Kenny’s Castaways

One of the last of a dying breed. Once you could go out, have a drink, hear a good band. No big deal. No more.
These are some music venues I miss and the best bands I saw there:
Dan Lynch — Screaming Honkers
Lone Star (remember the big iguana on the roof) — Dr John
Kenny’s Castaways — BBQ Bob & the Spareribs
Manny’s Carwash — Ronnie Earl and the Broadcasters with Lucky Peterson
Chicago Blues — Roomful of Blues
Roseland Ballroom — Albert Collins
Tramps — Bluestime with J Geils
Peppermint Lounge — The Fleshtones
Mudd Club — I had only been to the first floor
Tramps (the other one) — Irma Thomas
Palladium — Return to Forever
Ritz — Little Buster and the Soulbrothers
Limelight — John Lee Hooker (one summer they hosted a Blues great every Sunday night)
Bottom Line — Sonny Rollins
Nightingale’s — Joey Miserable and the Worms
Big Kahuna
Danceteria
Kit Kat Club
Mills Pub
Billy’s Topless
Continental Divide …
That’s off the top of my head. Many places Ive forgotten the name or the night.

Great place to hear live music and get a beer. The beer selection was decent, cover charge on this night non existent and the music was awesome. We went to a showcase the featured so many bands we lost count.

I was here last Friday night — evidently there are not to be many Friday nights left in this old landmark. It would get crowded, empty out, and get crowded again. I was fortunate to grab a table up front by the bar. and drank a few pints Apparantly there’s a lot of nostalgia attached to this place — obviously I missed out on it.

For god’s sake do not try to participate in the open mike on Mondays. The house band plays decent blues music that quickly becomes a mind-​number for about an hour before the «open mic» starts, when they continue playing cover songs with a different singer, or a new guitarist, until you’ve been listening to the same shit for 3 hours and you have heard nothing new and have lost all sense of self.

So apparently this place is closing up — it will be missed for its history, it will not be missed for the bar itself, which is pretty crappy.
If you haven’t been, this is a dive bar with a little stage in the back of the long, narrow bar. Came here to see a co-worker’s band.
A bunch of random crap on the walls that didn’t make much sense, but that’s fine.
Behind the bar — below average liquor selection with an above average beer selection. All coupled with above average prices. They charged a cover… ok that’s fine, but have a drink special or something. $ 7 dollars for a bottle of Magners?! Come on guys, its a dirty dive bar.
Bartenders were fine, they did a good job keeping track of each and every drink on the tab…
Not going to miss this place, but I’m sure it’ll just be replaced with some higher-​end divey bar where the drinks cost even more.

One of my co-worker’s friend was performing that night at Kenny’s…and a bunch of us were invited to the event. I have never been to a place like this. and was kinda excited about it…
The place is very laid back and relaxing… but i think without the stage and the performances… it would have been a ok place…
The band that performed before my co-worker’s crew were sooo good… and they were only in High School! CRAZY! As the night drifts away, it was my co-worker’s band to performed… they definitely killed it… and it was great to watch!
As for the food. i had an order of fries. and they were bleh. i guess the only good thing about this place is the performaces and the chillax vibe.

Great deals on pitchers! I like the crowd that comes here… friendly, young, and lively. I enjoy that they have live shows going on with chill people and lots of seating room. Really cool environment to have a large group of friends share a pitcher, a few laughs, and a nice performance.

Great vibe, nice scene, very laid back and chill.
We went on a Sunday afternoon so it was not crowded, no band, but the place is fun to look at and the bartender was nice.
I enjoyed the oldies playing in the background and I hear they support local up and coming bands which is very cool.

So… once again, we have a spot that has been around forever and yet there are less than 100 reviews for it.
When my buds from out-​of-​town come by, they love doing the bleeker st bar crawl and the fact that there are bands here makes it a tad different than the other spots. Not by much though.
The interior is well decorated… uh, perhaps «well» wasn’t the correct term… let’s just say its decorated.
Lots of NYU kids, tourists, and d-​bag B&Ters…geezus…this statement is on loop for all these bleeker st bars.
Let’s move on to the next bar, shall we? No, I’m done with bleeker st.

I was feeling kind of blah in lab and I caught on facebook that a friend of mine was going here. I decided to show up a little later on to check the place out because, hey, it was a Tuesday night. Tuesday = the best time to party.
Now, I’ll tell you that I haven’t been to a lot of the blues clubs down on Bleecker street, but whatever, this review is still valid. :D I walk into Kenny’s and it’s kind of like almost like you were in Pirates of the Caribbean except not because you’re at a bar in NYC. They’ve got this like elevated platform so you can sit above the stage and they’ve got the bathrooms just to the left and right of the stage. The layout has got the bar at the front right when you walk in and then the tables and stage further back.
The big plus to this place was that there was no cover charge and the band was awesome. And by awesome I mean I sat down next to this cute Asian girl and then she went up on stage and transformed into some kind of abomination hybrid of Etta James and Aretha Franklin (R-​E-​S-​P-​E-​C-​T Optimus Prime style). And, for some reason, half of the band was in the audience and they just rotated out who was playing bass, drums, sax, etc. Furthermore, the band played contiuously for like 20 — 30 min at one point featuring each member doing improv solos, which were delicious. I enjoyed the guitarist the most, but the rest were awesome, too. It’s nice to see a saxophonist playing a Silver Selmer. I always wanted one because the sound is so rich, but had to settle for my assy Yamaha Student Sax: flount flurnf = saxophone noises:.
In any case, for a whopping $ 6 ($ 3 juice, $ 2 to tip the band, and $ 1 to tip the bartender) I got to enjoy awesome music for like 2 hours and dance with my friend. Overall, this place is a win and I am going back there tonight.

