Chumley's
Only real New Yorkers know where to find Chumley’s. The Greenwich Village bar was originally a speakeasy, selling alcohol illegally during Prohibition (the period from 1920-1933 when it was illegal to sell or purchase alcohol in the United States--above Prohibition agents destroy barrels of alcohol). To this day, the bar does not have a sign—locals such as Euri know how to find it by searching for the door on Bedford Street with the number “86.” The term “to 86” meaning to “get rid of” is said to derive from police warnings to clear patrons out of the bar before Prohibition agents burst in.
There are several secret exits that patrons used to flee Chumley’s on just such an occasion. One leads to a courtyard onto Barrow Street. Another is concealed as a fake bookcase at the front of the bar. The cellar beneath the bar in which Euri and Jack hide when Cerberus bursts in to look for them exists as well. If you look carefully you can see the trap door to it in the floor.
Chumley’s, which later became popular with writers and firemen (a uniquely New York combination), is one of a small handful of former NYC speakeasies that still possess interesting secrets. The 21 Club on West 52nd Street stores its wine in a room built during Prohibition that is hidden behind a door made to look like a solid wall.