Start your tour of rooftop bars at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the most highbrow drink experience in New York. If you are on the East Side, take the 4, 5 or 6 train to 86th Street and walk west three blocks or take a cab to the museum.

The Met opens the seasonal Roof Garden every April-October, weather permitting, with a sculptu... Morere exhibit and drinks. The Martini Bar is open 5:30-8pm Fridays and Saturdays, but you can have a glass of wine or a beer any afternoon the museum is open.

There are no signature drinks; this spot is all about the magnificent scenery.

You have to take the elevator from the European Sculpture and Decorative Arts Galleries, so you can see some art on your way to the roof and on the roof itself. But be sure to take in the sweeping views of Central Park and the Upper East Side.

Take a cab to your next stop.
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Address: 1000 Fifth Ave.
Phone: 212-535-7710
Hours:
Friday-Saturday 10am-8pm
Sunday, Tuesday-Thursday 10am-4:30pm

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Ava Lounge, atop the Dream New York hotel on the West Side of Manhattan, has a bilevel rooftop bar with a cozy living room area in the back and a wood deck, up a flight of stairs, open seasonally.

Try to get here or the next stop for sunset; both places are on the West Side and have western views.

Martinis are a strong poi... Morent here.

Take a cab to your next stop; although it is only 11 blocks downtown, you also have to head all the way west and the walk is about a mile.
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Address: 210 W. 55th St.
Phone: 212-956-7020
Hours: Daily 5pm-4amLess

Head next to Hudson Terrace, which opens its rooftop bar seasonally, May to September. The space has a retractable roof.

On beer garden Tuesdays, sample beers from different breweries; on wine down Wednesdays, taste different wines. Hudson Terrace is also good for groups; you can get pitchers of capirinhas or margaritas, or a carafe of... More one of the four sangrias.

It is about a mile to your next stop, so we recommend that you take a cab.
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Address: 621 W. 46th St
Phone: 212-315-9400
Hours: Daily 5-10pm
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Local West, across the street from Penn Station and Madison Square Garden, is literally more down to earth; the rooftop bar is just one flight up. But you are still removed from the street scene and can catch up with people heading to the Hamptons for the weekend.

You can eat burgers and hot dogs with your drinks.

The roof... Moretop bar has a retractable roof, so it is open year-round.

It is a few-minute walk to your next stop. Go east on 34th Street toward Seventh Avenue. Turn left on Seventh, then right on 37th Street. The next stop is on a block filled with office buildings, at the top of the Strand hotel.
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Address: 1 Penn Plaza
Phone: 212-629-7070
Hours: Daily 11:30am-4amLess

Top of the Strand, with a retractable roof, has cabana beds and a view of the Empire State Building.

The $15 cocktails include a stunning choice: the Cantonese. Canton ginger liqueur, Absolut vodka, lime and mint are served straight up in a martini glass. Perfection.

Wines by the glass are $12 and a small selection of bot... Moretled beer is $9.

Snacks include guacamole with chips and a Mediterranean platter with humus and olives.

You can walk down Fifth Avenue for your next stop, take a cab or take the M1 or M1 bus to 23rd and Fifth.
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Address: 33 W. 37th St.
Phone: 212-448-1024
Hours: Daily 5pm-1amLess

La Birreria, on the roof of Eataly, brews its own unfiltered, unpasteurized, naturally carbonated cask ales. The bar serves only beer, wine and spirits like Campari; no vodka or tequila. Snacks include sausages and pickled vegetables.

Since its opening in May 2011, La Birreia has been exceedingly popular, with typical waits of more tha... Moren an hour. Give your name, then wander around Eataly, where you can have a glass of wine while you browse.

After you go up the elevator, you are in the hall of an office building; go down the corridor, turn a corner and climb the stairs to this glorious space.

Open year-round, with a retractable roof.
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Address: 200 Fifth Ave (after 11pm, enter on 23rd Street)
Phone: 212-229-2560
Hours:
Sunday-Wednesday 11:30am-1am
Thursday-Saturday 11:30am-2amLess