Eighty years ago, America's short-lived flirtation with a ban on alcohol came to an end. With no Prohibition, gone was the thrill of secret passwords, false storefronts and a bit of lawlessness. But in the last decade, New York has enjoyed a harkening back to those days of excess – unmarked bars on streets that deviate from the gridiron and stiff cocktails prepared into the late hours. Bars like PDT (Please Don't Tell) which is accessed through a vintage phone booth in an East Village hot dog joint, and the Campbell Apartment, a former mogul's office with towering stained-glass windows and an enormous fireplace in Grand Central station, are well-known despite their 'secret' entrances, but there are other equally glam, more under-the-radar bars. For your own taste of Jazz Age New York, here are a series of gin joints and back-alley speakeasies celebrating the underground culture of the 1920s.

Apotheke

Sundown on Doyers Street, you can hear the wind whistle it's so empty. Pass the signs for foot-rub storefronts and the smells of pungent fish markets and you might end up at the barely marked door of Apotheke, a former Chinatown opium den. It's a cure-all for the well-worn soul: order a "Pain Killer", such as Mezcal Mayan Summer, or a "Euphoric Enhancer", such as the Rum Opium Uplifter. Over 250 speciality cocktails (most in the range of $14-16) are prescribed from the bar. Ask the waiting staff and they might tell you about the house absinthe, made from a secret 200-year-old recipe with fermented sugarcane juice. There's a weekly line-up of live music on Mondays, Tuesdays and Sundays. "Prohibition Wednesdays" feature a house jazz band and require a password for entrance (follow @apothekenyc on Twitter for the month's equivalent of "open sesame").
• 9 Doyers St, +1 212 406 0400, apothekenyc.com. Mon-Sat 6.30pm-2am, Sun 8pm-2am

The Raines Law Room

West 17th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues in the Flatiron District is the kind of New York street you walk by without paying much attention. But if you notice a black door at the bottom of some subterranean stairs, ring the doorbell – someone will be right with you. The Raines Law Room is named after an 1896 New York State law prohibiting the sale of alcohol on Sundays … except in hotels. The idea was to stop workmen from spending their days off in a saloon-stool stupor. But this is New York; if there's a loophole, there's a way. Saloons added makeshift rooms to qualify as hotels (rampant prostitution, of course, following soon after). Today, cocktails provide a more licit thrill. Take a seat in your train compartment-like room and tug the pull-chain for the waiting staff to take your order. Make it a Mamie Taylor ($14), a classic whiskey concoction. And while you wait, look closely at the wallpaper, which provides a twist on the ubiquitous damask in most modern speakeasies.
• 48 W 17th St, raineslawroom.com. Mon-Thur 5pm-2am, Fri 5pm-3am, Sun 8pm-1am

The Richardson

In 1920, the 18th Amendment theoretically turned New York into a dry town, but authorities who enjoyed a nip themselves quickly turned a blind eye to drinking establishments. So rather than password-protected peepholes, bars often opened their doors and poured without fear or pretence. The Richardson echoes the feel of those forebears. The capably poured cocktails are reasonably priced ($9-11), the snacks are spot on (devilled eggs for $5; a "beer drinker's plate" of pretzels, pickles, and cheddar for $8), and a laid-back crowd of locals who aren't looking to see or be seen.
• 451 Graham Ave, Brooklyn, +1 718 389 0839, therichardsonnyc.com. Open daily 12pm-4am

Angel's Share

Long before absinthe spoons, hand-cracked ice and tight-vested mixologists found new life in the NYC bar scene, Angel's Share was speakeasy-cool. The owners and managers of trend-setting bars like Milk & Honey and PDT freely pay homage to this East Village staple that opened in the mid 1990s. Make your way through a Japanese comfort food joint and head upstairs for delicious drinks and a view of the scuttling street below. Maybe it's the jazz, maybe it's the Suntory whiskey cocktails ($15-16), but this is Prohibition with a Tokyo-noir twist. Angel's Share is perfect for couples – no standing and no parties greater than four admitted.
• 8 Stuyvesant St,+1 212 777 5415. Sun-Wed 6pm-1.30am, Thu 6pm-2am, Fri-Sat 6pm-2.30am

Death + Company

Cocktails were popularised in the 1920s when speakeasy patrons needed something sweet to make the bathtub gin go down a little easier. Concoctions involving lemon juice, simple syrup and anything fizzy were basic, but did the trick. These days cocktail experts at Death + Company have nothing to disguise. Their craft spirits could no doubt stand on their own, but why leave a liquor lonely? A drink like the Javanese Daiquiri ($14) packs enough rum to satisfy a privateer, but the addition of a lime cordial and fresh curry leaves transforms it into a drink to savour. The bar doesn't accept reservations and operates on a first-come, first-served basis. If the place is full, however, they'll take your number and call when room becomes available. Waiting time on a recent Monday night was about 20-30 minutes.
• 433 E 6th St, +1 212 388 0882, Sun-Thu 6pm-1am, Fri-Sat 6pm-2am

Manderley Bar at the McKittrick Hotel

The Manderley Bar first rose to prominence as the pre-show departure point and post-show decompression zone for the sensationally immersive 2011 theatre production Sleep No More. These days you can enjoy a cocktail and a musical act whether or not you've attended the evening's main performance. With an abundance of red velvet and some help from literal smoke and mirrors, the environs handily recreate the feel of a Jazz Age venue. Manderley regulars the Candy Shop Boys, featuring chanteuse Sophia Urista, perform tunes that were hot back in the 1920s and continue to sizzle.
• 532 W 27th St, manderleybar.com . Sun-Thu doors open at 10pm, Fri-Sat doors open at 2am

Bathtub Gin

The back wall inside the Stone Street Coffee Company pulls out: a trick door opening to Bathtub Gin, a hopping Chelsea gin joint harkening back to the days of false store fronts. Since there's no hooch steeping in any tubs, order a round of the good stuff (gin shaken, stirred, or on the rocks). There is a copper bathtub in the middle of the place, and you're welcome to hop in if the spirit moves you. The Martinez ($14) is nice and stiff (made with junipero gin, dolin rouge, maraschino liqueur, bokers bitters and lemon oils). Raise a glass to the end of prohibition. 
• 132 Ninth Ave. +1 646 559 1671, bathtubginnyc.com. Sun-Wed 6pm-2am, Thu-Sat 6pm-4am

Hotel Delmano

Hotel Delmano in Williamsburg needs no password (and, for those in the area, no introduction, as it was one of the early joints to kick start the speakeasies' return). The ceilings are high and big shop windows let in the setting sun, dappled light bouncing from bar mirror to whiskey bottle to cocktail glass. The cops aren't breaking this party up. But you come for the old-timey feel. At the marble topped bar, ask for an Old Fashioned or one of the bartender's speciality concoctions (drinks range between $9-14). This is a social club, so order oysters or a cheese board to share in one of the two rooms in the back. And while you can't actually spend the night, it's a fine place to linger until last call.
• 82 Berry St, Brooklyn, +1 718 387 1945, hoteldelmano.com. Mon-Thu 5pm-1.30am, Fri 5pm-2.30am, Sat 2pm-2.30am, Sun 2pm-1.30am

• Erin Chapman and Tom McNamara are co-editors of the American Guide (theamericanguide.org). Follow them on Twitter: @americanguide.