Category Archives: Pub Food

Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

P.J. Carney’s

Leave a comment

This little Irish pub is right around the block from my apartment. Allow the pic below of the signage to fuck with your mind a little…

20141122_134707_LLS

I was shocked to see the prices so low ($12 for a burger and fries), being they are located on 7th Avenue right near Central Park. I figured it for a tourist trap, but the inside is cozy and inviting, with great light from the windows.

IMG_1172

20141122_134623_LLS

20141122_134608_LLS

I had heard there was a decent burger here, so I had to check it out.

20141122_141017_LLS

I had the regular burger with american cheese. The cheese was a bit odd – not in a bad way, just different. It was like the shredded kind you see in a bag to sprinkle over nachos. My burger was a bit over cooked and a bit dry, but it was at least still tasty.

20141122_141145_LLS

20141122_141247_LLS

My wife had the Gaelic burger, which was topped with swiss cheese, sautéed onions and confit garlic. Her’s was cooked better and was much juicier, but the bun didn’t hold up well – it got a little messy when eating.

20141122_141105_LLS

20141122_141349_LLS

The fries were good and golden-crisp, and the place had some cool beer cocktails that are worth trying. We had the Patch & Orchard and Harvey Weissbanger.

20141122_135138_LLS

20141122_135946_LLS

To sum up: I’d probably go back for the convenience and atmosphere factors, but maybe I’d be more careful to order my burger medium rare or rare next time, instead of medium.

PJ CARNEY’S
906 7th Ave.
New York, NY 10019

Burgers, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews, Union Square/Flatiron

Pete’s Tavern

Leave a comment

Pete’s is the oldest continuously operating establishment in NYC. It opened in 1864 and has not closed or switched locations since.

DSC01946

DSC01949

What’s cool here is that the old cashier’s cage is still right there at the end of the bar. It used to be that the cashier would sit in the cage with the money/register to be protected from being robbed.

DSC01953

They even have this funny old sign for how to live on $15 a week:

DSC01950

The bartender Phil was awesome too; really friendly guy, easy to talk with, outgoing and generally just made the place a great spot to hang out. I hadn’t ever been in here before (shame on me), but he suggested coming back around Christmas time when the lights are up at the bar. Definitely. Thanks Phil!

Anyway we saw this burger on the menu and figured it had to be tried for our second burger of the night:

DSC01951

It turned out to be a bit of a let down. The meat was excellent, as to be expected, but there was not enough cheese. Also the tomato was sliced too thick – almost as thick as the burger patty. The waffle fries were done perfectly though.

DSC01955

DSC01960

A friend of mine met up with me and my buddy here while we were eating before he met with some broad for a date. He was hungry too, so he ordered the regular burger and we all shared:

DSC01961

DSC01968

This was much better eating: definitely better than the huntsman burger.  Although my buddy was a little cranked about a pricing discrepancy (bar menu on the wall that he ordered from did not match the printed menu that he was charged from), and the burger was cooked a little under how he wanted it (I would have been fine with that temp – look at it – it looks perfect!), it was indeed a good burger. I think I would take the Old Town burger over this one though, but it was close.

In sum, this was an amazing bar to hang out in. It’s an absolutely amazing piece of NYC history, and it will definitely stay that way with staff like Phil at the bar, who make the place even better.

If burgers ain’t your thing, then try one of their extremely fair-priced brunch deals that range from $12-$15 for three courses, or maybe their delicious corned beef sandwich:

IMG_20150118_194738

PETE’S TAVERN
129 E. 18th St.
New York, NY 10003

Burgers, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews, Union Square/Flatiron

Old Town

Leave a comment

Old Town is one of NYC’s oldest and most awesome bars. It opened in 1892 and has remained relatively unchanged since.

DSC01933

DSC01935

DSC01937

Even the urinals are old, and big (for big cocks): the kind that used to be at the Village Idiot, Ear Inn, Gallagher’s and Pastis.

DSC01944

Anyway the burger here is supposed to be pretty good, as is the burger over at Pete’s down the block, so my buddy had the brilliant idea that we set out to try a few burgers in the area in one night. We ended up hitting three places, because we have massive balls swinging between our legs. Here is the Old Town burger:

DSC01939

DSC01941

This was easily the best burger of the night. Juicy, nicely cooked, a good amount of cheese. Nice and simple. The only down side was that the fries were a bit under-seasoned, and the bun was a little hard or crumbly after toasting. Stick with the potato bun!

OLD TOWN
45 E. 18th St.
New York, NY 10003

Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Alfie’s

Leave a comment

I stopped into Alfie’s for a late night bite to get my burger fix in. The meat was not seasoned enough, but it was certainly cooked to the proper temperature. It was good and juicy. I just wish they packed on some salt and pepper before slapping this titty-fuck onto the grill. The rosemary herb fries were nicely cooked too, but they needed seasoning and salt as well:

20141028_220141

20141028_220246

20141028_220355

ALFIE’S
800 9th Ave.
New York, NY 10019

American, Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Rosie O’Grady’s Saloon

Leave a comment

I popped in here for a quick lunch with a buddy of mine who was in town for a convention. I’d never been here before despite walking by a million times and always being aware of its existence. Perhaps I just assumed it was a standard overpriced midtown tourist trap or something.

So I took down their burger. I had a feeling it was going to be thick, so I didn’t go crazy with toppings: just cheese. I was right. Look at this fat fuck:

image

It was nice and tasty, well seasoned… and well… done… I ordered medium but it came back pretty much well done.

image

There’s still a slight bit of pink in there, so maybe medium well.

