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This boy’s too young to be singing the blues.
Opened in 1943 on Columbus Avenue and West 69th Street, Emerald Inn remained there until rising rents pushed the bar to its current home at 250 West 72nd Street in 2013. Owner Charlie Campbell told us that Emerald Inn will be closing this week.
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“Everybody tried, there’s nothing we can do, you know?” said Campbell during a phone call on Sunday evening. I was first alerted to trouble for the iconic Upper West Side hangout — famously known as the place “where locals meet” — the previous week, when Campbell sent a GoFundMe link seeking to raise $100,000 on the day before Thanksgiving. In the post, he noted, “We’ve fallen behind on our bills and rent, and like many small businesses, we’re still recovering from the long-lasting impact of Covid-19. Our business has suffered significant losses, and we are now reaching out to our community for support.”During our Sunday night call, Campbell said he is now upwards of $80,000 in debt to the IRS for back taxes. “There’s barely any food. The price of everything has tripled, and we haven’t even paid rent in seven months. Now, you would think that there would be, you know, six figures in my bank account. There’s not even $20.” Campbell has tried to negotiate with the landlord, but those talks have now stalled. “I go to negotiate with the landlord, thinking I have all this money in the bank. I go to check the bank account, there’s no fucking money in the bank,” said Campbell, who says they’re not driving revenue like they used to, with prices going up and foot traffic going down. “We would do $70,000, $80,000 in sales a month, and we’re now lucky if we’re doing $30k or $40k.”
Campbell speculated that younger people aren’t drinking like they used to, perhaps preferring cannabis over Guinness. In August 2025, a Gallup poll revealed that “the percentage of U.S. adults who say they consume alcohol has fallen to 54%, the lowest by one percentage point in Gallup’s nearly 90-year trend.” From 1997 to 2023, at least 60% of Americans reported drinking alcohol. Even back in 1984, when Paul and Linda McCartney were arrested for marijuana possession in Barbados and Paul paid a $200 fine, he told the press that alcohol, nicotine, and glue were all worse than cannabis — and he joked that he’d never smoke again, while still emphasizing that marijuana should be decriminalized, a reality in New York City today.
The landlord has filed eviction paperwork with the court, according to Campbell. “I told him we were leaving, and it’s a whole—it’s a whole—it’s a whole thing,” said the third-generation owner, who added that he scheduled a liquidation company to buy every table, chair, refrigerator, and cooking appliance at the pub, though he’s planning to keep the signage. “We went down with the original staff, not gonna fire anybody, replace anybody. So this is the way it worked out.”
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Another backbreaker for Emerald Inn following the pandemic was a September 2024 health inspection failure, which kept the bar closed for almost a month. Many attended the reopening, but business still wasn’t enough to sustain operations. The GoFundMe campaign currently sits at roughly $2,500 — less than three percent of the $100,000 goal — and the money will be used to help the team transition. In 2021, Emerald raised $19,653 to build their sidewalk shed dining area.Started by his grandfather during World War II, Campbell said he is going to miss the Upper West Side. “Part of me will always miss it. [It] was a dream of mine to have a bar in the city, my whole life was built off that,” he said via text following our call. Emerald Inn was known for its Irish breakfasts, bangers and mash, chicken wings, and cheeseburgers, to name a few popular items. The staff were excellent cooks and always had an eye for aesthetics, both at the Columbus Avenue and West 72nd Street locations. They were also masters at balancing audio levels for music and live sporting events they broadcast on their TVs, recognizing patron interest to keep the room happy, not overwhelmed.
I was in attendance for the Jets vs. Falcons game on Sunday, November 30. A rare Jet victory — it appears the Jets actually gave the Inn a win for its last Sunday open. I gave a high five to Maura, the prolific bartender of more than 40 years at Emerald Inn, known for her sage sports wisdom and beautiful spirit. Her teammate, John, another treasure at Emerald, has been there over 25 years. Our compliments also go to Miguel and Claudio in the kitchen. The victory cheeseburger was enjoyed, along with those crispy fries.
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Wednesday, December 3, is the day Campbell told us that Emerald Inn will officially close. The staff is aware of what’s coming and has invited all to stop by to say goodbye. Emerald Inn represents a vestige of the Upper West Side that is precious, sadly unpreservable, but we will never forget it being the place where neighbors met at all hours of the day — for good food, good drinks, and good company.Thank you, Emerald Inn. We’ll miss you forever. We’re not sad it’s over — we’re glad we got to be there when it happened.
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