Bar Contra
Bar · Lower East Side
138 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
Highlights
Bar Contra in LES serves inventive cocktails and playful small plates in a cozy, low-lit spot perfect for laid-back yet adventurous nights out.
Bar Contra in LES serves inventive cocktails and playful small plates in a cozy, low-lit spot perfect for laid-back yet adventurous nights out.
"Bar Contra on the Lower East Side comes from the team behind Wildair—your first sign that the food here is going to be good. Bring a date, and order liberally off the tiny menu—we like the celeriac crumpet with seaweed butter, the sausage-stuffed chicken wing, and the sexy little red prawns from Montauk. Plus a cocktail, of course, like the Saltair. It comes with a Modelito sidecar, and tastes like the delicious salty-sweet dregs of a margarita." - willa moore, molly fitzpatrick, sonal shah
"Owners Jeremiah Stone and Fabián von Hauske Valtierra, flipped their former tasting menu restaurant Contra into Bar Contra last year, with Dave Arnold, known for experimental Existing Conditions, and Booker and Dax. In addition to expertly crafted cocktails (the Banana Justino is an Arnold classic) find snacks like scallops and stuffed chicken wings. It’s currently a 2025 James Beard semifinalist." - Eater Staff
"Owners Jeremiah Stone and Fabián von Hauske Valtierra, flipped their former tasting menu restaurant Contra into Bar Contra last year, with Dave Arnold, known for experimental Existing Conditions, and Booker and Dax. In addition to expertly crafted cocktails (the Banana Justino is an Arnold classic) find snacks like scallops and stuffed chicken wings. It’s currently a 2025 James Beard semifinalist." - Emma Orlow, Melissa McCart
"A new bar from the Contra team on the Lower East Side." - Emma Orlow
"In 2022, the It-cocktail was the Dirty Shirley. In 2023, the alternative martini. And now? We’re crowning the Saltair from Bar Contra, which comes with a Modelito sidecar, and tastes like the salty-sweet dregs of a margarita (in a good way). The Lower East Side cocktail spot from the Wildair team has a bar up front where you should bring a date who goes crazy for a witty cocktail description (“Chilean rum and Coke without the rum or Coke”). The leather booths in the back are perfect for a few-hours of pre-dinner gossip. Order liberally off the tiny food menu—we like the sausage-stuffed chicken wing, and the sexy little red prawns from Montauk. " - bryan kim, will hartman, willa moore, neha talreja, molly fitzpatrick, sonal shah
