About Five Spot Jazz

A Legacy Reimagined at Hi-Collar

In the late 1950s, the Five Spot Café was more than just a jazz club—it was the cultural heartbeat of downtown New York. Tucked away on CooperSquare and later at 2St.MarksPlace, the original Five Spot was a humble, smokybar where legendswereborn and boundarieswerebroken.

On any given night, you might catch TheloniousMonk and JohnColtrane on stage, while artists like FrankO’Hara, Jack Kerouac, and Helen Frankenthaler sipped drinks in the crowd. It was a meetingplace for painters, poets, jazzfans, and anyone chasing the electricpulseofsomethingnew.

That tiny stage launched what would become the GiantsofJazz: Charles Mingus, Cecil Taylor, Eric Dolphy, and Randy Weston—a revolutionaryscene alive with sound and soul.

Now, over half a century later, we paytributetothatspirit—right here in the neighborhoodwhereitallbegan.

We love the EastVillage. Its wildheart, its creativespirit, its fearlesshistory—it’s where culture, art, and music have always collided. It’s where people come not just to eatordrink, but to feelsomethingreal. That’s why we brought FiveSpotback— to honor what was, and to keep it alive.

By day, we are Hi-Collar: a stylish, compact Japanese café serving top-tier coffee, omurice, and a curated selection of sake and whiskey at 231 E 9th St in the East Village.

At night, the space becomes Five Spot Jazz, featuring live music every night along with delicious Japanese food and drinks.

Five Spot Jazz lives again—right here!

The address has changed. The feeling hasn’t.