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In the heart of Downtown Manhattan, the cherished 169 Bar is on the brink of extinction, caught in a peculiar conflict between its owner and the landlord of the building that has been its home since 1916. This iconic dive bar, with its gritty charm, has been a staple for various Lower East Side cultural movements, from the punk era to the trendy Dimes Square scene.
Over the years, 169 Bar has drawn an eclectic crowd, including celebrities like Zoe Kravitz, Cillian Murphy, Jason Momoa, and Aziz Ansari. The bar even made an appearance in Ansari’s “Master of None,” where his character, Dev Shah, enjoyed its unique atmosphere. It also served as a backdrop for Gina Rodriguez’s character in the 2019 film “Someone Great.”
The building itself is a storied institution, offering a vivid snapshot of Lower East Side life. It’s been a multi-use space housing not only apartments—often occupied by bar staff—but also a mahjong parlor, a law office, a dominatrix, and a venue for oil wrestling matches.
Despite its vibrant history, the future of 169 Bar looks grim. Charles Hanson, who took ownership of the bar in 2006, has reportedly been in a deteriorating relationship with the building’s owner. This discord, which began several years ago, seems to have reached a breaking point, threatening to end the bar’s century-long legacy.
The bar’s owner, Charles Hanson, bought it in 2006, but we’re told relations between Hanson’s and the owner of the building soured several years ago, and have gotten worse since.
Insiders allege that amid the bad blood, a representative of the owners has even dressed up in wigs, hats, sunglasses and other disguises for reasons that aren’t entirely clear but which contributed to the conflict with management.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the building’s owner, who bartended there in the 1950s when it was nicknamed the Bloody Bucket, transferred ownership of the building over to her daughter, and last March she decided not to renew the bar’s lease.
Hanson told us he was stunned because the family had assured him they would let him reup, but he learned via his lawyer they weren’t going through with the plan, just 15 days before his lease was up.
The bar has been operating without a lease, and he’s fighting in court to keep the lease.
Buzz in the neighborhood is that the family wants to take back control of the much-loved bar. But Hanson tells us that it’s not going to happen, at least not under its historic moniker. “I trademarked the name [of the bar], so if I go, it goes.”
They’re due in court on April 2 and Hanson tells us, “I’ll find out if I get 30 days, 60 days, or one year or two years [for the bar to operate], who knows?” The owner of the building did not return multiple phone calls for comment.