(212) 677-3160

51 1st Ave (3rd Street)
New York, NY 10003 40.72477 -73.98736

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Neighborhoods: East Village, Downtown

karmanyc.com/

Hours:

Daily 1pm-4am

Last updated 8.16.11

Category:

Bars & Clubs, Restaurants, Cigar Lounges, Lounges, Bars & Pubs

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, MasterCard

Bar & Pub Special Features:

Happy Hour, Bar Menu

Bar & Club Special Features:

Romantic Nightlife, 21 & Over, After Work, Smoking Permitted

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Karma Lounge

Featured Review

Julie Mehta

Contributor

"You can smoke here," proclaim signs all over this lounge, exempt from the city's ban on smoking in bars because its hookah pipes classify it as a tobacco bar. The child-sized chairs and red velvet couches are crammed with friends and couples just as likely to be smoking cigarettes as the naughty-looking hookahs. Pounding, hypnotic music discourages conversation, and everything has a red tinge, from the ashtray-littered bar to the somewhat sinister-looking artwork to the eyes of the constantly puffing patrons. Of course the main attractions here are the hookahs, which stand like golden fire…

Editor's Tips

Where to Sit:
Downstairs you'll find more seating, more hookahs, a dance floor and guest DJs.
Know Before You Go:
They're so serious about carding that you get a free drink if they forget to check your I.D.
The Extras:
A short menu of mostly Indian appetizers is served until closing.
Save Money:
Come during the day (until 8pm) to get half-price on all drinks $8 or less.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. “so i think if you like fun and great service, you should go to karma.”
  2. “If it's romantic, exotic atmosphere combined with good Indian food (that won't interfere with your romance later by repeating on you.”
  3. “The atmosphere is great, the music was fun and everyone was dancing downstairs!”
  4. “Anyway, I highly reccommend this place to anyone who wants to have a fun night drinking at a really nice club with no attitude.”
  5. “The dark, moody lounge atmosphere is perfect for a little date while still being cool, & majority of the staff are extremely nice & pretty hot.”
  6. “The glasses are kind of small but the atmosphere is cool.”
  7. “Hookah Bar with great ambiance”
drinks
76.91999912261963% positive
  1. “You may never have guessed, but a LES Hookah bar is one of the best places to see FREE, underground comedy shows.”
  2. “While I didn't drink here, the prices were reasonable according to my friends.”
  3. “hooka-bar in name only - This is one of NYCs last great dive-bars!”
  4. “Best neighborhood bar meets trendy travelers, it's a perfect mash.”
  5. “The drinks are expensive for a dive like this and the last time I went I had a fly in my drink and the waitress would not replace it with a new one.”
  6. “Not only have I met for dinner and had cocktails past the happy hour cut off but I had a wonderful birthday party here.”
  7. “The bartenders and staff were all really cool and were dancing (on the bar) and drinking with us and they let us stay till 7 in the morning!”
  8. “The staff is very rude asking to tip them and being in general very mean with here is your drink now get out of my face attitude.”
  9. “You can have great drinks, great music and SMOKE!”
  10. “The prices are very reasonable ranging from $45 for a bottle of wine to $150 for a bottle of Bacardi and $16 for a hookah.”
  11. “This is the worst bar to go to in all of New York.”
  12. “the DJ's were great, service friendly and fast, drinks delicious, hookah flavors plentiful, bouncers- cordial, over all a great time.”
  13. “$10 for a hooka is a bargain seeing that most places I've been to charge $15 and require that you must order a drink as well.”
food quality
100.0% positive
  1. “If it's romantic, exotic atmosphere combined with good Indian food (that won't interfere with your romance later by repeating on you.”
  2. “the DJ's were great, service friendly and fast, drinks delicious, hookah flavors plentiful, bouncers- cordial, over all a great time.”
overall
75.0% positive
  1. “REALLY nice place with no attitude”
  2. “When I get there it seems like a really nice place and places like this have serious attitude but I don't get any.”
  3. “It's definitely not a good place to take a crowd.”
  4. “Karma is the best place in the East Village for celebrating everything and anything!”
service
64.0999984741211% positive
  1. “but it amazes me how many places survive these days which such horrible and rude service.”
  2. “We had the whole basement to ourselves and our own bartender who took very good care of us.”
