Mace

Very trendy cocktail bar with nice décor. In my opinion, it’s a great place for a date or just 2 – 3 people, but not the best for a larger group since the seating is limited. Menus at cocktail bars can be difficult to navigate with their assortment of drinks with various concoctions of ingredients. That, along with $ 15 per drink, can be a little nerve racking. However, what I liked the most about Mace (aside from the drinks) was their menu because it gives a general overview of the drink. I found it to be helpful while choosing my cocktail. I started with the pandan, which was amazing. The blend of ingredients was absolutely bliss and a must have if you come here. My second drink was the mace (had to get the drink named after the bar), but it left me a little disappointed after having the pandan. Not that it was terrible, it just wasn’t my cup of tea. It has a spicy flavor which I didn’t enjoy. Bartenders were great and very cool atmosphere. Would come again

Cute date spot. very small and intimate. I had the cinnamon drink which had egg and it was so good. Id highly recommend this spot. I also had the cocoa drink and bf had the pandan which was also great. He didn’t like the mace drink at all… so i wouldnt recommend it.

Weirdly enough, I had only been to this space when it turns into the pop-​up Miracle on 9^th Street, and when it was the old jazz club Louis 649. This was my first time visiting the space as Mace, and it was fairly enjoyable overall.
Came here on a Friday night, after having dinner nearby. The ambiance is obviously very different from the bright holiday décor of Miracle on 9^th Street, as it’s more of a trendy, yet casual vibe, with darkened lights. Something I didn’t much care for was how loud and pumping the music was. I’m all for some good headbangers, and I don’t know if it was just that night, but the blasting of EDM just really didn’t seem suitable for the atmosphere. I feel like a grumpy old man for complaining about music volume, but it just wasn’t conducive to conversation. Also, you kids need to get off my dang lawn.
On to the cocktails. I ordered the Pandan, which consisted two different types of Caribbean rum, clarified milk and fruit juices, batavia arrack with pandan infused leaves, coconut water, black tea, and other spices. I wasn’t quite sure how it was going to turn out, but it was very refreshing to drink, and not too sweet or syrupy. I was very pleasantly surprised with it, and I would easily order that drink again in a heartbeat. I also tried the Mace, which was a dark purple from the presence of beet juice, and was also surprisingly refreshing.
Service was okay, as the person who was serving our table was very good with remembering our requests, but was generally hard to find throughout the night. Prices are on the more expensive side, even for cocktail bars. They’ll likely go about a few bucks more than the typical $ 12 for a craft cocktail. That being said, the ingredients they use are pretty special and unique, so take that as you will. I didn’t try any of the food on the menu, but it seemed very creative, albeit only for snacking appetites.
As there are a plethora of good cocktail bars in the area, I’m sort of indifferent on coming back because of the less-​than-​ideal vibe, but the quality of the cocktails is excellent, so if you can withstand the you should definitely give a shot. One of these nights, I may come back and try the Thai Chili drink, which seems right up my alley. Depends if I can hear the music from the outside, heh.

Great Place, Fantastic & Creative Cocktails that are Sure to Leave You with Taste to Remember!!! Highly Recommend this Creative Establishment to Watch Professional Team Players to Do Job as it Should be — Few Places that Can Do what They Do! Creativity & Execution does not Come to all Places the Same… MACE is Clearly, New York’s Boutique Cocktail Place to EMBRACE & ENJOY!!!

This place was a very pleasant surprise. Came completely by accident and was VERY impressed but an interesting menu, interesting flavor profiles and six solid cocktails
Recommend

If you love cool and amazing cocktails, you’ll LOVE this place.
A friend recommended this bar if I were ever in the East Village/​Alphabet City area, and I’m so glad I did. It’s a very tranquil, chill bar with a very trendy atmosphere. They have a full bar, but their cocktails are what they’re known for. My friend and I both ordered the Padan. Such a unique combination of flavors that made my tastebuds excited. I would have loved to try another one of their cocktails, but for $ 15 a cocktail, I could come back another time.
We also decided to split a flat bread pizza which was actually amazing. It had a unique combination of sweet and savory, which I absolutely loved.
I’m surprised not more people know about this place in the area. It really is tucked away. So, if you’re ever in the mood for fine, high quality cocktails, be sure to stop by.

