Came with a friend and was helped the second we sat down. Ordered 2 double cheeseburgers and 2 rounds of beers. Large portions and we're fantastic. Bartender was helpful and great. Nice and quiet and had a real Irish pub feel . Recommend this place over bareburger across the street haha

Lovely Irish pub. The whole family headed there after Mom's 99th birthday party. Very accommodating, great food and no rush to have us leave.

The environment is old town pub classic wood look music and drinks and good food. We enjoyed the turkey club and awesome slaw and fries. Waitstaff was very attentive to your drinks and needs.

Usually not into Irish food, but this place is dang good, I think the portions are maybe a bit small , not sure but I do leave the place full. Very content wit the nice fish n chips and and chicken they offer here, and quite nice evening environment during the not-so-busy hrs.

One of the first bars I was brought to when I first landed on US soil. My father worked here back in the late 70’s and my aunts used to visit on sundays for the specials and the wine. A beautiful old school bar, now managed and owned by Finnoula and her husband Brendan who did a fantastic job on the interior, with a delicious menu. Thanks for everything and I’ll be back when we reopen again.

Excellent hamburgers. Delicious French fries. Very noisy but it was a Saturday night. Moderately priced. I would definitely go back again.

Friendly feeling with warm pub vibe. No frills authentic food - love it! Finnegans has been a neighborhood favorite of mine for 10+ years

The Guinness is perfect! ( well as perfect a pint as it’s possible to pull outside the Emerald Iske ☘️)… but today’s visit added greater delights ! Calves Liver and Onions !! When I placed the order - Ann our Server asked how I liked my liver. “ Medium “ I replied. ( for the uninitiated “ Medium” when talking Liver is a tad more well done than with a regular meat. The liver appears medium well visually but upon biting into it ; remains soft and almost “ crumbly “ Well - They “.nailed it “ Absolutely excellent dish , my partner made a bee-line for the mashed potatoes on MY plate - to augment her Caesar Salad ; which she certainly enjoyed - but lamented the absence of anchovies. Overall an A+++ Atmosphere, a Genuine Olde World atmosphere. The Proprietor(s) Owners appear to have scored a Bullseye ! Staff remember your name. Highly recommended 👍

Great irish pub with good pies and Anne Kelly from irland was great. Go here for real deal irish food and desserts.

Great place for 🍺 and for food. Service with good sense of humor. If possible stay outside. A lot of local people also coming.

I liked the service 😀 They arranged a table for us outside, exactly how we wished. And kept checking if we needed anything else to order. The beer selection is great!

Our drinks came out very quickly and the service was great. We had the fish & chips and the bangers & mash and both were delicious.

This place has the best dam Irish Sheppard PIE in the City. St. Paddy is a blast in this little pub/restaurant. Fantastic Staff. We go every time we are in the city for St. Paddy. Can not wait to return.

Great place friendly staff & pure gorgeous Guinness

Just a great local pub with attentive good bartenders, lovely servers and the woman that owns the place is as sweet as could be. The food is delicious. Good food and a good time.

An authentic Irish pub with standard tasty pub food. We have been going for years. Since Fiona took over it has only gotten better. The staff is great! It is not too loud, great tap beer and very fair prices. I would like to see the menu expand a little (maybe a better chicken sandwich and some vegetarian options) though the club sandwich is particularly good. We love Finnegans!

Good food, great atmosphere - felt like I was back in Ireland!

Been going there for 25 years, the food is delicious, prices are very good for the portions u get ,the steaks are tender,the steak with peppercorns is fantastic! The atmosphere is pleasant, the waiter is gracious and very acommetading! Great place! Helen Rodriguez

Nice, quiet atmospheric pub. Decent whiskey selection, friendly staff, open late. Haven't tried the food yet, but from what I've seen it's basic but respectable pub fare. Good spot for a late night, after work libation if you don't want to deal with crowds and loud music. Highly recommend

Took Mom here for Thanksgiving Dinner - and we enjoyed the food ,and the service was great - nice neighborhood pub .The dinner crowd looks to be on the older side - the bar had a mix of young and old - There are alot of monitors to watch the games around the bar - I forgot to take a picture of the wonderful meal ! But the apple pie ala mode was delicous at the end!

