Lincoln Square Date Night

🍸 Cocktails → 🍝 Italian → 🍺 Pints

If you're looking for spots in Lincoln Square, you've decided to pull the tux out for a classy night at the Performing Arts Center. Or maybe she's on the UWS and you're coming from Midtown — either way, this neighborhood works. Start with cocktails on 58th, grab Italian near Lincoln Center, and close it out at a legendary Irish pub on 7th Ave. The whole route stays within a few blocks of Columbus Circle.

Stop 1 — Cocktails
all & sundry exterior all & sundry interior all & sundry cocktails

all & sundry

312 W 58th St, New York, NY 10019 · website · ~$50-70 (2 drinks each)

Classy cocktail spot on 58th with happy hour 4-7pm Mon-Fri. Perfect either before or after a show — grab a martini and ease into the evening. The space is polished without being stuffy and the HH pricing keeps the first round reasonable. Good pre-theater warm-up or post-work meeting point.

↓ 5 minute walk
Stop 2 — Italian
Fiorello exterior Fiorello interior Fiorello food

Fiorello

1900 Broadway, New York, NY 10023 · website · opentable · ~$70-90 (pizza + drinks)

Casual Italian right across from Lincoln Center. Grab a booth and split a pizza — it's the kind of place that feels like a proper New York dinner without the pretension. Been here since 1987 and the crowd is a mix of locals and theater-goers. Reservations recommended but walk-ins work at the bar.

↓ 6 minute walk
Stop 3 — Pints
P.J. Carney's exterior P.J. Carney's interior P.J. Carney's bar

P.J. Carney's

906 7th Ave, New York, NY 10019 · website · ~$40-60 (2-3 pints each)

Legendary midtown Irish pub on 7th Ave. Showing up dressed to the nines from a night at Lincoln Center and pounding Guinness with an open-faced corned beef sandwich really slaps. The shift from cocktails to Italian to an Irish pub takes any remaining pretension off the table. No fuss, just good craic.

The Route

The Strategy

Start at all & sundry around 5:30pm to catch happy hour on 58th. If you're doing a show at Lincoln Center, this is the perfect warm-up spot — two cocktails at HH prices before you head over. After the show (or after cocktails if you're skipping the performance), walk up to Fiorello on Broadway for Italian. Grab a booth and split a pizza — it's classic and keeps things easy. If the night's going well, suggest one more at P.J. Carney's on 7th Ave. The Irish pub nightcap after Italian and cocktails is the move that shows you're not all suits and theater. Total damage: $160-220 for a three-stop night.

Field Notes

Do I need a reservation at Fiorello?
For a table, yes — book OpenTable a few days out. For the bar, walk-in works. The bar at Fiorello is a perfectly good alternative and actually more useful for a first date than a quiet corner table. You're side by side instead of across from each other, which changes the energy.
What if she's seen something at Lincoln Center and wants to go there instead of all & sundry?
Go. Walk around the fountain, grab a drink at the David Rubenstein Atrium if something's on, and adjust the rest of the night from there. all & sundry is the pre-show plan — if the show becomes the plan, build around it. Fiorello and P.J. Carney's both work as post-show stops.
How dressed up should I be for this route?
Smart casual minimum. all & sundry and Fiorello both pull a put-together crowd, and if there's any chance of Lincoln Center in the picture, you want to look like you belong there. P.J. Carney's doesn't care what you're wearing, but it's more fun to show up overdressed to a pub than underdressed to a cocktail bar.
Is P.J. Carney's actually a good closer or just geographically convenient?
Both, and that's fine. It's been there since 1973 and it earns its place on 7th Ave. The contrast with cocktails and Italian makes it land better than it would standalone. The Guinness is good and the corned beef sandwich at midnight is genuinely solid. Lean into it.

More Neighborhood Date Flows

Upper West Side → Hell's Kitchen → Midtown → Chelsea → Harlem → Flatiron →