Bar Sprezzatura: A Riviera-Style Rooftop Over Times Square With a Daily $12 Spritz Hour
Bar Sprezzatura sits on the roof of the Kimpton Theta at 251 West 48th Street, right off Eighth Avenue, and it’s the rare Times Square rooftop where the happy hour is genuinely worth planning around. Every day from 4 to 7pm, the spritz drops to $12. Up here, that counts as a public service.
The verdict: go at 5, leave for your 7pm curtain, feel smug.
The Deal
The happy hour runs daily, 4–7pm:
- $5 house beer
- $8 wines by the glass (prosecco, sauvignon blanc, rosé, cabernet)
- $12 Aperol Spritz, Negroni Classico or Manhattan
- $14 espresso martini
- Bites from $5: Castelvetrano olives, deviled eggs with a prosciutto crisp, $7 burrata bruschetta, $6 spicy tuna cannoli
Miss the window and the cocktail list runs $18 to $23. That’s the honest caveat.
The Room
The theme is the Italian Riviera, transplanted to the 40s. It spreads across two levels with indoor and outdoor seating, and the views run west from Eighth Avenue toward New Jersey. It’s a hotel rooftop, so expect plenty of visitors.
The Drinks
Spritzes are the signature. Past happy hour, the list gets more ambitious: a White Negroni with Hendrick’s and Lillet Blanc, a Jet Plane with Ford’s gin, Aperol and Nonino, and an Amaro Old Fashioned built on 1792 bourbon and Averna.
The Food
Coastal Italian, small-plate first. The stuzzichini are the move at happy hour; the stracciatella with pistachio and green olive on focaccia is the one to share. Full dinner runs nightly from 4pm.
Who Bar Sprezzatura Is For
| Occasion | Why It Works |
|---|---|
| Pre-theater drinks | Daily 4–7pm window, a few blocks from the Broadway houses |
| A rooftop that won’t wreck you | $12 spritzes, versus $18–23 off-window |
| Out-of-town guests | Hotel-rooftop views without the club-door nonsense |