Game Day · Manhattan · Updated September 24, 2026
The Garden sets the clock. Your neighborhood picks the bar.
Where to watch NBA in Manhattan, by neighborhood: the bars around Madison Square Garden with walks we measured from the arena, the uptown options, and the downtown rooms.
- 40 Knicks home games at the Garden
- 21 of them tip off at 7:30 PM
- Seven bars measured from MSG on foot
- West Village: open to midnight Fri and Sat
- Gluten-free kitchen: Park Slope only
Marina Charny, Owner, The Beer Garage
To watch NBA in Manhattan you first have to decide where in Manhattan. The island has the Knicks’ arena at one end of Midtown, a dense run of sports bars downtown, and a quieter spread uptown, and the right bar for a 7:30 PM tip-off depends on which of those you are standing in.
So this guide goes by neighborhood. For the bars around Madison Square Garden, we measured every walk from the arena in Google Maps walking mode on September 24, 2026. For the full list of official Knicks bars across the city, see where to watch NBA in New York; for the downtown rooms and our own, where to watch the Knicks in the West Village.
Near Madison Square Garden, Mustang Harry’s at 352 7th Avenue is a three minute walk from the arena and publishes more than 20 HDTVs with surround sound; Goldie’s Tavern and Stout 35th, both on the Knicks’ own bar list, are four minutes away. Uptown, Inwood Bar and Grill is the only official Knicks bar north of 59th Street. Downtown, our West Village room at 118 Christopher Street stays open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
Our West Village kitchen is a standard one, and its menu does not label any dish gluten-free. The fully gluten-free Beer Garage kitchen is the Brooklyn one, at 148 5th Avenue in Park Slope. If gluten matters, ask the kitchen directly at any bar on this page.
Knicks nights at the Garden, by tip-off
The Knicks play 40 regular-season home games at Madison Square Garden in 2026-27. We took every one from the NBA’s schedule data on September 24, 2026 and converted the tip-offs to Eastern Time.
| Tip-off (ET) | Home games |
|---|---|
| 12:00 PM | 2 (Christmas Day against the Spurs; Sunday, March 14 against the Celtics) |
| 1:00 PM | 1 |
| 5:00 PM | 1 |
| 6:00 PM | 3 |
| 7:00 PM | 7 |
| 7:30 PM | 21 |
| 8:00 PM | 2 |
| 8:30 PM | 3 |
Two things follow. No home game tips off after 8:30 PM, so every bar in the next table has hours to spare on a Garden night. And 15 of the 40 fall on a weekend, nine of them on Sundays, which is when the bars nearest the arena fill earliest.
Bars around Madison Square Garden, measured on foot
Each walk was measured in Google Maps walking mode from Madison Square Garden, 4 Pennsylvania Plaza, on September 24, 2026. The last column is what each bar says on its own website that day, or where it appears on the Knicks’ list if its own site could not be read.
| Bar | Address | Walk from MSG | What it says about itself |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mustang Harry’s | 352 7th Ave | 3 minutes, 0.1 mile | “Just steps from Madison Square Garden”; more than 20 HDTVs and surround sound over two floors |
| Goldie’s Tavern | 135 W 30th St | 4 minutes, 0.2 mile | Describes itself as an option for sports bars near Madison Square Garden; on the Knicks’ bar list |
| Stout 35th | 215 W 35th St | 4 minutes, 0.2 mile | On the Knicks’ bar list; we could not confirm its own site |
| The Celly | 332 9th Ave | 6 minutes, 0.3 mile | On the Knicks’ bar list; its own site did not load for us |
| Finnerty’s | 18 W 33rd St | 8 minutes, 0.3 mile | Newly reopened at this address; 24 big-screen TVs; calls itself the San Francisco Giants’ “home away from home” |
| Legends | 6 W 33rd St | 8 minutes, 0.4 mile | On the Knicks’ bar list; its web address showed a parked placeholder page on September 24 |
| Crompton’s Alehouse | 159 W 26th St | 8 minutes, 0.4 mile | On the Knicks’ bar list; its own site did not load for us |
Mustang Harry’s, 352 7th Avenue. The closest bar we measured to the Garden, and the one that publishes the most about its screens.
- Best for a pre-game drink or a Knicks game without a ticket, three minutes from the arena doors.
- Skip if you want a quiet room on a home night; it is the obvious stop for the crowd heading in.