Vintage Cocktails
Well Designed
As the bartender hands you a storybook filled with cocktails… you might find it all too tempting to mix liquors if you stay here for more than a few drinks.
A well designed bar with speakeasy drinks. The line up of tincture-​esqe bottles, with home made goodness for their specialty cocktails, reminds me that there are people who still care about quality and pay close attention to details. Kudos to the owners of Mace for delivering a solid experience and delicious drinks.
If you are nearby or a quick cab ride away, this is a great stop in the East Village. Friendly patrons, and a bartender who knows what they are doing.
The Scene: Vintage, Craft Quality
Destination Rating: 8
Date Rating: 8
Hob Nob Potential: 4
Note: The thai chili drink is beautiful & delicious.

Not accommodating…
Had to wait over 15 min for service. Attempted to get the attention of the waitstaff was but ignored. When I finally got their attention I said that I’ve been waiting for 15 minutes. I was just stating the facts.
Yep. I’m not a suck up and everyone around me was…
Place was talked up by 3 different spots I went to in Paris. The Paris spots were by FAR better…
My drink was made in less than 1 minute.
Not impressed. That means my drink was either pre-​made, (which is gross) or made quickly, which to me means carelessly.
I also sat next to a pretentious prick customer who was relentlessly sucking up to the bartenders and of course he got ALL the attention.
The Pandan was tasty, but not memorable. I’ve had better drinks elsewhere.
And btw, went on a Monday night so they definitely weren’t busy.
And, the kicker: the guy sucking up to the bartenders had the audacity to bring a date here. He had her sit next to me because he wasn’t comfortable with my bluntness with the bartender (saying I’ve waited 15 min for service). Didn’t talk to her, and she paid for her own drink!!! And she left super quick, as in 20 min of being there. I can’t…
Also waited for my check for… get this… another damn 15 minutes. SERIOUSLY? And I was super nice. Not rude at all.
Absolutely no tip left for them.
There were 6 other patrons. Unacceptable. I’ve been in many other spots with double the patrons and with only 2 bartenders that were much more accommodating.
Won’t be back. At. All.
Bartenders? Suck up to your friends on your own time. Not mine.
Fin.

I loved the atmosphere, but the drinks were just meh. Perhaps I don’t like ‘non-​fruity’ craft cocktails, who knows!
I ordered the cinnamon concoction, which was decent; but I could not get over the cinnamon spice sprinkled on top of the drink that would get on the roof of my mouth with every sip…

The only thing I don’t like about this bar is how far I live from it. Mace gets the title of my all-​time favorite NYC bar.
I first read about Mace on the NY section of the Wall Street Journal. Intrigued by the concept, I looked it up on Unilocal and found positive validation.
Every cocktail is crafted like a signature recipe at a 5 star restaurant. The namesake cocktail, for example, has so many different flavors: starts off perfume-​like, then followed by a citrus bite and a peppery finish. Absolutely outstanding. Some cocktails are savory, others are sweet. The menu itself is a piece of art and explains the flavor profiles and ingredients of every concoction.
Bonus points for having glasses of water poured out already for patrons along the bar.
You come here to savor truly innovative cocktails. Heck, I’d even take a date here.
I’ve only been here twice, and it’s not nearly enough times – I want to try every drink on the menu.

There are SO many cocktail bars in the East Village and I’ve been to many, MANY of them. Mace was one of my favorite ones in a while.
The cocktail list can feel somewhat limited compared to other craft cocktail bars but what they have is pretty outstanding. If you lean more towards sweeter cocktails this might not be the place for you either.
Tried several different cocktails, including sips of the group I was with…
My favorites were the Mace, Pandan and the newer Mustard Seed, which was on the more bitter and spicy side but I liked very much. Flavors were very complex and layered.
Also enjoyed it as were there on a Friday and had a nice crowd going but wasn’t packed or hard to get into. Staff was super friendly and approachable. The mixologists take what they do very seriously (as one would expect if you’ve been to a few of these places) but you can ask questions about unfamiliar cocktails or ingredients without being condescended to because you had the temerity to ask what pecan orgeat or white verjus are.

