, of course. The list is divided in three sections: Belgian (including Mikkeller, Evil Twin, Troubadour, Chouffe, Rochefort), English (Fuller´s, Harviestoun, Lion, Samuel Smith) and German (Ayinger, Leipzig Gose, Schneider).

A little pricey and way too European-focused and bottle-exclusive overall. Had real trouble finding a beer I actually wanted to try. I like American craft drafts so this joint just does not suit me.

The place is way too dark and damp for my taste. We were sweating in late September... no windows or light.

Glad I tried it but would not come back.

10-27-2012 18:44:20 | More by DoubleSimcoe

ghostly

New York

3.63/5  rDev -16.7%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 2.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$$

I wish I had the flawless experience of most others here, but I had a few issues. The atmosphere of the place is great, it doesn't get overrun with a bad crowd, and the selection features quite a few good Belgian choices (several sours, for instance.) However, they showed a few mistakes. First, I ordered a zwickl lager, and noticed it was 3 months past its best before date. Second, I ordered an Aventinus, and he brought the eisbock, claiming it's basically the same beer. No. Later, I ordered a Weihenstephaner Original, and he brought me the same old zwickl lager from earlier in the night, already opened, saying nothing. I also find it a little cruel to feature a range of ABV from Tetley's (around 3.5%) to Malheur (around 12%) without listing that. I wasn't impressed, particularly with this one bartender. But it'd be easy to have a good time here.

08-19-2012 00:07:03 | More by ghostly

sholland119

Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev -1.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4 | $$

stoppd in here after dinner at Half Pint 12/10/11,

Knowing this was a speakeasy type of joint, we were on the lookout for an alleyway or dark corner to find this place. Helpfully, yelp has the key words "black door" for this place. We easily found the plain black door down from street level with small peel and stick letters and numbers indicating we had found it.

Inside the place is dark and narrow, with two tables, a booth at the back and a log bar with room for about 20. Loved the gritty vibe. Three beers on tap (Racer 5 and Founders Breakfast Stout among them), about 30 bottles. Great selection of domestic crafts and great imports.

Service was terrific. We had a great time. Worth seeking out.

HV

12-11-2011 20:28:02 | More by sholland119

mrcarterxxl

New Jersey

4.95/5  rDev +13.5%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | food: 4.5 | $$$

my little secret i dont know if i want to share, its yuppie free.
good luck finding my speak easy! lol

this place is for serious beer lovers not for your natie light lovin friends .
cool small neighborhood spot which is rare in nyc with a long list of belgian, German, british, American ales.
and plenty of beer geek chicks who live in the neighborhood if you catch my drift ;)

prices are so good that you might stay a while and sit more than you wanted to,and the crowd is friendly. i recommend sitting in the back booth.
theirs a surprise in the bathroom!

10-30-2011 04:35:57 | More by mrcarterxxl

indiapaleale

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 4.5 | selection: 4.5 | $$

Want to have a few Belgian/British/German beers in a place that many New Yorkers don't even know about - well, this is your place.

Three drafts - all locals - and a long list of Belgian/British/German bottles make this place a definite destination if you're in NYC and looking for a beer destination that might be a bit off the beaten path.

Service is great, just ask for some assistance on ordering and you'll get it. The bathroom is a shrine to the almighty Mannekin Pis and one of the best beer bathroom in the city!

The atmosphere is rather dark and candle-lit with some great indy music going on - think The Smith and The Cure.

The bottle list is great with lots of hard to find Belgians and Germans available and served in the proper glassware.

No food available but Moumouns falafels are available at $2.50 a pop across the street - as is the comedy club made famous in the intro of Louie.

Awesome little place that you'll probably need to know about before stumbling across it by accident.

Enjoy. I sure did.

10-05-2011 04:00:35 | More by indiapaleale

ShaneThePain

Pennsylvania

4.72/5  rDev +8.3%
vibe: 5 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 4 | $$$

I love this place. Probably one of my favorite Manhattan beer stops. Can be hard to find, but recently they put a little more "signage" on the door. Boo, take it down. Don't even give em the slightest hint it's there unless they're lookin for it. Then it's ok.

Dark, small, loud at times, but that's cool as the tunes kill. Bout 3 taps, always good stuff and 50+ bottles of mostly Belgian/EU beers. Last visit was a Evil Twin-a-thon and they were so good. No food, so eat beforehand or bring something with you.

Staff is top notch. Been here lots and service is always flawless. Remember to take a piss before you leave...

06-04-2011 16:02:46 | More by ShaneThePain

sketchpunx

New York

4.88/5  rDev +11.9%
vibe: 4 | quality: 5 | service: 5 | selection: 5 | $$

What can i say about the Rabbit club that hasn't already been said? Might just be the best Beer bar in NYC right now. Bold statement, I know, but if you are a fan of Belgian, German, and English beers, appreciate proper storage and care of products and like a staff that really knows their shit, then this place is king in NYC.

The Club is tucked away, or hidden on purpose in the middle of the chaos that is McDougle st. Just pay attention to address and You'll find it no sweat. It's really little more that an old school basement dive bar, but with awesome beer. The music and clientele are always a bit more hip than the rest of the neighbor hood, and you get the sense that it's a real in the know kinda joint.

The beer list is about 60 deep and heavy on Belgians, with many more obscure classics dominating the menu. Beers are always well kept, and all the bartenders are friendly and happy to talk beer with you.

Really what makes this one of, if not the top spot for Belgian beer in NYC is the passion that this joint exudes. I can always tell a spot where the owner cares about the beer they are selling and the atmosphere they are providing. Too often I have ended up at a supposedly great beer bar only to find old or improperly cared for beer that tastes like shit, an inept staff who care nothing about beer, overpriced products or just a really ho-hum selection (seriously, I can Get Duvel and Chimay in any Bodega guys...) .

Definitely Vying for my overall top beer bar in NYC. This place has it!!!!

A+

05-07-2011 00:47:31 | More by sketchpunx

citrusjim

Massachusetts

4.06/5  rDev -6.9%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4 | $$

In NYC for a weekend, looking for a pre-dinner beer, we tried the 124. What a great spot. Hidden away down some dark stairs, with no real sign that you were there. There were many Belgians to choose from although I can't remember if there were any rarities. The beers were served nicely in proper glasses by a friendly bartender. A mix of locals were in the, not to crowded, bar. I did not see any food on offer. I will certainly be back on another trip to NYC. Also, the candlelit shrine in the mens room is something to see!

06-26-2010 12:12:21 | More by citrusjim

Jiggamyte

New Jersey

3.83/5  rDev -12.2%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4.5 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | $$$

I have made the trip to NYC for two consecutive small pub crawls now and this beer bar has been the last stop both years. The bar is a small and unassuming hole in the ground. So much so that people are more than likely driven away by this fact. No tv's, very little light, and not much room for more than 20 people.
The result is a small bar with louder than normal music, usually the music the bartender is playing from his ipod, with a number of tasty Belgian beer to try. There are some others, some English, Scottish, and some German. Don't let this small sample of other European brews fool you. The size of the Belgian list dwarfs them in comparison, maybe about 40 total. On tap as of May 30th, 2010 there are a few domestic craft brews, of which, the Bear Republic Racer 5 was my last beer of the night.
I have a small affinity for bars like this and find it small and refreshing instead of trying to overwhelm you with thirty taps and a number of bottles the likes that most people cannot pronounce the names to. I enjoy spending time in The Old Rabbit Club and find that the people I bring to NYC to crawl with me enjoy it just as much as myself.

06-03-2010 02:57:44 | More by Jiggamyte