Finnerty’s, 18 West 33rd Street. A Bay Area bar that has moved to Midtown and reopened.
- Best for the biggest published screen count on this page, 24 big-screen TVs, eight minutes from the Garden.
- Skip if you need a promise about basketball in particular; its site leads with the San Francisco Giants and does not name the Warriors.
The official Knicks bars in Manhattan
The Knicks publish their own bar list, the Knicks Tap Takeovers presented by Michelob ULTRA. On September 24, 2026 it named ten Manhattan bars, and five of them are in the walking table above. The full list, borough by borough, is in our New York NBA guide.
A caution from checking it: news reports from the June 2026 playoffs named more Knicks bars, including some downtown and in Harlem, but those were playoff takeovers. They are not on the team’s current page, so we have not listed them as official.
Uptown: above 59th Street
Uptown is thinner on published facts. Of the bars we checked on September 24, 2026:
- Inwood Bar and Grill, 4892 Broadway, is the one bar north of 59th Street on the Knicks’ own list.
- Kelly’s Sports Bar, 1154 2nd Avenue on the Upper East Side, calls itself a sports bar by name and lists noon to 11:45 PM daily.
- Harlem Tavern, 2153 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, lists noon to midnight Sunday to Thursday and noon to 1:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays. The bar’s own copy does not mention sports; only a customer review shown on its site does, so call before a big game.
Several Upper West Side bars that appear on sports-bar lists did not load for us that day, so they are left out rather than described from memory.
Downtown and the West Village
Downtown has its own guide: where to watch the Knicks in the West Village covers the bars below 14th Street, the tip-off times against our hours, and how to get from the West Village to the Garden. Two of the Knicks’ official bars are downtown: Amity Hall Downtown at 80 West 3rd Street, a 12 minute walk from our door, and Rocco’s at 1 West 3rd Street, 17 minutes away.
Our own Manhattan room is The Beer Garage at 118 Christopher Street, a 31 minute walk from Madison Square Garden. It opens at 3:00 PM Monday to Thursday, 2:00 PM on Fridays, noon on Saturdays and 1:00 PM on Sundays, and closes at 11:00 PM Sunday to Thursday and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, per our website on September 24, 2026. Every Knicks home game ends before we close; the only two we miss are the noon tip-offs on Christmas Day and Sunday, March 14, which start before we open. For the whole downtown picture, see also our West Village sports bar guide.
Channels: what the league publishes
The NBA’s schedule data lists no New York channel for Knicks games. Some games carry a national broadcast instead, such as NBC and Peacock for opening night against the 76ers on Tuesday, October 20, and others on Prime Video, ESPN, ABC or NBA TV. Check the channel the day before and ask the bar whether it has it.
Every bar on this page asks for ID showing you are 21 or older. On a home night the blocks around the Garden are crowded before tip-off and after the final buzzer, so allow extra time for the walk to Penn Station.
Which Manhattan bar for your game?
Two questions, sixteen answers, all drawn from the tables above.
1. Where in Manhattan?
2. What matters most?
Mustang Harry’s or Finnerty’s. Mustang Harry’s publishes more than 20 HDTVs three minutes from the arena; Finnerty’s publishes 24 big-screen TVs eight minutes away.
Goldie’s Tavern or Stout 35th. Both are on the Knicks’ own list and both are four minutes from the Garden on foot.
Goldie’s Tavern, 135 West 30th Street. Its site lists a 10:00 AM opening, four minutes from the arena.
Goldie’s Tavern or Mustang Harry’s. Goldie’s lists its closing time as “till late”; Mustang Harry’s lists midnight. Every Knicks home game ends well before either.
See our West Village Knicks guide. It compares the downtown rooms and what each publishes about its screens, including ours.
Amity Hall Downtown, 80 West 3rd Street. On the Knicks’ list, a 12 minute walk from our West Village door.
The Beer Garage West Village, 118 Christopher Street. Open from noon on Saturdays and 1:00 PM on Sundays, in time for the weekend matinees.
The Beer Garage West Village, 118 Christopher Street. Open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays and 11:00 PM on other nights.
Kelly’s Sports Bar, 1154 2nd Avenue. The uptown bar that calls itself a sports bar by name; no bar we checked uptown publishes a screen count, so call.
Inwood Bar and Grill, 4892 Broadway. The only bar north of 59th Street on the Knicks’ own list.