I don’t exactly have positive associations with the word «mace». Who does? In one night, however, this word took on a brand new meaning. In short, this mace will only temporarily blind you if you stay here all night… and while you’ll wake up with amnesia, you’ll know it was worth it — because you’ve most likely just overindulged in the best cocktail’s you’ll ever have.
Is it obvious that this place is my new favorite bar yet? Probably, but I’m going to elaborate anyway. Mace is a small cocktail bar in Alphabet City that seems to be hiding in plain sight. I came here around 11/11:30 on a Saturday night and while it was pretty full, we were still able to find two seats at a bar. This just shouldn’t be at a place that serves such mind-​blowingly good cocktails… but I have zero complaints about this. While Mace boasts the creativity and expertise in mixology that speakeasies and the like offer, absent is the pretentiousness that often accompanies those types of places. There’s a very laid back vibe here which is comforting in what is otherwise a frenetic bar scene. You can actually here yourselves talk, and making your way to the bar is far from the weed whacking-​esque adventure you’ll find yourself in if you mosey around the East Village.
Before diving into the masterpieces that are all Mace cocktails, I’ll say that if you’re fairly new to the cocktail scene, this might not be a good first choice. This menu is elaborate, odd, quirky, and has the potential to be somewhat confusing. But if you’re adventurous or just looking for a change, look no further than Mace. Each cocktail is named for it’s prominently featured spice. I found myself wondering — is this mixology or wizardry? I’m going to say a bit of each. There are essences you’ve most certainly heard of (cocoa, chamomile, cinnamon) and those that look a tad more exotic (pandan, mace, ambrette). Either way, I promise you that the final products are nothing short of awesome — I mean that in the most literal sense of the word — inspiring AWE.
So for what I ordered: the Thai Chili (pictured: gin, cucumber, Bird’s Eye chili tincture, lime, elderflower liqueur, egg white) and the Pandan (dark Trinidad overproof rum, Jamaican rum, batavia arrack infused with pandan leaves, clarified milk, clarified pineapple juice, clarified lime juice, aman black tea, coconut water, ginger juice, 8 spices). The Pandan, I have to say, is other-​worldly. I mean, look at that ingredient list. How can all of that fit in a cocktail glass? This cocktail is complex, rich and will transport you into temporary ecstasy. You might think that this many ingredients would make the drink overwhelming, but it’s exactly the opposite. They all work together in perfect harmony. You’ll find yourself trying to place the flavors… good luck. I was lost for words. Without a doubt, I’d recommend this. I also needed to try the Thai Chili, because if a spicy gin drink exists on any menu, I’m ordering it without fail. It’s lighter and more refreshing than the Pandan, which isn’t a good or a bad thing. The spice is subtle — you don’t feel like you need to down a glass of water post-​consumption. Meticulous and comprehensive — all star words due to their overuse in cover letters — perfectly describe the menu and bartenders at Mace. And it is all done without a hint of snobbery. Brilliant.

Meant to come here for a while and soooo glad we made it！
sure it’s out of the way, but it’s so worth it
Very chill vibe.
A dim lit wall full of jars of spices from the owner’s around the world. — hey, who wouldn’t want the job of this guy?
Loved our Pandan and Mezcal based drink (very smoky)
Wanted to reach for the Mustard Seed but wasn’t feeling that adventurous…
AND there’s a bubble tea looking drink too!!! I’ve gotta come back for that
The cherry on top? We had a great talk with the bar tender.
Just as we were leaving, the owner showed up. A cool and complete cocktail geek! Thanks Greg for dreaming up this bar!

Wow wow wow. Cocktail bar, social scene, and chill zone all in one. I’m an east village fan for both the laid back vibe and the pulse that beats strong. This cocktail bar is tasty, young, and a great place to meet others. The infused cocktails were delicious! The menu was unique. If you’re looking for a SATC vibe check it out.
Noticed it is frequented by the young hot tourism industry professionals but what isn’t in the wondrous world of Dien town Manhattan?

Fun and relaxing place to get tasty cocktails. Luckily it’s still relatively new, so it wasn’t too crowded on a Friday night. Came here with friends to celebrate my birthday early, and it was a great place to have a good drink and talk (without having to shout over each other). We got:
Thai Chili — refreshing with a kick. if you drop the little chili pepper in the drink, it infuses and makes it even spicier!
Mace — this tastes like fruit punch, I question whether there was actually any alcohol in this!
Pandan — so interesting, and we don’t see pandan used in many places in NYC. My order and probably my favorite drink of the night.
One of my friends don’t drink, and the bartended custom made mocktail to his liking. I didn’t try it, but he said it’s good.
The service is very attentive, constantly refilling our water glasses and checking on us. The bartenders are cute and very knowledgeable. :)
I’ll be back to try the rest of the drink menu!

