Mercury Lounge is on the first floor of a building that once housed the servants to the Astor Mansion, connected to it by an underground labyrinth of tunnels. Garfein's Restaurant occupied the space in the early part of the twentieth century, and from 1933 to 1993, the storefront housed a seller of tombstones. Vestiges of the monument store include the large, foot-square, wooden beams, on which the monuments sat and were displayed,...

Mercury Lounge is on the first floor of a building that once housed the servants to the Astor Mansion, connected to it by an underground labyrinth of tunnels. Garfein's Restaurant occupied the space in the early part of the twentieth century, and from 1933 to 1993, the storefront housed a seller of tombstones. Vestiges of the monument store include the large, foot-square, wooden beams, on which the monuments sat and were displayed, used in the construction of the Mercury Lounge's storefront window. And there is a tombstone embedded in an end of the bar's countertop.


But what we hope posterity most remembers about 217 East Houston Street is its current incarnation, the Mercury Lounge. The primary goal of the venue was quite simple: to build the best sounding room possible and book it well, and to provide all musicians who come through the room with quality production. We have been fortunate enough to book many great bands (see our Gallery), we've had an extremely positive reception from agents, record companies and the public.