  3. “asked the bartender about the ID thing and she said that since the police station is so close they get raided a lot and it's a huge fine for each person that isn't of age so they have to scan everyyyyy ID and keep a log book of the ones that don't sc”
  4. “The staff is very rude asking to tip them and being in general very mean with here is your drink now get out of my face attitude.”
  5. “Bar service was a little slow but the "Sex on the Carribean" cocktail was worth it!”
  6. “The drinks are expensive for a dive like this and the last time I went I had a fly in my drink and the waitress would not replace it with a new one.”
  7. “love karma and I LOVE the staff there all of them.”
  8. “Staff was very friendly and the manager, Sam, is super accommodating.”
  9. “so i think if you like fun and great service, you should go to karma.”
  10. “The bouncers are rude and full of themselves, especially the one with the braids.”
  11. “went last nite, despite previous rude service (on 2 or 3 occasions with different employees) and it was HORRIBLE.”
  12. “the DJ's were great, service friendly and fast, drinks delicious, hookah flavors plentiful, bouncers- cordial, over all a great time.”
  13. “Sam, the manager, is awesome!”
  14. “The dark, moody lounge atmosphere is perfect for a little date while still being cool, & majority of the staff are extremely nice & pretty hot.”
  15. “the crowd does get gh*tto, but people don't bother each other.”
  16. “The bartenders and staff were all really cool and were dancing (on the bar) and drinking with us and they let us stay till 7 in the morning!”
  17. “Once friendly staff have been replaced by people with very awful attitudes, and once enjoyable crowd has been replaced by high school kids posing as ganstas.”
  18. “we started out there last night, the doorman and the bartenders/servers have always been nice, and it's reasonably-priced.”
  19. “The past few times I went, it was getting progressively worse, and when you ask any of the "hookah girls" or "waitresses" to come help assist with the hookah or replace a coal, THEY ARE SO RUDE.”
  20. “The service was excellent.”
  21. “Its not worth it, it smells of cigarette smoke - and you will be guaranteed to smell like cigarette smoke too and the service was the absolute WORST.”
  22. “despite their horrible service.”
  23. “The owner and staff are fantastic.”
  24. “The staff was extremely helpful, my friends had a great time, and the manager even came over to buy me and my friends a round of shots b/c it was my birthday.”
  25. “The manager and staff were very polite and attentive and I usually don't bother writing a review but I felt this place deserved one.”
  26. “The staff there is really friendly too.”
value
50.0% positive
  1. “Its not worth it, it smells of cigarette smoke - and you will be guaranteed to smell like cigarette smoke too and the service was the absolute WORST.”
  2. “Well this wasn't acceptable to the huge bouncer to the downstairs area.”
  3. “asked the bartender about the ID thing and she said that since the police station is so close they get raided a lot and it's a huge fine for each person that isn't of age so they have to scan everyyyyy ID and keep a log book of the ones that don't sc”
  4. “While I didn't drink here, the prices were reasonable according to my friends.”
  5. “It's better to go downstairs because the hookah is cheaper - only $10 (upstairs is more expensive), the music is better and just overall the downstairs is more lively.”
  6. “The drinks are expensive for a dive like this and the last time I went I had a fly in my drink and the waitress would not replace it with a new one.”
  7. “The prices are very reasonable ranging from $45 for a bottle of wine to $150 for a bottle of Bacardi and $16 for a hookah.”
  8. “Bar service was a little slow but the "Sex on the Carribean" cocktail was worth it!”
wait time
33.3299994468689% positive
  1. “Decor is interesting; music can be requested during slow times; happy hour Beer ($3)”
  2. “Bar service was a little slow but the "Sex on the Carribean" cocktail was worth it!”
  3. “dont know what his problem is but he told me my id was not good enough so I gave him my passport too and he finally let me in after standing in the cold for more than 15 minutes.”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

05/26/11

Cool Mix of Party and Chill

by Beer Enthusiast

Karma gives you the best of both worlds - you can go to a (usually) open party downstairs or stay upstairs to relax in the quintessential hookah lounge. Drinks were good, same with food. In regards to service, they were actually really good to my group of friends, even though we were using a NookOut (www.nookout) deal that let us get 1 hour of hookah and 2 drinks for just $18 - 50% off!

