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Checking out storied bars through the years

By Perrie Samotin | Special to amNewYork

May 5, 2006

Jef KleinÂs ÂThe History and Stories of the Best Bars in New York.Â (Photo by Handout / May 4, 2006)

Will there ever be a New York institution as storied as the bar? Something you might ask yourself after leafing through Jef Klein's "The History and Stories of the Best Bars in New York," a glossy new read that briefs us on New York City's bar lore.

Written in a refreshing, conversational style, the 216-page coffee table book harkens back to prominent events and personalities linked to the city's most legendary drinking haunts. Find out where Grace Kelly waited an hour for a table while sipping a bottle of Heineken at the bar, or which pub is home to a bartender parodied on "Saturday Night Live."

Keep in mind the book deals with the history of the city's best bars, not necessarily the oldest. So while you have your obvious historical heavyweights (McSorley's, 21 Club), you'll also find some neighborhood drinking holes that you probably never knew had such extensive pasts -- like Spring Lounge and Onieal's Grand Street, whose backstory goes way beyond the fact it was the setting for Steve and Aiden's bar in "Sex and the City."

Filled with striking black-and-white photos by Cary Hazlegrove, the book offers an engaging glimpse into New York's libation roots.