Best burgers, Guinness and atmosphere on the Upper East Side. My family has been going here for decades. It’s a true neighborhood staple. Also the prices are incredibly reasonable. If you want to share a beer and a laugh with a friend, this is a nice spot that’s never too loud and you’ll always feel right at home.

Best Irish bar in NYC! Food and drinks were excellent and the service from Noel was warm and friendly like I’d known him all my life! Thanks for a great night You’ve gained yourself a regular.

Food comes out super fast. The bartenders are friendly and seem to care about their service. A lot of neighboring locals come here which is nice. A good solid bar!

My favorite Irish pub in NYC! Steak and kidney pie is authentic...yet not to my taste! Other meals have been wonderful and affordable. Always feel like made a new bartender/waitress friend with every visit!

Laid back Irish bar playing good music and serving great food. Bartender was very attentive and friendly. Highly recommend for mid-priced dinner or meet-up with friends.

Always a great spot, loved the place but had to move to Queens. Missed my short stagger home that I previously enjoyed, spoiled I was! Well great Staff and Bartenders that will pilot you to any height you desire. A true neighborhood refuge and Oasis.

What a beautiful NYC staple restaurant and pub. Can't say enough how amazing the owner Fiona and her staff are. My wife Chastity and I have been frequenting this establishment for 25+ years. They have amazing food and drinks. They also go above and beyond with kindness with our special needs son Colin who adores Fiona. Highly recommend for you cant go wrong. Love this place.

Great, laid back, neighborhood Irish pub. Collin was truly one of the highlights of our trip.

Great gem of old upper east side pub. Good solid food options decent cold beer and a great cozy casual atmosphere. Friendly waitstaff.

this is our destination every time we visit family in Manhattan. this is such a cool place, nice staff and patrons. we keep coming back because of the people, food and drink and reasonable prices. well done! sláinte!

Delicious food & warm hospitality . Spent a perfect NEw York City Fall afternoon sitting outside at Finnegan's Wake. I had the Fish & Chips- the fries are the fat steak fries- my fav. The food is delicious. The house wine is very good. The prices are great but most of all the warm hospitality by the owner & staff is hard to find these days. This is a great local spot not to be missed. Will return soon. Thank you for a perfect lunch on a NYC Indian summer afternoon with friends.❤️

I was looking for a no frills Irish pub and this is exactly that. The food is outstanding and the pours are fresh and generous. Bar tender knew a lot of the patrons which means this is the local watering hole and consistently lives up to the experience I had. Can't recommend this place enough. And though I live in Brooklyn I want to make a trip up here just for this place

Great Irish pub with good service and food. I come on Fridays and even busy the staff are friendly and engaging definitely a good place to have a few drinks.

Drinks reasonably priced and food was terrific.

Brian Gillespie

Great bar. The restaurant options look good too.

Tricia Chatter

My husband and I stop by here now and then for a quick burger and beer, but this year we came for Thanksgiving dinner and it truly stood out as one of the best on the Upper East Side. The turkey dinner was delicious and incredibly generous: turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, cranberry sauce, all the fixings. You really can’t go wrong. You also can’t beat Irish hospitality-the owners stopped by our table to check in, which made the whole experience feel especially welcoming. Just be sure to make a reservation! The pub was packed!

Andrew Holtzman

This is the best bar in the neighborhood. Very reasonable prices and no rush to get you out of there once you’re finished

Ronnie Santos

We had a table for the marathon, and despite the crowds, the staff was incredible. The food was standard pub fare—good, well-made, and exactly what we were looking for. My son loved the burger, I had the crispy chicken wrap, and my wife enjoyed the mozzarella sticks and chicken fingers. I'm not a regular on the UES, but if I'm ever in the area, I'd definitely stop by Finnegans Wake again. Cheers, folks!

