East Village Bed & Coffee

The ethos at the quirky East Village Bed & Coffee is communal, funky and friendly, like the eclectic, artsy neighborhood in which the property resides.

Quick read

Pros: Personal service. Great value. Good amenities in common areas.

Cons: Can be noisy. No elevator.

Rooms

The 11 themed rooms at the East Village Bed & Coffee are ragtag. There are framed fliers advertising music shows of days past, the odd IKEA bits, a massive wall turned over to a floor-to-ceiling collage, and multiple representations of the New York City subway system.

Ground-floor rooms feel like airy loft spaces, while upper floors feel like more typical East Village housing (small and scrappy but fun and funky). All rooms are air conditioned and feature an iPod docking station and free Wi-Fi.

Bathrooms

There is a full shared bathroom on each floor (this means that the bathroom on the first floor is shared by two rooms, and those on the second and third floors are shared by four rooms each). Guests report that there is rarely an issue with waiting for bathrooms, and each bathroom offers a hair dryer.

Hotel Facilities

Part of the experience at the East Village Bed & Coffee is the management. You know that super cool aunt you have, the one who left her small town at the age of 19 and traveled around the world before making it big in some creative field, buying a dilapidated house in Alphabet City in the early 1980s and fixing it up?

We don’t have an aunt like that either, sadly. But after touring the East Village Bed & Coffee and hearing stories about its innkeeper, Anne Edris, we at least now know where the trailblazer of an aunt we never had would have set up shop: in a funky inn where the rates are cheap, the staff is friendly and the neighborhood still sports plenty of raw corners. The spirit of Alphabet City lives on here, on Avenue C.

Amenities at the EVB&C reflect the communal nature of this friendly spot. Each floor has a fully equipped shared kitchen with complimentary coffee and tea, a computer station with free Internet access and printing, and digital cable TV with DVD/VCR. There are also bikes, umbrellas and museum passes on offer, all free for guests, and friendly dogs round out the homey ambiance.

The small patio garden (a rarity in NYC real estate) is an extra perk when the weather is nice. It’s got climbing vines, a small pond and that extra spunk that makes this place special.

Note that the hotel does not have an elevator. Also, noise is virtually inescapable in such a popular area, and an aging building means charm but also thin walls. (But, in their usual spirit of hospitality, the folks at the EVB&C provide earplugs to guests.)

Location

The East Village Bed & Coffee is secreted away on Avenue C of Alphabet City, an edgy part of the rapidly gentrifying East Village. The hit Broadway musical Rent was set on Avenue B and 11th Street, while the musical Avenue Q takes place on a fictitious street reflecting this area. Plenty of fun bars and restaurants–especially along Avenues A and B–attract a mix of NYU students, young professionals and bohemians.

Nearby Tompkins Square Park is a good people-watching spot. The EVB&C is also within walking distance of Union Square, the Lower East Side and the West Village, where more eating and drinking adventures await.

Booking at the East Village Bed & Coffee

As we point out above, the East Village Bed & Coffee does not offer online booking. To reserve a room, you’ll have to contact the hotel directly by email or telephone (see below, under “more information”).

If you’d like a suggestion for a similar hotel with unique style (plus the option to book online), read our reviews of the old-fashioned Hotel 17 or the smart and sassy Hotel East Houston.

Transportation

Subways: One of the drawbacks to this part of the East Village is limited access to the subway. The 2nd Avenue (at Houston) F stop, Astor Place (8th Street and Broadway) 6 stop and 1st Avenue (at 14th Street) L stop area each a 10- to 15-minute walk from the hotel.

JFK: To reach the East Village Bed & Coffee from JFK, take the Air Train to Howard Beach Station, then the A express train toward Manhattan to West 4th Street-Washington Square. Transfer to a Brooklyn-bound F train, and take it two stops to 2nd Avenue. From there, the easiest thing to do with luggage is take a short taxi ride (otherwise it’s about a 10-minute walk).

LaGuardia: Take an airport bus service to Grand Central and then catch a downtown 6 train from Grand Central to Astor Place. From there, it’s either a 15-minute walk or a quick taxi ride. Or simply take an airport taxi.

Newark: Take the Air Train to the NJ Transit station, and then any NJ Transit train into New York Penn Station. Transfer to a downtown A, C or E subway train to West 4th Street-Washington Square, and from there transfer to a Brooklyn-bound F train to 2nd Avenue (two stops). From there it’s a 10-minute walk or a quick cab ride.