Anyway, the fries were not my preferred style. I like shoestring but these were steak fries.

image

The odd thing was that my buddy ordered a chicken sandwich and his came with shoestring fries. Hmm.

Anyway, the burger was still good despite being overcooked, So I may venture back in here for a steak some day, or perhaps the corned beef sandwich.

ROSIE O’GRADY’S
800 7th Ave.
New York, NY 10019

Burgers, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

McHales

Leave a comment

McHale’s was once known for its great burgers. It recently closed, switched locations (slightly) and re-opened. I’m not sure if the management is the same, or the chef, or any of that. The place is gorgeous inside, very classy and old school-ish. And yet they play UFC fight events in there, which is good for me since I am a fan.

On to the burger.

20141014_183230_LLS

At $13 for the McHale’s burger with a slice of american and fries, this baby is near perfect. The only downer was the sesame seed bun that was a bit crumbly and got thin along the bottom once the burger was stacked up. It came with lettuce, onion, tomato and pickle. Photo lighting credit goes to my chicken-sandwich eating friend, who sacrificed half an apartment rental commission to dine with yours truly. That’s a $600 chicken sandwich he had!

20141014_183447_LLS

20141014_183523_LLS

Fries were great too – well seasoned and crispy.

MCHALES
251 W. 51st St.
New York, NY 10019

Burgers, Nolita/Soho, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Ear Inn

Leave a comment

My buddy, whose opinion I value when it comes to food, swears by the burger at Ear Inn, and also the atmosphere here. Here he is, giving you all the finger in front of my beer:

DSC01225

It’s an old timey bar, been around for quite some time. It’s housed in a historic building on the far west end of Spring Street in Soho, and it used to sit on the Hudson, before the landfill was added upon the building of the twin towers.

DSC01218

The burger here is solid, and hats off to my friend who pointed my appetite toward this joint. The star of the show is a nice 8oz fucker served with a salad and roasted potatoes. Nice – I commented that it tasted like a good steak as I was eating it. All it needs is a potato bun and it’s a winner. Take a look at the food porn below:

DSC01221

DSC01224

EAR INN
326 Spring St.
New York, NY 10013

Burgers, Flash Deals, Midtown West, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Iron Bar’s Pig Wings

Leave a comment

“Pig Wings” are making a big showing now on bar and restaurant menus. WTF are they, you ask? They are small portions of bone-in pork that have been trimmed down to look like little drumsticks of sorts, with a hunk of meat surrounding the bone. I figured I would mention these fuckers since they are pretty good at Iron Bar over on 8th Avenue and 45th Street. They were crisp and juicy, with a really great dipping sauce to boot. I’m hoping to see more of them at other spots in the future.

_facebook_1411433823784

I came back to this joint when I picked up an Amazon Local deal for $20 that scored me $40 worth of food and drink. Pretty sweet deal. I tried their Iron Burger, which had gorgonzola, grilled onions, and crispy prosciutto. Fucking sweet. Cooked perfectly, lots of funky flavor from the cheese, and good juiciness without going overboard. The fries were excellent too – nice battered style, really crispy, nice and soft inside.

20141109_160942_LLS

20141109_161102_LLS

My buddy picked up the Juicy Lucy burger, which is a patty stuffed with cheddar cheese. He gave it the thumbs up and said it was a great burger. Looks beautiful, right?

20141109_160902_LLS

20141109_161228_LLS

IRON BAR
713 8th Ave.
New York, NY 10036

German, Midtown West, Parms, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

Reichenbach Hall

Leave a comment

This place is a massive German / Bavarian beer hall in midtown that serves up massive brews in massive mugs (and boots).

DSC02646

I came here soon after it opened with a lot of excitement in my heart, because I absolutely LOVE German beer halls. There’s just something about the fun group atmosphere that makes it unique.

20130527_135733

20130527_140416_Richtone(HDR)

20130527_140429_Richtone(HDR)

Anyway, it was here that I discovered a really amazing grapefruit beer (Schoffenhofer). After drinking it, I was on the hunt, and even found some at a local distributor on Long Island. Needless to say, the fridge remained stocked with them until we moved back to the city.

20130527_140354_Richtone(HDR)

20130615_143144_Richtone(HDR)_20130615143233498

10177468_802024023142498_188217152546040453_n

10411806_802023996475834_2398168059675597192_n

Aside from the great beer selection, they have a nice fun menu too. We tried the pate, the HUGE pretzels, the wieners, and some sausage.

DSC02649

20130527_140635_Richtone(HDR)

10394583_802023979809169_7687700699074739523_n

10340180_802024049809162_8635432231049352230_n

I sincerely hope this place becomes a bigger draw with bar folks. It has the potential for being one of the city’s best places for drinks.

UPDATE – SCHNITZEL WAS AWESOME!!!

20130527_134739

REICHENBACH HALL
5 W. 37th St.
New York, NY 10018

Burgers, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews, Upper West Side

E’s Bar

Leave a comment

I’ve been coming here for the great trivia games on Tuesday nights, with first place prize being a $75 bar tab, second place at $50 and third place at $35. We won the $75 tab three weeks in a row, so I’ve been able to sample a bunch of the food here. Best thing so far: the burger and fries. So fucking good. Really nicely seasoned, great flavors, good toppings. Do yourself a favor and get in here to try it out.

Es bar 1

I also tried the tomato watermelon gazpacho, which was really nice and fresh, as well as the falafel burger with red pepper fries. Pretty good, but the regular burger wins by a long shot.

E’S BAR
511 Amsterdam Ave.
New York, NY 10024