Kelly’s Sports Bar or Harlem Tavern. Both list a noon opening every day.
Harlem Tavern, 2153 Frederick Douglass Boulevard. Open until 1:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays; call ahead, because its own copy does not mention sports.
Finnerty’s, 18 West 33rd Street. The biggest screen count published by any bar on this page: 24 big-screen TVs.
The Knicks’ own list. Ten Manhattan bars, all named in our New York NBA guide, five of them within eight minutes of the Garden.
Goldie’s Tavern, 135 West 30th Street. A 10:00 AM opening, the earliest published on this page.
Harlem Tavern uptown, or us downtown. Harlem Tavern stays open until 1:00 AM and we stay open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
Use the tables above: Mustang Harry’s is closest to the Garden, Inwood Bar and Grill is the official Knicks bar uptown, and our West Village room covers downtown.
How we checked
On September 24, 2026 we read the Knicks’ 2026-27 home schedule from the NBA’s schedule data and converted every tip-off to Eastern Time, read the Knicks’ Tap Takeover page in a browser, and read each bar’s own website for its hours and what it says about sports. Walks were measured in Google Maps walking mode from Madison Square Garden.
Where a bar’s site would not load, we said so instead of filling the gap from review sites. No bar paid to be listed and none was visited for this page.
The Knicks game in the West Village
The Beer Garage West Village, 118 Christopher Street, New York, NY 10014.
Our Brooklyn room is at 148 5th Avenue in Park Slope, 718-576-3409, with a fully gluten-free kitchen.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I watch NBA games in Manhattan?
Near Madison Square Garden, Mustang Harry’s at 352 7th Avenue is three minutes from the arena on foot and publishes more than 20 HDTVs, and Goldie’s Tavern and Stout 35th, both on the Knicks’ bar list, are four minutes away. Uptown, Inwood Bar and Grill is on the Knicks’ list. Downtown, The Beer Garage at 118 Christopher Street in the West Village is open until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
What is the closest bar to Madison Square Garden for a Knicks game?
Of the bars we measured on September 24, 2026, Mustang Harry’s at 352 7th Avenue was closest: a three minute walk, 0.1 mile, from the arena. Goldie’s Tavern and Stout 35th were four minutes away.
What time do Knicks home games start?
Most start at 7:30 PM Eastern: 21 of the Knicks’ 40 home games at Madison Square Garden in 2026-27, according to the NBA’s schedule data. None tips off later than 8:30 PM.
Is there an official Knicks bar uptown in Manhattan?
Yes, one. Inwood Bar and Grill at 4892 Broadway is the only bar north of 59th Street on the Knicks’ Tap Takeover list, read September 24, 2026.
Is there a bar in Manhattan for Bay Area sports fans?
Finnerty’s has reopened at 18 West 33rd Street, eight minutes on foot from Madison Square Garden. Its website calls it the San Francisco Giants’ home away from home and lists 24 big-screen TVs; it does not name the Warriors.
Does The Beer Garage in the West Village show NBA games?
Yes. Our West Village room at 118 Christopher Street shows the games without claiming a team. It opens at 3:00 PM on weekdays and stays open until 11:00 PM Sunday to Thursday and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Its kitchen is standard, not gluten-free.
The verdict
Where to watch NBA in Manhattan comes down to where you are when the game starts. Near the Garden, Mustang Harry’s is three minutes away and the Knicks’ own bars are within eight. Uptown, Inwood Bar and Grill carries the official tag. Downtown, our West Village room is open late enough for every home tip-off.
Sources and references
- New York Knicks schedule, from the NBA’s schedule data, and Knicks Tap Takeovers, read September 24, 2026.
- Mustang Harry’s, Goldie’s Tavern, Finnerty’s, Kelly’s Sports Bar and Harlem Tavern, own websites, read September 24, 2026.
- The Beer Garage, beergarageny.com: West Village hours, address and phone, read September 24, 2026.
- Google Maps walking mode, from Madison Square Garden and from 118 Christopher Street, measured September 23 and 24, 2026.
Marina Charny
This guide was made for fans deciding where in Manhattan to catch the game. Corrections are welcome on 646-490-4301.
Related reading: Where to watch the Knicks in the West Village · Where to watch NBA in New York · Where to watch NBA in Brooklyn · Where to watch NHL hockey in Manhattan · Sports bar in the West Village · Where to watch NFL football in Manhattan