A longtime Upper West Side coffee shop has turned itself into something much bigger: a sports bar, hookah lounge, and late-night hangout rolled into one. City Coffee & Bar, at 914 Columbus Avenue, is now pitching itself as a daylong destination with 14 screens for live games, brunch service, and a hookah menu that runs well past midnight.
From Neighborhood Coffee Shop to All-Day Hangout
The business describes its own transformation plainly, saying it has grown from a corner coffee stop into something far more expansive. As reported by West Side Rag, the spot now markets itself around the line, “we've expanded from a beloved neighborhood coffee shop into a full-day destination.” The pitch covers everything from morning coffee to late-night entertainment, all under the same roof at the Columbus Avenue address.
Centerpiece of the relaunch is the sports-viewing setup. The venue advertises 14 large screens showing “every football, basketball, soccer, UFC, and boxing match live with full sound,” according to the same report. That's a notable addition for an Upper West Side strip not typically associated with big multi-screen sports bars, and it puts City Coffee & Bar in direct competition with the neighborhood's existing watering holes during marquee game days.
Hookah, Brunch, and Late-Night DJs Under One Roof
Beyond the screens, the business is leaning into a wide-ranging menu of offerings. It touts premium hookah and craft cocktails alongside happy-hour specials and signature drinks, and the daytime side of the operation includes breakfast, brunch, and Latin-inspired plates. By night, the lineup shifts toward live DJs and what the venue calls late-night entertainment, with the business telling patrons to “start your day with breakfast or brunch, slide back for Latin-inspired plates, and stay for live DJs and late-night entertainment,” per West Side Rag's writeup.
The business also plays up its geography, noting it sits just minutes from Columbia University and Central Park — a location that puts it within easy reach of students, park-goers, and neighborhood regulars alike looking for something open deep into the evening.
Hours, Pricing, and Hookah Rules to Know
According to the venue's own site, citycoffeebar.com, City Coffee & Bar lists hours running until 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and until midnight Sunday through Thursday. The same page lists a contact number, (646) 398-7772, for anyone looking to reach the business directly, and the site also lists event lineups and daily specials for customers tracking what's on tap night to night.
A local reviewer at theupperwestinsider.substack.com reported specific price points during a visit, putting coffee at $4 to $6, beer at $7 to $8, wine at $12, and bottomless mimosas at $19.95, with a full meal running roughly $20 to $30.
Hookah service in New York City operates under a specific regulatory framework worth understanding. NYC Health prohibits smoking or vaping products containing tobacco or cannabis at restaurants and bars, including both indoor and outdoor dining areas, but it allows on-site smoking of non-tobacco shisha only at establishments holding a permit to operate as a non-tobacco hookah establishment. Those rules come with additional layers: per New York City Rules, § 310-03, a hookah establishment may lawfully operate only once it has been issued a permit by the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, a fire department permit is also required to maintain and operate one, and a person holding a certificate of fitness must be present whenever lighted coals are on the premises.