1 Star Rating: Poor

03/23/11

The Most Horrible Service Ever!

by GautamCity81

I called on the phone to book a marketing event for my company. The person on the phone was very rude. I was told to ask for Sam, he told me that Sam just died. I asked him to speak to someone who can help me and he told me that no one works there anymore. I told him that he was being very rude and had absolutely no phone etiquette, to which he just made more rude comments to. I asked him his name and he wouldn't give it. If this place has these kinds of people answering their phones, its no wonder they stay at the lower end of Manhattan's hot spots! They definitely lost our business, which we had a huge guest list of our clients that we were taking out for a thank you event. We will definitely go elsewhere. If the owner cares about his business, he will definitely look into firing the guy answering the phones. I have to give this place one star even though they deserve zero!

5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

01/05/11

Best place ever!!!!

by Les Junkie

I've been to Karma on several occasions and I don't understand these recent negative reviews. The staff is ALWAYS friendly and nice. Sometimes I have to wait a little sure but what busy place do you NOT ever wait. As far as the crowd.... Karma welcomes EVERYBODY, the basement is filled with all kinds of shows. Gay Nights, S&M nights, comedy shows, Open Mics, House Parties, you name it there is probably a show or a group that has some kind of function at Karma at LEAST once a month. The drinks are very reasonable and the bottle prices are fantastic!!! For my birthday last year I ordered a bottle of grey goose and it was only TWO HUNDRED bucks!!!! i've never gone anywhere and gotten a bottle for less than THREE!!!! I think Karma is GREAT and i will continue to go again and again, I guess there is just NO pleasing some people................

1 Star Rating: Poor

12/05/10

the most disgusting place on earth

by DaveSoba

They need to get new managers. This place is falling apart. Not only is the place dirty and smelly (yes I know it's a smoking bar, but I am a smoker myself and still found it to be gross), but the people are strange. Sad old neighborhood people. I thought it would be better on the weekends but it's just full of low class scum.

The worst part is on a slow night I had to watch one of the managers harass his bartender. He made lewd comments and even rubbed up against her when she was trying to get something. Then the other manager, I'm assuming it was him or maybe an owner, just made a joke about it. It was really awkward to be there while this was going on. He didn't seem to care that she was uncomfortable and that people were staring at him.

I also don't get the deal with gay night? Or...not gay night? Their signs often make jokes about gays, but I thought they had a gay night so I don't know what that is about.

Not really a place I'm proud of having been to a few times.

Each time gets worse.

3 Star Rating: Average

07/28/10

Liked it...didn't love it

by icarress

I found this spot online, and decided to check it out last night.

I LOVED the atmosphere. There was a gay party downstairs, and the music was banging. Upstairs, they were playing pop stuff from my junior high years with lots of long gaps between songs - so I got to enjoy the good music during those gaps. The lounge was dark, couches lined the walls, and tables were separated by black curtains (which I WISH could be drawn around to create a private booth). Everything seemed clean.

I ordered a margarita with a couple changes, it was delicious - though small.

We ordered in from one of the 397 Indian restaurants that surround this joint (yum).

The server was an inattentive hottie. My coal was going out, and it took him about 15 minutes to bring another- this was after we were able to track him down and get his attention. They sure did charge us $4 more for the second one.

The hookah itself wasn't great either. The flavor was supposed to be coconut and apricot, but I tasted mint in there.

The hookah was small, and they only put one single coal on it... Color me unimpressed.

All in all, great spot for a hot date (you could totally make out without being gawked at!), tasty drinks, super cool atmosphere, but if you're a hookah enthusiast, you may want to punch someone in the mouth.

  • Pros: Nice, dark, romantic atmosphere
  • Cons: hookah was weak, slooooooow service

The Details on Karma Lounge

Place Categories:

  • great place
  • fantastic staff
  • great good music
  • horrible bar service
  • drinks delicious cordial
  • rude bouncers
  • pleasent manager
  • like smoke
  • love karma
  • like hookah
  • once enjoyable crowd
  • great drink
  • awesome prices
  • cool moody lounge atmosphere
  • love smoking
  • pretty hot majority
  • wonderful birthday party
  • great vibe
  • fantastic whole experience
  • great service
  • sucked dj
  • great divebars
  • favorite hooka bars
  • great bet
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