Amsterdam Ale House
Local pub specializing in microbrews
George Keeleys
Excellent beer selection
Abbey Pub
An old style pub popular with Columbia University students.
Smoke Jazz Club and Lounge
Live jazz seven days a week. Performers often jam late into the night so go for the late set if you can.
Cafes
Cafe Lalo
Around in the neighborhood for almost twenty years, Cafe Lalo is packed with a mostly young crowd until late in the night. Excellent cakes and pastries, coffee and tea in many varieties, and digestifs. Featured in You've Got Mail.
Max Cafe
A laid back place for coffee, tea, sandwiches, and free wireless in the Columbia University neighborhood.
Oren's
A local chain with good coffee and excellent teas.
Alice's Tea Cup
Good tea selection, excellent scones and an Alice in Wonderland theme. Very popular with families with daughters
The Upper West Side has many idiosyncratic cafes, some of long standing in the neighborhood. Of course, there is no shortage of Starbucks in the area, but for something different try one of the following:
Crumbs
Bakery specializing in cupcakes, including the Oreo cupcake and the Hostess cupcake cupcake