The Dead Rabbit. New York, New York

30 Water Street

Guinness Tag: $10.00 | Overall Rating: 9.95

Today's Dedicated Pint: James Oliver Clinton

Strange man keeps camerawoman outside in the cold as he deadbolts the door to The Dead Rabbit

The Dead Rabbit is the world's most awarded Pub and once you visit the place you will instantly understand why. Every square inch of this place has been carefully crafted with authentic Irish roots. They provide the Irish culture to every one of your senses. All of the art, light fixtures, and pictures are from Ireland or from Irish settlers living in the city. The music that's played throughout is from Liam Craig, an award-winning music producer, dedicated to modern Ireland. Even the scents and aromas are handpicked and created with Irish candles and Irish hand soap, leaving you surrounded by the Irish culture quite literally everywhere you turn. All of the furniture is made-to-order by a man named Paul O'Brien and his team at Modet Furniture. One of the things I rate Pubs on is their authenticity, and if you ever need someone to look up to as number one on that list, it's hands down The Dead Rabbit of NYC.

This place is famously known for their craft cocktails and incredibly large selection of Irish Whiskey. They even make their own whiskey that you can purchase at a respectable price, and you can bet your ass it's sitting on our shelf inside The Drunken Mallard. As soon as we plopped our potatoes on a barstool we ordered a Guinness because, well, it's Guinness. $10 later we were served a marvelously poured pint on a fun coaster that read "The Patron Saint of Pints." We were greeted with incredible hospitality immediately after walking through the door, and we were slapped with the Craic immediately after our first few sips of Guinness.

One of our bartenders, Jacob, went above and beyond throughout our visit and was engaging when he surely didn't have to be. He asked about my "Haps Irish Pub, Cincinnati, Ohio" sweatshirt and he gave us samples of their Christmas cocktails. As we were about to put on our jackets and head out, he poured us some Irish Coffees and said "you gotta try this, especially on a cold day like today." To whoever is reading this article right now I'll tell you this: The Dead Rabbit Irish Coffee is the best thing my taste buds have ever consumed. If you're traveling to New York, especially Lower Manhattan, and you don't stumble into The Dead Rabbit for some Irish Coffee then you might as well call yourself an idiot.

Speaking of "stumbling in," the curb appeal to the place is magnificent. You're greeted with shrubbery during the warmer months and a tiny booth for those who like to drink outdoors. The front door is crafted nicely with green paint with an etching above that reads "Welcome Home." The building itself was built in 1828 as a 5-story townhouse and it has a long history of "whatever you put in it, fails." That is, until The Dead Rabbit, of course. As soon as you open the door you are introduced to an overwhelming amount of wall decor and a few different directions to choose from regarding where you'll be bending the elbows during your visit. The ground floor has the taproom, the first floor has the parlor, and the second floor holds space for events and private functions. The bathrooms? Marvelous.

You'll notice an enormous amount of dining tables and nestled booths throughout the place. As you walk towards your destination you will also notice a plethora of sawdust on the floorboards, leaving you with a fun aroma and a unique touch. There are so many nooks and crannies throughout the place that you leave with the feeling of "I need to go back so I can experience the other areas."

As you sit at the bar your eyes will have so many things to look at that you will certainly need more than just one pint of Guinness to cover enough of time to embrace everything around you. Let's forget about the fellow patrons sitting aside you, inviting you in on conversations and just talk about some of the eye candy as your head moves on a swivel. For one, if you go during Christmas time then you are in for quite the treat, I'll let the pictures do the talking for me in that regard. The TVs behind the bar fold up and down, that way if nothing worthy of watching is on TV they can be folded up and hidden, allowing you to indulge on the backbar's beauty. The backbar holds arguably the best Irish Whiskey selection in lower Manhattan, providing you the chance to consume just about any whiskey from across the pond that you can think of. Above those bottles you'll see an array of photographs of notable Irish Pubs throughout Ireland, including the Temple Bar, of course.

The colors, the worn in furniture, the lighting, the music, the aromas, the hospitality, and the deliciousness that's served to you make for perhaps the coziest and most remarkable experience you will ever have inside an Irish Pub. The Craic is alive and well inside these walls and if I were to recommend any Pub out of all of the Pubs I've been to so far, it would surely be this one. The Dead Rabbit is so damn good, not even Alzheimer's can erase it from my memory.

Thanks for such a great time, The Dead Rabbit, you guys are second to none! You are invited to The Drunken Mallard with open arms at any time you please. Slainte!

Asian lady writes her Christmas list at The Dead Rabbit in New York City