Gavan Vogler

Great food, friendly staff & fair prices. The UES is lucky to have this place.

Mary Alvarado

Didn't eat here, we went in after a concert to use the bathroom. I am very thankful that they let us, walking around in the city on a full bladder is very uncomfortable lol. It's a nice place though, very chill environment the drinks were great and the staff was very courteous.

Jason Martin

In town for a few weeks and staying nearby. Just the atmosphere you'd expect from an original NYC Irish bar and restaurant. Have eaten here a few times now and really enjoyed it. Club Sandwich is fantastic! Son loves the burger and fries. Servers are on top of it and even remembered us- I didn't expect that in a big city. Don't pass this place up.

Patrick Sullivan

What a beautiful NYC staple restaurant and pub. Can't say enough how amazing the owner Fiona and her staff are. My wife Chastity and I have been frequenting this establishment for 25+ years. They have amazing food and drinks. They also go above and beyond with kindness with our special needs son Colin who adores Fiona. Highly recommend for you cant go wrong. Love this place. The Sullivan's.

Joey O'Connor

I love everything about this place, black and tan with a shot of whiskey, shepherds pie. Takes me back. 5 stars

Big Mike

Bartender was amazing food was fantastic and the beer and whiskey were very good. I'll definitely comeback next time in city and it's a must visit if you haven't been here before.

Petar Mitev

Great place to enjoy in your afternoon!- ..delicious food and exceptional service!!!....our writers Jorge and Victor did terrific job!!!! We have their signature Calamari and the Checken wings....so crispy outside and juicy inside, very well flavored ...must try!!! I took hamburger deluxe to go- and woww- really laaarge..., juicy and it was just perfectly cooked and seasoned..... Soooo- Big Thanks to all!!!

Georgia Hensley

You got to by Finnegans Wake serving the locals on 1st. Ave. when in NYC. Great bar and atmosphere, great staff and great food! They offer comforting pub food to its patrons like shepards pie, sliders, roastbeef or turkey sandwiches , bangers & mash, nice fresh salads and the bar is amply stocked, they make a mean strong drink here at Finnegans. I must recommend trying the Fish N Chips. The best Fish N Chips in the Upper East Side. No lie! You'll find Finnegans Wake at 1361 1st Ave. New York City

+2

Nikola Stanchev

Perfect service. They served the beers just a minute after the order! Awesome 👏! The food is delicious, tried loaded baked potatoes 🥔 and bangers and mash sausages. Good location 📍 in UES.

Decent food at decent prices. I got the chicken pot pie, it was a good portion and tasty. Usually pretty busy too, nice chill vibes..

An Irish pub that gives the feeling as if it is there for centuries even with regulars from same lineage. Not a shiny and chicly decorated place if you are looking for one. Ideal to spend time by yourself or with friends in a warm and familiar environment.

So much fun here. True Irish pub, great staff, welcoming ambiance, and very satisfying food. Right on the main thoroughfare, easy to get to, and gave off a wonderfully inviting neighbourhood vibe.

A great neighborhood Irish pub with a relaxed, casual feel. Friendly, helpful staff. Comfortable, with excellent Irish pub food. Never been disappointed here.

Great local joint. Cheap decent food

Steak was good, but a little over cooked came medium when ordered med/rare. Salad was great. Service was great.

I went to this restaurant/pub almost a year ago now and I never heard of it until then. I enjoyed the food and the atmosphere was great. The lighting is low and intimate--not too loud and the staff was friendly. The food came out in reasonable time and the prices did not break the bank. There is a full bar equipped with TVs for the game lovers. There is also indoor and outdoor sitting. This place is not good for groups bigger than 6 people. They do accept credit/debit cards and cash. Now that the weather is getting better, I think it will be a good idea to call and find out if they have space. I stumbled into Finnegan's Wake after a visit to the museum a few blocks away. I had the Martini, which made me a little tipsy--it was stiff. My date had a Bloody Mary, which I thought was horrible (I am not into drinks like that). However, he thought it was good--he also had a beer. It was pretty quiet because of the time that we made it in. The menu was a good length and had great food choices. I chose the crab cakes and fries. I don't know if it's me, but I couldn't really taste the difference with the lemon juice on or off the crab cakes. It did not make a difference because they were still good--hot, crispy and full of flavor. The fries were fries not much to comment on there. I have not been back to Finnegan's Wake to try any of the other food choices, but I hope to return soon.

