As the fifth and final season of Broad City sadly comes to an end, we’re doing a deep dive into the Comedy Central archives and listing some of our favorite New York City filming locations (and some GIFs!) from the show. It would be impossible to document all of them, so please leave a comment if we missed any of your favorites.
The Encounter at The Grey Dog That Starts It All
In Season 4’s premiere, we get a look at how Abbi and Ilana’s friendship began. The episode contains a flashback to 2011 when Abbi — sporting bangs — walked into The Grey Dog on Carmine Street where Ilana was working. Ilana’s job there didn’t last long, as she soon got fired for leaving the restaurant’s doors open all night. Whoops. Thankfully for us, her relationship with Abbi does last.
Abbi Works a Miserable Job at Soulstice, aka Chalk Gym in Williamsburg
For much of the show, Abbi works at the fictional Soulstice, an upscale gym inspired by everything terrible about upscale gyms in New York City. She cleans up puke, wipes up sweat, and does all the stuff you never want to think about when you hop onto your stationary bike at Equinox. Chalk Gyms in Williamsburg is used as the filming location.
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Abbi Catches the Cronut Craze
Well, sorta. In Season 3, Broad City spoofs the cronut craze of 2013, but instead of a croissant-donut hybrid, the “churron” is the viral pastry du jour. After waiting in line for hours, Abbi gets her hands on a rainbow-colored, anise-flavored churro-macaron mashup. Although it’s a clear parody of SoHo’s Dominque Ansel bakery, the filming location for the bakery was Organic Planet Pharmacy, a health food store on Driggs Avenue in Williamsburg.
Brainstorming Their Next Business Venture at Bethesda Fountain
Later in Season 3, the girls decamp on a bench in front of Bethesda Fountain in Central Park. Over coffee, they brainstorm ideas for startups. The shortlist includes an app that allows you to text GIFs faster and a gynecologist who also specializes in bikini waxes (both objectively great ideas). So immersed in their brilliance, they fail to notice when a woman in a wheelchair tumbles down the stairs behind them and gets carried off in a stretcher.
Ilana Celebrates Her Birthday at Kenka in the East Village
In true 20-something form, Ilana choses a dumpling restaurant on St. Marks Place in the East Village as the venue for her 23rd birthday. In the show, it’s called The Meat Sack. In real life, it’s more tastefully named Kenka. The reservation is under the name Lil Wayne because…why not? The dinner, however, does not go according to plan, so the girls get slices from 2 Bros. Pizza down the block on St. Mark’s Place.
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Lincoln Soars at Trapeze School New York
In one of his best moments on the show, Lincoln enrolls in trapeze school inspired by an episode of Sex and the City. After soaring through the air on Pier 40 along the Hudson River, he tells Abbi and Ilana: “The Miranda in me thought I’m out of my comfort zone, but the Carrie in me couldn’t resist. So I did it.”
Abbi Makes a Friend at Bed Bath & Beyond
Leave it to Abbi to turn the misery of Bed Bath & Beyond on its head. Abbi adores the store for its never-expiring coupons, liberal return policy, and breadth of wares. She’s such a fan that in one episode she says hello to her favorite sales associates with an epic handshake. Even though this leaves Ilana feeling jealous, in real life, she’s a big BB&B fan too.
Getting Their Om Shanti on at Yoga to the People
Although Abbi and Ilana are best known for their absurd antics, they also enjoy normal stuff too, like yoga. Their studio of choice is the now-defunct Yoga to the People, which was a popular donation-based practice with multiple locations in the East Village, the Upper West Side, and Williamsburg. Classes were known to get hot and crowded, which is not a great combination if your mat neighbor has long hair.
Busking in Madison Square Park
Abbi and Ilana resort to bucket drumming in Madison Square Park to scrounge together extra cash for tickets to a Lil Wayne concert. Their performance might not be Stomp caliber, but the girls have rhythm.
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A Side Hustle at the National Arts Club Goes Awry
In another fast-cash scheme, Abbi and Ilana work the coat check at a charity event at the National Arts Club, a members-only club off of Gramercy Park. A wrench, however, is thrown in their side hustle when Abbi loses Kelly Ripa’s jacket.
Staying Out All Night at Club 40/40
In yet another side hustle idea, Abbi and Ilana attempt to rent their apartments for a night and camp out on the roof. The plan falls through when their tent blows away and they’re forced to find overnight accommodations fast. Their ingenious solution is to stay out all night at the 40/40 Club in Chelsea.
Ilana Makes Makes the Classic Grand Central/Penn Station Mistake
When the gang heads to an out-of-town wedding, Ilana makes the classic Penn Station/Grand Central Terminal mix-up. They arrive in the Grand Hall only to realize their train is leaving from Penn Station. A minor meltdown ensues when Abbi’s date refuses to go to Penn Station “cause it’s gross.” Amidst the chaos, Lincoln stops to marvel at the majesty of GCT.
Abbi and Ilana Break the Rules at the Food Co-Op in Clinton Hill
In another classic NYC faux pas, Ilana gets blacklisted from Clinton Hill’s Greene Hill Food Co-op after convincing Abbi to cover her shift not for her, but as her. Abbi dresses up and puts on her best Ilana impression, twerking all over the organic produce, but it doesn’t work. Their ruse is discovered and they’re banished from the co-op for life.
