Speakeasy
Discover hidden bars around the world
Hey everyone!
Just wanted to share a little side project I’ve been working on — a web app that collects and organizes speakeasies (aka hidden/secret bars) from around the world. Right now it covers 16 cities and over 200 bars!
The idea came to me after a trip to New York, where I heard about these cool speakeasy tour trips. Sounded amazing - but when I tried finding a solid resource online that listed all these hidden bars in one place, it was surprisingly difficult. Most of the info was scattered across blog posts, travel articles, or outdated lists. And many of them were missing details like how to get in, exact location, or even the bar's name.
So I figured - why not build a proper place for it?
The site has a vintage theme inspired by the 1930s Prohibition Era (when speakeasies first became a thing), so it has a bit of that old-school charm.
About 80% of the speakeasy data was scraped from the internet using AI, and I've manually verified as much of it as I could. Of course, if you know a hidden gem that isn’t on there, there’s also an option to suggest a new speakeasy. And if you’ve visited one, don’t hesitate to leave a review!
Happy to hear feedback or suggestions! And if you’re into hidden spots, definitely give it a look.
Cheers! 🥂
7 Comments
Love the concept turning scattered, outdated info into a curated, vintage-themed experience is a smart niche play. The AI + manual verification combo adds credibility, and inviting community contributions is a great way to keep it fresh. Consider partnering with local guides or travel newsletters to boost visibility and drive engaged traffic.
Really like this kind of origin story - grounded in real pain. I’ve worked with a few founders in that “messy middle” where the idea’s clear but delivery gets scattered. Curious how you kept execution lean early on.
Did you lock scope hard or let it evolve?
Thanks, appreciate that! Yep the origin came from real friction, and I tried to keep things scrappy early on.
Honestly, I believe feedback beats planning most of the time. I built a basic version pretty quickly and shared it with a few friends who are into travel and bars. Their reactions helped shape what really mattered (like including entry details or photos), and that kept the scope lean.
I had a rough idea of what I wanted, but I didn’t over-plan — I let real use guide the next steps. I think that helped avoid overbuilding features that no one needed.
That makes total sense - building for live feedback tends to kill a lot of scope creep.
And yeah, having real users shape the “must-haves” is underrated early on.
Sounds like you stayed flexible but intentional. What’s been the hardest decision to make post-launch so far?
Love it, Real problem Real solution :p
This is good I love the vintage feel as well but it needs more improvement
I'm a UIUX designer so if you would like to collaborate to make the product better then you can let me know
Hey — love this concept and the execution! I’ve definitely been in that “scrolling through 12 outdated blogs for one bar” moment while traveling 😅
As a data analyst, I’ve worked on similar challenges of turning scattered, unstructured data into something clean, searchable, and user-friendly. In one project, I scraped and cleaned 10,000+ tourism-related listings across 50 cities and built a dashboard that helped users filter by ratings, hidden features, and local reviews — increasing content discovery by 60%.
If you're looking to:
- Rank speakeasies by user behavior or reviews,
- Add usage analytics (e.g. most viewed, most saved by city),
- Or even build a city-wise “underground nightlife index”...
I'd be happy to share ideas or collaborate. Super cool side project — and that 1930s vibe really sells it! 🍸