damnlines for iPhoneLive lines & push alerts — freeGetdamnlines.comThe Carlyle's 1947 piano bar under Ludwig Bemelmans's Madeline murals, where walk-ins queue nightly for live jazz.
35 East 76th Street, New York, NY 10021 (inside The Carlyle, Upper East Side)
No camera at Bemelmans Bar yet — these are the closest live lines we cover.
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Bemelmans is inside The Carlyle at 35 East 76th Street. Resy's 2025 access guide counts 52 seats plus 17 bar stools, and most of the room is walk-in only. The room does not turn over quickly: regulars linger over multiple drinks. Resy notes hotel guests and the few Resy reservations get seated first, so the walk-in line absorbs everyone else.
Resy's guide puts peak walk-in waits at 1.5 to 2 hours around the live-music start times, and quotes the bar's own team saying the longest wait they clocked was 2.5 hours in December, averaging about an hour in February. The Infatuation's review warns of "an hour-long line to get in"; in a separate Infatuation piece, a writer who arrived at 4:50 p.m. on a Thursday reported the line "didn't move for almost an hour" and ended up with only a standing-room spot. Wikipedia notes the bar has needed a security team to manage crowds since late 2021.
The most-repeated advice, from Resy's interview with the general manager, is to arrive about 1.5 hours before the music starts (roughly 3 p.m. on a weekday) for the shortest wait, and that Sunday nights run quieter. Reservations drop three months out on Resy, fill instantly on weekends, and carry a $150-per-person minimum; Resy says its Notify waitlist has topped a thousand names. Resy also floats a side door: book dinner at Dowling's in the same hotel, then join the Bemelmans nightcap waitlist.
Patterns as reported by press and regulars — not measured by damnlines.
Reservations: Per Resy's blog, reservations for Bemelmans Bar open one week out and fill up instantly on weekends (Thursdays see especially strong demand), with a $150 per person minimum spend and only 69 total seats to work with.
Walk-ins: Per Resy's blog, most seating at Bemelmans is actually reserved for walk-ins, with waits of 1-2.5 hours during peak periods around the 5:30pm and 9pm live music sets; the general manager recommends arriving about 1.5 hours before the music starts, ideally on a weekday before 5:30pm.
Per Resy's blog, Bemelmans is open daily from noon until midnight or 1am depending on the day, with live music nightly (a $10/person cover at 5:30pm and a $15-35/person cover at the 9pm jazz trio, varying by seat and day).
Resy's 2025 guide reports peak walk-in waits of 1.5 to 2 hours around the live-music sets, and quotes the bar's team citing a longest wait of 2.5 hours in December and an average of about an hour in February. We don't have a live camera here, so treat these as reported figures, not a current count.
Yes, but very few. Resy says reservations drop three months in advance and fill instantly on weekends, with a $150-per-person minimum. Most of the room is held for walk-ins, and hotel guests are seated first.
Resy's general manager recommends arriving about 1.5 hours before the music starts (roughly 3 p.m. on a weekday) and notes Sunday nights are quieter. Waits build as the 5:30 p.m. and later evening sets approach.
Per Resy, there's a $10 cover for the 5:30 p.m. solo pianist and higher covers (roughly $15-$35 per person) for the later trio sets, plus a $150-per-person minimum on reservations. One Infatuation writer reported a $192 bill for three drinks that included three $20 covers.
Most of the bar is walk-in, but expect a line. The Infatuation cautions against casually walking in; one of its writers waited nearly an hour at 4:50 p.m. on a Thursday and still got only a standing-room spot. Hotel guests and Resy reservations are seated first.
Yes, per Resy's blog, most of the bar's seating is actually held for walk-ins, though waits can run 1-2.5 hours during peak times around the 5:30pm and 9pm live music sets.
Sources: Resy: How to Get Into New York's Legendary Bemelmans Bar · The Infatuation: Don't Try Walking Into Bemelmans Bar · The Infatuation: Bemelmans Bar review · Wikipedia: Bemelmans Bar
