Long Live Finnerty's!

My favorite bar in NYC, Finnerty’s is closing down officially. Finnerty’s is a sports bar in the East Village that is best known for being the San Francisco / Bay Area bar in New York City. As a San Francisco native that lived in New York for 5 years, I like many other transplants lived at Finnerty’s.

I first went to Finnerty’s with a close high school friend when I was interviewing out in New York in 2011. I came back to Finnerty’s during my internship in the winter and I had my birthday party there in March 2012. I fell in love with the bar during that winter. It felt like home away from home.

When I finally got back to New York in the fall of 2013, I instantly became a local and lived within blocks of Finnerty’s during my entire 5 years in the city. I became friends with the bartenders there and ended up meeting the owners Dieter and Brian. They are great people who always took care of everyone.

I’ve had countless drinks with old and new friends at Finnerty’s. I’ve watched Warriors, 49ers, Giants, and even my Washington Husky games there. I’ve had heartbreak when my teams have lost and triumph during the World Series and NBA Championship runs.

One of my most memorable meetings was being asked to go on Good Morning America by Brian during the NBA Championship run. I got to meet Michael Strahan and the rest of the crew during that experience.

Some of my favorite moments at Finn’s was when I used to go in by myself and sit at the bar for hours. I would often bring a laptop and get some work done or just hang with the bartenders. Often, people would come up and ask where I was from and we would end up talking for an hour or two about our ties to the Bay Area.

My 5 years in New York was one of the most exciting times in my life and a large part of that was due to Finnerty’s. I’ll never forget the bar, the people and all the times I had there.