Gotta Get Out

Many things are different about NYC - some obvious, some not so obvious. One of them is LIFESTYLE, like eating and entertaining. There is an entire population here who eats out every meal, virtually every meal or most meals. The 17,000 plus restaurants in Manhattan alone make this easy.
Another huge difference is entertaining - city dwellers typically have substantially less space than suburbanites. Even those with assets are frequently "trapped" by good deals - under market, rent-stabilized apartments. The stratospheric costs of real estate creates an environment of much less mobility - it's not uncommon for people to stay in places for decades, some only to move if they leave the city entirely.
So with small places and no outdoor space - soon we have cabin fever and we gotta get OUT - just OUT, anywhere. Plus what if someone were to call on a nice afternoon and find you IN. Or perhaps ask you tomorrow, what did you do yesterday?
But where to go. How about a bar, once dens of alcohol and cigarettes with people crying in their beer. Things have changed. With smoking gone, healthier habits (a person can now enter a bar and with no guilt, actually with pride, request a soy chai latte), a new generation, laptops and WI-FI, many bars are no longer the same. They have become living rooms for many.
VBar & Cafe, opened in 2000, typifies the new era and is one of the nicest neighborhood bars I have been in. Located at 225 Sullivan Street in the Village, it's atmospheric, dark, woodsy, has a nice library, music, free WI-FI, lite food and nice people (however it can get crowded and noisy at busy times). It is also pleasant by day - nice for a lite lunch, some work, socializing or a place to take a break. Virtually every customer review I have read extols its virtues with "hidden gem" the constant refrain. So if you want a great bar/cafe or perhaps if you just gotta get out - try this hidden gem ...