Abbi Hawks Art in Front of the Met
In the midst a jobless funk, Abbi finds her first gray hair. Determined to prove that she’s got her life together, she heads to the steps of the Met to sell holiday cards under the name “Young Abbi” — emphasis on the young.
Ilana and Her Mom Go Down a Manhole on Doyers Street
When Ilana’s mom comes to town, they go on a quest for the best counterfeit purses in the city. Their search brings them to Mott Street, where Ilana’s mom chastises a vendor — in Chinese — for trying to swindle her. Later, they’re blindfolded and deposited in a manhole on Doyers Street just outside the famous Nom Wah Tea Parlor. It’s here they find the handbags they were looking for.
Running Into a Co-Worker at Fantasy World
In the same episode, Abbi ventures to Fantasy World to replace her roommate’s sex toy, which she accidentally broke when she put it in the dishwasher. Formerly located on Seventh Avenue in the heart of the West Village, Fantasy World was not known for its discreet location. It doesn’t help that they run into Ilana’s annoying coworker who happens to be there at the same time buying her own sex gear.
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Abbi Is Reunited With Her Phone at Magnolia Bakery
After Abbi loses her phone, the girls go on a hunt across the city to track down the tourist who found it. The search brings them to some of the most miserable tourist destinations in the city, including Times Square. They wind up reconnecting with the tourist, who is drunk, at Magnolia Bakery in the West Village. It’s an irreverent reversal of Sex and the City’s obsession with the sugary, pricey cupcake shop.
Trading in Clothes at Beacon’s Closet
The Greenpoint-based used clothing store Beacon’s Closet offers cash-strapped New Yorkers an enticing proposition: trade in your old threads for cold, hard cash. The proposition comes with a caveat, though. The painfully cool Beacon’s Closet sales associates must deem your clothes as having resale potential. At first, they reject Abbi and Ilana’s used clothing offerings. The girls finally strike it big when they bring in designer clothing that once belonged to the mother of the boy Abbi occasionally babysits.
Abbi Turns Into “Val” in the Back Room
After slurping down a couple of bespoke cocktails at this Lower East Side speakeasy, Abbi proceeds to get very drunk and assume her alter ego “Val” who performs a crooning, tuxedo-clad homage to Judy Garland.
…Then Recovers at Star On 18 Diner Cafe
The next morning, Abbi recuperates over milkshakes and burgers with Ilana at the Star On 18 Diner Cafe in Chelsea. She has no memories of Val or the night before.
16 Handles on North 7th Street Becomes 42 Squirts
Convalescing from dental surgery, Abbi tasks Jaime with picking up fro-yo for her at 42 Squirts, which is really 16 Handles on North 7th Street. The flavors are next-level bizarre, including Sriracha, patchouli and Nicorette. Overwhelmed by the options, Jaime spends hours debating the perfect flavor and topping combo for Abbi. As the shop is closing, an employee reminds him that “they’re all just chemicals.”
Abbi Pops a Vicodin and Heads to Whole Foods
Later in the same episode, Abbi takes the dangers of grocery shopping on an empty stomach to new extremes when she goes to Whole Foods on 3rd Avenue in Gowanus while high on Vicodin. Abbi proceeds to tear apart the aisles (literally) with the encouragement of her stuffed animal Bingo, who is larger than life thanks to her hallucinogenic condition. He convinces her to stock up on granola, manuka honey, and probiotics, racking up a bill steeper than her monthly rent.
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Roller Skating Off the Grid in Prospect Park
Like most things, Abbi and Ilana take their mission to go off the grid too far. While roller skating through Prospect Park and breathing in the fresh air, Abbi accidentally falls into a hole. With no phone, Ilana skates away to find help. The obstacle makes both of them late for Ilana’s brother’s puppy wedding, which without phones, they struggle to find.
Ilana Attempts to Get a Student Discount at DevaCurl
In Season 5, Ilana heads to DevaCurl, a high-end hair salon in SoHo specializing in big hair. She attempts to get a student discount without a student ID, but the well-coiffed receptionist will have none of it — at first. Eventually, Ilana’s big hair wins out and she is scouted to be a be a curly hair model.
Abbi and Ilana Go to Drag Brunch at BBar in NoHo
The girls cross paths with Alan Cumming when Ilana’s older cousin, a Holocaust survivor, is in town visiting. They follow Cumming into BBar and Grill, the now-closed open air bar on East 4th Street, where he hosts a fabulous drag brunch and performs a mimosa-themed riff on “Be Our Guest.”
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Abbi’s Birthday Tour of Manhattan Begins at the Morris Jumel Mansion
To celebrate Abbi’s 30th birthday, she and Ilana endeavor to trek across all of Manhattan “from the tippity top to the tippity bottom.” The mission fittingly begins at the Morris-Jumel Mansion in Inwood, the oldest house in Manhattan. From there, they head to the Red Rooster Harlem and eventually to the Midtown Mall for a new pair of shoes after Ilana falls into…a manhole.
Abbi Ends Her 30th Birthday Tour at Russ & Daughters
A sign of maturity, Abbi chooses to cap off her 30th birthday tour with brunch at Russ & Daughters Cafe — a far more sophisticated birthday venue than the Meat Sack where Ilana celebrated her 23rd birthday back in Season 2. Older and wiser though they may be, the girls still keep the celebration as boozy and kooky as ever.
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