I’ve already been to Mace twice– it’s great! Very good for groups: the first time I went with a group of about 10 on a Thursday, and we were able to all sit together. Amazing! The bartenders are nice, helpful, and funny.
The cocktails are very unique, and the menu is gorgeous. Probably my favorite is the cinnamon: it’s so yummy. There’s a pretty good variety. Cinnamon is relatively sweet, cocoa is SUPER sweet, mace is fruity and refreshing (with beets. interesting!), and one of them (can’t remember) is intensely spicy. The menu is pretty small, so if you go with a big group you can taste all of them.
Probably my only complaint is that the drinks aren’t that strong. Only one or two of them are spirit-​forward. So, people who don’t like sweet drinks may not enjoy Mace so much. But overall, I enjoyed the cocktails a lot.

Finally a cocktail bar doing something different! If you’re the kind of person that sticks to the classic cocktail section at a bar, Mace probably isn’t for you. Each drink is named after the spice incorporated into the drink. There are some crazy concoctions on the menu here. I decided to try the Chamomile ($ 16), which had brown butter & hay fat washed cognac, chamomile syrup, lemon juice, & champagne. What the heck is hay fat?! Even Google couldn’t tell me. Irregardless, this drink was delicious. I really enjoy champagne cocktails and this definitely tops my list now (better than that ones I’ve downed at Bathtub Gin). There were subtle hints of chamomile from the syrup, which made it easy to drink. My friend decided to be a little more adventurous and got the Paprika ($ 14). It contained tequila, snap pea shrub, smoked paprika, white verjus, & champagne. Our waiter warned him that it was an acquired taste and even offered to mix him up something different if he didn’t like it. I have to say that this one wasn’t for me. It almost had a vinegar-​y taste to it, but my friend really enjoyed it so no complaints.
The space itself is very sexy. It’s dimly lit, but not to the point of using a candle to see your drinking companion like many bars are guilty of. There’s a few two tops in the front by the window and a long bar to the back. The service was what really made this a 5 star experience. Will at the bar struck up a friendly conversation with us about the production of the menu and how they came to be. You don’t get that kind of attention too often at cocktail bars around the city, which is refreshing. At Mace, you can enjoy a fancy cocktail without the pretentious atmosphere.

Located off 9^th and Avenue C, Mace is a bit of a hike from the nearest subway lines. The minuses to that are obvious. But on the plus side, I strolled into the place at close to 6PM on a Wednesday and had my choice of seat and the bartender’s undivided attention. The bar really didn’t start hopping until 7 or 7:30. So if you like the idea of a quiet, no-​elbow-​jostling drink after a hectic work day — Mace is a good choice.
Mace is interesting because it blends casual with up-​scale. The interior is roomy and utilitarian while still being polished and showing touches of class — like how they display all the spices used in their drinks. The bar staff is the same. Our stubbly bartender was in a t-​shirt and jeans but he built drinks with the little flares that you associate with mixologists wearing vests and button-​down shirts. Will, our bartender was friendly, funny, and spoke with clear expertise about the drinks and their unique ingredients without ever ‘talking down’ to us. Mace is an up-​scale yet unpretentious bar that never seems to take itself too seriously. The sign on the bathroom door really says it all.
The drink prices are Manhattan-​nominal (~$ 15) and the bar features eleven specialty drinks, each one named after a key ingredient. Of those, my wife and I tried nearly half — specifically the Thai Chili, Cinnamon, Cumin, Cocoa, and Pandan. All of them were quite tasty and I would order any of them again. If you are looking for a spicy kick in the teeth, the Thai Chili will get the job done. The Cumin combines calvados and sherry with dark beer… which sounds strange on paper but works surprisingly well. The stand-​out drink for me is the Pandan. That drink is EVIL. Despite two types of rum (one being overproof), it tastes like a mild, mixed fruit-​juice… and goes down just as easily. Deadly.
Mace offers a few food options as it is, primarily, a bar. If you’re looking for haute cuisine, try elsewhere. Having said that, the Crab & Avocado Flatbread is a good size for sharing and a step up from typical pub-​grub. And it paired very well with the drinks… or I was tipsy enough at that point that I wasn’t discriminating. :)