A pleasant, surprisingly quiet Irish-themed pub in the upper east side. The food is good, and the beer is average-priced. But what I like most is that I can usually hear the people in my party here.

Authentic atmosphere (been to IRE) and people seem to be enjoying their food, (busy outside tables are on the quieter Side street not 1st Ave) but late at night, looking for some “bar food” we found the menu limited. Ex. No potato skins or home made chips.

Great service, and good food, I haven't been here in years, the place is still great!

Finnegan's wake is a great bar/restaurant with a local feel. The feel comes from the fact that it is packed with people who have clearly been going here for years. The food is good enough for us to keep going back and they have a good range of beers on tap. Well worth checking out.

Very nicely arranged Irish pub with the usual pub food plus tasty Irish specialties like Bangers and Mash, Shepherd's Pie, Fish and Chips and Beef and Kidney Pie. Would definitely go back there again.

I love this place. Has a great atmosphere. The staff and service are excellent. Previous meals here have been excellent. However, I tried the steak and kidney pie today and was a little disappointed. It wasn't a true pie, there was filling and sauce served in a dish with a square pastry puff tossed on top. Then the ratio of steak and kidney was more like 2/3 kidney to 1/3 steak. Chunks were large but this wasn't a pie in my opinion and not to my preference. It was more of a deconstructed pie.

Fish and Chips and a glass or two of wine, seated outside, was delightful. Friendly attentive service. 👍👍

Recognise the established history of the venue but pretty run-of-the-mill pub experience. Nothing overly good or bad. Prices were good for the area, lunch was okay and vibe was relatively quiet. Not much to draw us back when weighed against exploring some of the other interesting pubs in the area, but not a negative experience.

Food was good. Service was good. Staff was friendly and attentive. All I would say is that some items are a bit pricier than they need to be. (e,g, $6 for 4 very tiny mozzarella sticks). But I will likely return here several more times since it is near where I live and the food was good.

Solid food with great service. The price was very reasonable as well for the upper east side.

Mash and Bangers were great (Maybe a little too heavy on the gravy), the burger was cooked to perfection and the chicken sandwich was O.K - a bit on the drier side. Typical irish beer selection. Very friendly staff and nice environment.

A classic pub. The day we visited, they did not quite have their act together but food was good and it arrived. we all have that day. Yes, I will go back.

Had a great meal here. It's an Irish pub that seems to lean more toward the restaurant side. UPDATE: I've been back to this place several times since my first review and they have not disappointed once. The staff is super friendly and the place has a real neighborhood feel to it.

It's always a great neighborhood place to hang out. We've been coming here for many decades. The food is good and the price is right ! Nice size bar and dining area. You can come here for drinks, dinner or both and will never leave here disappointed. The owner and staff are very friendly and they make it such an enjoyable experience. Relax and Enjoy in this casual Lovely New York City Irish Pub ☘️ and Restaurant !

Parish Wolfe

It seems like a better place to drink than eat to me, but its a nice spot. For those with gluten allergies, they have a gluten free bun for the hamburger. They were out of them when I went but i ordered without and it was fine. The wine was ok as well.

j handy (Handyman review)

Feels like home. Food was delicious we had shepherds pie and chili. Made fresh great tasting. The Guinness was poured perfectly and a greast price! Another great neighborhood gem enjoyed by many regulars and newbies.

Very friendly place. Would return but would not reorder the chili... not awful but not particularly tasty either. I'd try a burger next time. Nice place for a drink, tho.