Another nice jazz bar in the Village, hits most of the right spots. This one has more of a low-​key feel to it than some of the other jazz joints around here (like you drink beers & whisky shots rather than wine), which is a nice change. Only downside is that if you’re far away from the stage (and the place is tiny, mind you) you don’t have a chance in hell of seeing any of the action. Unless you play in the NBA.

Love the layout of this place, which is a great destination if you want to hear some local bands and sip on a drink with your friends without getting swarmed by strangers.
There is plenty of seating right near the stage and a nice, long bar. Will definitely pay Kenny’s another visit!

This place has been around more than 35 years. For New York, especially the Bleecker Street Hell Strip, that’s a lot. When we were there, it looked like it had some of it’s original customers. The 50+ year olds were rockin’ out to the music made by the great 50+ year old musicians of KING DICE. The crowd showed more energy and danceability than most of barely-​21 NYU stews at the bars nearby. The music is LOUD, likely because of the already wrecked hearing of the audience.
The bartendress doubles as waitress, and she’s always busy– not the chatin’ type. The food is basic bar food: nachos, fries, chicken wings. There was a great porter on tap, but I forget the name. (Too bad too, because I’d seek it out. Something like «high point,» I think.) The atmosphere is super friendly, sometimes too much so, as the neighborhood… er… transients… hang out to play the free jukebox. We found that it you ask the bouncer (also a super friendly guy), your bothersome transient will disappear.
It ain’t hip. Not even a hip dive. But that’s its charm. — Drink Club NYC is a roving group of NYC drinkers

DeeDee meet Joey. Joey meet DeeDee. Perhaps that’s how the alleged meeting of these two Ramones transpired back in the 70’s at the legendary Kenny’s Castaways during a performance by an equally legendary NY Dolls.
This is a spot rich in musical history– you can almost hear the echoes of notes past in the walls of the semi-​divey interior. Bruce Springsteen was here as were the Fugees, neatly representing the wide range of musical talent that’s been part of the Castaways tradition.
So who is Kenny? Existential South Park questions aside. the Kenny in the title refers to a surname. Founded in 1967 by Patrick Kenny, the site was formerly a notorious gay bar during the gay 90’s (1890’s, that is).
Enough history. On a Friday night approaching the witching hour, my wife and I went to see a friend’s roommate appear on drums in a band. Easy entrance that included the obligatory ID check which is semi-​flattering given that I was wearing my workaday sports jacket. Fee? No fee!
Three beers came out to $ 18. The men’s room was surprisingly clean. If you sit near the stage, don’t expect to be able to hold much of a conversation.
The atmosphere was definitely relaxed and the crowd a mix of young and old. And, given the NYU area location, I actually was not among the youngest or oldest demographic!
There’s an upstairs area as well that will give you the vantage point of gazing down upon the performers. Table service is available although the bar wasn’t at all crowded at this time.
Intriguing musical history, no fee for this midnight show and readily available beer? I’ll gladly be a castaway again.

Disclaimer… I’m only giving 3 stars b/​c I didn’t have any food and my friends only had beer… so we don’t have much to review except the actually space and vibe… that being said:
It’s one of those places you feel like you’ve been to before… as soon as you walk in the door… and I liked that. Going there last night was a little last minute and random for me but aren’t those the best nights? My friends boyfriend’s band was playing there and there was no cover charge… free music… absolutely! We got there about 11:30…the place was pretty empty, and we went upstairs to avoid table service… table service seems a little much for this place and I think a lot of people agreed with us b/​c everyone in the place was hanging near the downstairs bar or sitting upstairs to avoid it.
I’d like to go back… see how the bartenders mix and see how «typical» the bar food is…

Great venue for live music! I was in the area looking for live entertainment which I typically find @ the bitter end, and stumbled across Kenny’s which was hosting the international pop overthrow.
$ 10 per person for admission and we were able to order a drink and go straight up to the stage to enjoy an evening packed with middle aged pop artists which are loyal to the art. The music was amazing, the fans were super cool. I’ve even became fans of a few bands on Facebook so you know I’m telling the truth :)
Stop by and tell them Henry sent you, then wait for the awkward stare. No one there knows me, but it would be funny none the less :)

not my kind of venue.
drinks are really not good tasting, for me its all about taste.
I am sure its great for music, i need both.

— good venue for catching a show
— personable bartender
— mixed bag as far as patrons go
— pretty dive-​y
— too loud to maintain any sort of conversation
— cocktails are reasonably priced but not particularly good, i’d stick with what’s on tap

Been going to Kenny’s for years.
You can sit at the back on tables and listen to live music
or hang out in the (bit) quieter bar area out in front.
The staff is friendly and some of them have been working
there forever.
The place has undergone a few renovations over the years but
still has the dive bar look to it.

The first place Sprucesteen ever played!
Great live music venue. Good drinks! Friendly staff!
I would recommend this place to my friends.