Mace is by far one of the best new cocktail bars in town. So good, we went twice in consecutive nights and decided to try every single cocktail off their menu. And yes, that includes all 12 expertly crafted, delicious cocktails, between the both of us. Even in trying everything, there is still so much more reason to return and make this an instant favorite on the list. They also rotate the menu, so there is a new cocktail to try on each visit.
The cocktails connoisseur with the keen interest for learning about a variety of unique, international spices will love Mace. Spices carry the very individual flavor behind each drink. I will first note that their menu is highly organized and describes each cocktail in the most succinct and comprehensive manner — a listing that includes an illustration of the spice, name of drink, glass used, flavor type, spice type, and region of spice. A small food menu is also available, but these are small bites and not ones to replace your dinner.
Our favorite cocktails included — Thai Chili, Mace, Cumin, Ambrette, Cocoa and Pandan. My top choices were the Thai Chili and Cumin, while my partner in crime loved the Cocoa and Pandan. We both agree that Pandan was the biggest hit. Thai Chili is for any fan of a spicy drink. A thai chili pepper is used as garnish to top this lovely cocktail. A blend of gin, cucumber, Bird’s Eye chili tincture, lime, elderflower liqueur, and egg whites, make for a bright, refreshing drink with a hint of spice. The egg whites give it that wonderful, subtle creamy texture. Cumin is a mix of calvados, oloroso sherry, cumin syrup, lemon juice, and dark lager. Reminds me a bit of lemonade, but the complexity of flavors is hard to describe unless personally indulged. Dark lager gives a bit of a carbonated flavor. Cocoa and Pandan are packed with some amazing and unique flavor. They are more on the milky flavor side, but without dairy existing as the main ingredient. Cocoa ingredients include banana, roasted cocoa nibs-​infused prata cachaça, pecan orgeat, olive oil, salt, and egg. Pandan, the most complex of ingredients, includes Trinidad rum, Jamaican rum, batavia arrack, pandan leaves, clarified milk, clarified pineapple juice, clarified lime juice, aman black tea, coconut water, ginger juice, and 8 different spices.
Noting space, Mace is a great, intimate spot for friends and dates. The ambience is cozy and warm, dimly lit, trendy and without pretension. A wall of spice jars decorate the entire length of the bar. The bartender and server are super charming and friendly people that make for really great service. I personally preferred sitting at the bar, appreciating our interaction with the bartender, but for a more private, intimate experience, they have tables at front and towards the back. All in all, Mace is an excellent new cocktail bar addition to the East Village. We are fans and will be sure to return many many more times.

Mace (@macebarnyc) is a cocktail bar you’ve never seen in New York City. Maybe even the world for that matter. In an area of the country littered with $ 15 drinks shaken and stirred by various throwbacks to the Roaring Twenties, none of them have done what Mace is currently doing in the old Louis 649 space.
Mace itself is a spice that comes from the same tree that produces nutmeg. Given the owners held a pop up bar here during the holidays (Miracle on 9^th Street), this new concept makes total sense. The temporary watering hole featured several drinks sprinkled with the stuff. It seems they were giving Alphabet City a preview of what was to come.
Every drink is named after the spice that plays a huge role in the cocktail. For instance, the namesake elixir features Aperol, aquavit, beet juice, orange acid, young Thai coconut cordial, and *mace mist. The Chamomile consists of brown butter and hay fat-​washed Cognac, *chamomile syrup, lemon juice, and Champagne. And likewise, the Cocoa is made up of banana and roasted *cocoa nibs, infused Prata Cachaca, pecan orgeat, olive oil, salt, and a full egg (to make a flip). I threw an asterisk just to make sure you didn’t miss the correlation between the name and ingredient, but I’m sure you’re smart enough to have figured that out on your own.
With so many ingredients swimming in the same jigger, one might argue they’re trying too hard. That the cocktails will result in something odd and complicated. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Every drink that came my way had its own unique flavor profile with a balance that is only accomplished by a true virtuoso. You have to approach Mace the same way you’d approach a tasting menu at Per Se or Eleven Madison. It’s as much art as it is sustenance. The only difference is Mace is a step above a dive bar. A place where you can arrive in a Nike SB hooded sweatshirt without receiving a stern look from a maître d.
This is far and away the most interesting new cocktail bar in Manhattan. If you value a great drink and have ever referred to your bartender as a «mixologist,» then you need to experience Mace straight away. Though you haven’t been there, it’s already your new favorite bar.