Nice cold beer and a friendly server.

Lady Ace

Winter Beer and I came here yesterday for a catch up dinner. We both love pub food and WB has been here before and really liked it. WB got a pint of Stella ($8) and I got a soda ($2.50). We ordered chicken fingers to share ($10). We got three huge pieces of chicken breast. This wasn't what we expected but, we enjoyed it. WB ordered beef sliders ($13) and asked for additional lettuce, tomato, and mayo. When their order came it didn't include mayo. We waited 20 minutes and no one came by so, we got up and ask for mayo. We repeatedly had to get up throughout our dinner to get items. WB did enjoy their sliders but, it is hard to mess up sliders. I ordered the chicken pot pie ($15) and thought it was delicious. It did taste more like chicken chowder soup and needed a bit more salt. The Shrimp N Basket ($16) was tasty but, the fries were a bit too greasy + soaked with oil. I ordered the chocolate mousse cake ($6) and it was okay. It was tasty and not overly sweet. However, I wouldn't say this was the best dessert I ever had. I felt like this was bought pre-made and not made on premises. I noticed a few of the dishes that we had ordered needed additional salt and tasted a bit better with adding salt. The service was okay and the waiter rarely checked in and we had consistently ask for things over and over. We noticed that this place was filled with regulars and can get really busy at times. They do have both indoor and outdoor seating available. Overall, this place has solid comfort food at affordable prices. However, there was nothing really standout that would warrant another visit or going out of my way to visit again. A few things to note - there is a 3% surcharge on credit card use, $3 fee to share plates, 2 credit card limit and $15 min. credit card. The turkey is roasted fresh daily in store!

+26

Finnegan's has been here for decades. It is a small Irish pub on the upper eastside. I used to come here regularly years ago and it was fine. But it had been a very long time since my last visit. On the plus side the service was satisfactory. However, the decor and food is mediocre at best. This pub has lost its charm. There are many other pubs on the eastside and around town that can do better both in ambiance and cuisine.

Plenty of people enjoying themselves. A relaxed place where locals go to eat and drink and relax. Quick and friendly service. The shepherds pie was bland and boring. The worst I've ever had. Just some ground beef and heated frozen peas and bland mashed potatoes thrown together. No British or Irish beer on tap at all. Why call it "Finnegan's Wake" if you are not Irish at all?

Place has gone downhill. Bizarre staff. Staring and listening into people’s conversations. Used to be a great place. Shame.

Walked in and was waiting about 10 minutes at the bar for a single beer with cash in hand. Bartender intentionally overlooked me for others that showed up after I did.(who all ordered multiple mixed drinks) Verbally asked for a single beer multiple times and was still ignored. Shame. Seems like a nice place.

Łukasz Spyt

Buratta salad was really not nice :) good place without fireworks ;)

Sadly, this place has been sold. While it used to be a treasure, the current owner is erratic or was highly intoxicated during the dinner service. She charged us for ordering a drink on the rocks. When we pointed it out she re-issued the check with a charge for ordering the drink neat.

Big disappointment, don't go to this place. Rotten vegetables in the salad. Hamburger bun unfit for human consumption. Be warned.

The bartender was super rude. He hated the fact that I was worried about a guy getting home safe since he was drunk. I inquired about his well being and he got annoyed. Turns out he was the bartenders roommate, and he left him alone, and took it on everyone else. Then he was unwelcoming . There was a moment where there was a person that was friendly engaging with people. A queer person, like me. He asked the person to leave the bar when the person was not doing anything disturbing. He gave us the check, while he said the bar was there for 51 years but never said LAST CALL and made fun of us when I told him he never noticed us. The thing that what breaks my heart is that he kicked off a queer friendly person from the bar. That should not exist.

