Whether you’re broke, a student, or just plain stingy, here’s how to mooch your way through the week in the East Village, a neighborhood known for its cheap (but good) eats.
Monday
Despite its dubious-looking pizza, basement-like space and dusty appearance, The Crocodile Lounge is one of the East Village’s most highly-trafficked joints, thanks in part to its liberal pie policy. Get a free six-slice pizza with the purchase of any drink, any day of the week. Play trivia on Wednesdays.
325 East 14th Street (between First and Second Avenues)
212-477-7747
Tuesday
Breathe a little easier with a free (or at least low-cost) yoga class at Yoga to the People, where you can select from eight daily classes. Though you’ll be drenched in sweat, squeezed in among dozens of other dripping scavengers, lessons are professional and conducted in a beautiful, exposed brick loft. Classes are donation-based, and mats are $2 to rent if you don’t have your own, but if you are light on cash, you can still partake. Of course, when the going gets good again, it would be good karma to throw in a few extra bucks.
12 St. Marks Place, Second Floor (at Third Avenue)
917-573-9642
Wednesday
Starting at 5:30 p.m. on Sundays, Mondays and Wednesdays, Burp Castle, the monastery-themed bar and self-proclaimed “temple of beerworship” offers free French fries and dipping sauces from Belgian restaurant Pommes Frites (which is around the corner on Second Avenue.) Don’t get too excited though, as the bar occasionally enforces its “whisper only policy.”
41 East 7th Street (between Second and Third Avenues)
212-982-4576
www.burpcastlenyc.wordpress.com
Thursday
Wind down the work or school week without putting a dent in your wallet at self-proclaimed dive bar The Continental. Those looking for a quick fix can get five shots of their choice for just $10 all day and all night any day of the week. If shots aren’t your thing, between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. drinks are just $2 to $4. After 8 p.m., drinks range from $2 to $6.
25 Third Avenue (at Ninth Street)
212-529-6924
Friday
Got a hot date but no cash? No worries. Starting at 5 p.m. each night you can pig out on free garlic mussels at Cucina di Pesce, a cozy, romantic neighborhood Italian restaurant where most meals can be had for $10.
87 East Fourth Street (between Second and Third Avenues)
212-260-6800
Saturday
Living up to its Australian roots, The Sunburnt Cow offers two hours of all-you-can-drink beers and cocktails for just $20, every day. Crikey, what a deal.
137 Avenue C (between Eighth and Ninth Streets)
212-529-0005
Sunday
Sushi Lounge has a clever way of scoring customers, offering 50 percent off all sushi all the time. All you have to do is order at least $8 worth of sushi – after – the 50 percent discount. Get 50 percent off all draft beer and Japanese cocktails during “Happy Hour,” which is 10 p.m. to close, here. A pitcher of Kirin will only cost $7.
132 Saint Marks Place (at Avenue A)
212-598-1188