One of the many joys in watching Law & Order: SVU is trying to spot hometown New York City locations seen in the long-running series. Stars have played countless scenes throughout NYC, from Olivia Benson’s home borough of Manhattan to Elliot Stabler’s turf in Queens, where his family once lived. ADA Sonny Carisi is from Staten Island, and new team member Terry Bruno came from the Bronx SVU.
Many cases have also involved places in Brooklyn. Residents and visitors to New York frequently stumble upon the cast and crew filming on the city’s mean streets, and there’s always a chance of glimpsing Captain Benson (Mariska Hargitay) and her crew doing what they do best: solving crimes and protecting victims. Below, we highlight just a few of the real (and fictional) locations the hit procedural has used over the past 25 years.
Benson’s Apartment (203 W. 89th St. Upper West Side)
The 2005 episode “Pure” revealed Olivia’s actual one-time address, and the interior of her apartment was featured in multiple scenes over the years.
Café Andre (107 Hudson St. Tribeca)
Just prior to getting shot in the 2003 episode “Loss,” ADA Alexandra Cabot had dinner with Benson, Cragen and Stabler.
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New York City Hall (City Hall Park Lower Manhattan)
Housing the offices of the mayor and the city council, this has been a key setting for politically charged episodes.
Central Park
Many crimes on SVU have taken place in NYC’s most important green space, which covers over 800 acres in the middle of Manhattan.
Chelsea Piers Studios (W. 17th–22nd St. and 11th Ave.)
When it’s not out on the streets of the city, SVU films scenes, including interrogations, at Silver Screens Studios at this space on the Hudson River.
Mercy General Hospital (365 W. 32nd St. Midtown West)
The fictional hospital has been the setting of numerous episodes, but if it were real, it would be across the street from Penn Station.
Police Crime Lab (1 Centre St. Lower Manhattan)
The Manhattan Municipal Building is where “the police crime lab is set,” according to Wolf Entertainment. It’s where medical examiner Melinda Warner worked.
Hunter College (695 Park Ave. Midtown East)
Though not called by its name, Hunter College, as well as Columbia, NYU and other schools have doubled as the show’s fictional Hudson University.
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Bellevue Hospital (462 First Ave. Midtown East)
America’s oldest operating hospital, established in 1736, it’s been the location for many action-packed episodes.
New York State Supreme Courthouse (60 Centre St.)
The real Supreme Court of New York is in lower Manhattan. Its 100-foot-wide steps make regular appearances in episodes.
Stabler’s House (72-12 Castleside St. Glen Oaks, Queens)
The detective’s former address in the outer borough was also revealed in the 2005 episode “Pure,” but the location is not real.
Forlini’s (93 Baxter St. Chinatown)
A red-sauce Italian joint, it was a favorite of judges, ADAs and cops and was featured in the 2022 episode “A Final Call at Forlini’s Bar,” as the real spot shut down.
Brooklyn Bridge
An iconic structure of NYC, the beautiful bridge, completed in 1883, is visible in the series’ opening credits.
This is an excerpt from TV Guide Magazine’s Law & Order: SVU 25th Anniversary issue. For more inside scoop on the long-running NBC franchise, pick up a copy of the issue available on newsstands and for order online at LawAndOrderMagazine.com.