I live a block away and have visited this bar in the past. Was walking home from work from the subway and had to use the restroom. I happened to walk by and figured I would go in and see if it was possible. I walked in and looked behind the bar and did not see anyone or recognize anyone who worked there. I had to go urgently, so I walked toward that way and figured I would thank them and possibly have a beer on my way out. As I am inside, I hear someone yelling, and open the door again. This guy in a red polo who apparently works there is saying loudly that I need to buy a drink before I can go in. I would usually do this, but in this case I really had to go and apologized and said I did not see him when I came in and was looking for someone to ask. He then said loudly that he could not accommodate me. I understand the "bathroom for customers only" rule to an extent, but this guy was only looking to be difficult and not work with me in anyway. I work in the restaurant industry and have never seen someone treated this way who needed to use the restroom. This definitely makes me not want to visit this bar again, which is unfortunate since my previous experience was positive.

Beyond horrible experience! Horrendous service (rude) and condescending. We were also given wrong prices on the specials (by quite a bit of money) and charged extra for salad when clearly the waitress told us "one side + salad.". When the food came, I had to ask 3 times for the silverware so the food was cold by the time it came. Called Manager today and received threats when I reported the incident and even though I was overcharged by about 25% on the bill was told that I was making a mountain out of a molehill! Avoid this place like the plague!!!

My husband and iIhad been patrons at the Wake for nearly 25 years. Only once did we have a valid complaint about our food not being correctly cooked. Well we were blacklisted after that complaint and last night our "lippy" useless waitress Eva, would not address that our food once again was not cooked correctly without even looking at our food, and lashed out at my husband and I that we always complain about the way our steak is done. I have no idea how this waitress would know about a complaint that we had months ago. She said that I should look at the center of the steak and that would be the correct temperature of the steak. Nice explanation to a steak lover. She was quite rude as well as the functionless hostess Carol, who gets flustered easily and had no explanation but to speak to the owner Tony who was not there. I then asked for a doggy bag so I could make a "roast" out of it. We paid our bill and angrily left this establishment for good. I cannot understand how and why we were disrespectfully treated at an establishment we have patroned for nearly 25 years. My only thought is that the owner is not present all the time as he was in the past, and has "simpletons" running the show for him. IT"S AN ABSOLUTE DISGRACE

Bartender refused service as I was accompanied by my Small service dog. I decided not to fight an d left...though I showed him a photo of the accident that required a service dog.

I have never encountered a more rude bartender in my life. I have been living here for 40 years and been to countless bars and have never seen a bartender nastier than this one. He’s 80% bald and works on Saturday nights. He lied and falsely accused me of putting my feet up to block customers from sitting. I was there alone watching the Knicks game and actually moved over the allow people to sit together - which is what New Yorkers do. I don’t know if this guy was in a bad mood or a case of mistaken identity but I was berated in front of the whole bar. This is (now was) one of my local spots. I’m going to have a little discussion with the owner about this. I have read other reviews similar to mine about this guy.

Food was NOT good at all and not worth the $. Tasted dry, bland and my boyfriend felt ill after eating his fish. Our waitress wasn't very friendly either. The only saving grace was one girl (who might have been the manager?) who stopped by and checked on us with a big smile and warm personality.

Linda Zhou

A group of us walked in for an end of night drink but the bartender was super rude when we asked about availability of some drinks. This is the first time I’ve walked out of a restaurant or bar based on the service but none of us wanted to order anything after our encounter. Happily went to Vanguard across the street who served us even though they were pretty much at closing time.

Angel Perez

Came here with two other fellow researchers, and after eating and having some beers, we were just finishing paying and a mommified Karen with a cheap blond tint came in a very rude manner, with her eyes opened with Chucky-kind-of-look, and said: "I'll just need the table now!"... Kind of kicking us out while there were at least 6 other double tables empty and we just had one corner table. Extremely rude treatment. Do not recommend to come with colleagues after work for a quick drink and some eating, unless you like to be ill-treated.

Louis Kaufman

Terrible bar tender. Kicked us out with 5 minutes left in a game because we weren't ordering more drinks. We'd been ordering food and drinks for 2 hours.