MONKEY BAR
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Famed NYC Restaurant located in the iconic Hotel Elysee. Open for Lunch, Dinner and Cocktails. Est. 1936.
With the repeal of Prohibition close at hand, a humble new establishment opened its doors on the ground floor of the still-new, luxurious Hotel Elysée in the Midtown: the Monkey Bar.
Known as a comfortable locale to while away an afternoon with an im-promptu companion, the new bar at the Elysee – known to some customers, between drinks, as the “easy lay” –would become the New York home of Tallulah Bankhead and the site of a number of historically significant events during its lifetime, such as the untimely death of Tennessee Williams, when the play wright mysteriously chocked on an eye-dropper. For decades, the Monkey bar provided a cozy outpost for admen in bespoke suits, after-hours politicians, and media barons looking for a little fun.