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Category: American (New) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Prospect HeightsEastern Pkwy (2, 3)
Botanic Garden (2, 3, 4, 5, S)
Mon-Thu. 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.
Fri. 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
"Wow! Tiny little restaurant and food is really GOOD and fresh! Out of nowhere but if you live around the area you should try this place.…" read more »
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I'm so surprised by all the lousy reviews after the positively lovely end-of-a-date that Dude and I had at Abigail this evening.
Stopped by on the way home from the (highly recommended!) "Who Shot Rock?" show at the Brooklyn Museum, just because it happened to be next to our bus stop and we were kinda chilly. We agreed, even after only one visit, that it will become our go-to spot whenever we get to this part of town.
Particularly for a wine bar, both the service and menu were very unpretentious. The wine is reasonably priced and we got generous pours of a very tasty Malbec. The food menu selection is nothing groundbreaking, but it's not trying to be. What's important is that everything we tried was *really* tasty.
On Top Chef, they always say that you can tell a truly talented chef by their soups. Both of our soups--lentil chorizo and crimini mushroom artichoke--were delicious. The lentil was very flavorful and the lentils themselves were the right texture (not too mushy) but I have to say that the sausage, though tasty, was really not a properly spicy chorizo. [Wow, was that ever a run-on sentence!] The mushroom was so freakin good we were wiping up the bowl to the very last drop with the nice, chewy bread that was served on the side.
A surprising highlight were the house-cured olives, found on the small plates menu. A huge serving, they are prepared with orange and coriander and are absolutely bursting with flavor. The only disappointment was the penne a la vodka. The sauce was good, but the pasta itself seemed like it came out of a grocery store brand box.
To add the fourth star, the candlelit ambiance made for a romantic evening and both our server and the owner introduced themselves and were welcoming and friendly.
I ordered some food to be delivered to my house today. When I called, I ordered the salad, (and one for my friend). They claimed it was "very substantial". I also ordered a 7 dollar soup.
When the food arrived, the soup was tepid, completely unsubstantial (didn't even fill half a quart container), the salad was really bad, looked old, and was TINY. I called the restaurant and asked to speak to the manager. She said rudely that she wasn't in charge of quality or pricing so couldn't help me and slammed the phone down. When I called back, she said those were the portions and hung up on me again. The portions were one problem, but the quality was even worse.
I won't go there again, this economy doesn't need businesses around who can't even be bothered to care in the slightest about a decent product. $33 I paid for two tiny, old, rancid salads, and one half quart container of lukewarm oily soup.
I go here to work on my writing as it is quite close to where I live. And I was not going to write a review until I just heard the owner, Abigail, tell a salesman that she does not like Yelp because, "she can't control it." Three cheers for Yelp.
I agree with many on here about the cafe's bizarre split personality. Is it a coffee house? Is it a wine bar? Is it an over-priced place to get a meal? All of the above.
I grew up in the restaurant business and a great many sins are forgiveable with courteous service and a welcome smile. That is a fact that Chef Abigail, wrapped up in her Manhattan-style ego, does not seem to recognize. I am sitting here now as I write this and she is five feet from me and this is at least my tenth trip here. She has never looked at me, nor smiled or acknowledged me. Abby, when you decide to say hello I might feel a little better about the high prices and the very indifferent, and sometimes horrible, service.
I'm really happy this place came into the neighborhood. I've enjoyed their veggie burgers and mozzarella melts numerous times. Great service from Max at the bar, who also keeps the atmosphere hopping with some killer tunes (he's got great taste in music). It's also a great place to visit to relax with a cup of (really awesome) coffee and free wifi.
I am surprised to see so many negative reviews for Abigail - I happened upon it by accident with a friend for a late dinner and we fell in love. The atmosphere was great, with exposed brick walls, lots of candles, and live jazz. The wine list was extensive and the waiter was knowledgeable about the selections. We had a hard time choosing off of a menu that was filled with delicious options, all of which were listed as organic/locally grown. My friend ordered the mac'n'cheese with shrimp which was cooked absolutely perfectly and had an amazing smoky taste. I ordered the penne with vodka sauce, which was good. Not anything unusual, just solid, classic vodka sauce. I will be back to try their brunch and often for dinner!
I haven't been back for dinner, but I've become a regular at the bi-monthly salsa parties! Nice wooden floor makes for good spins and easy on the knee joints. PLUS there are live musicians who play percussion along with the Dj's selections. Very friendly crowd!
It looked nice, comfortable, not too pretentious, from the sidewalk, so my husband and I decided to… Read more »
I want to like Abigail. I really do. It's just a few blocks from my house, the decor is cute, the atmosphere is nice- all of these things are great. Unfortunately, these things in no way make up for the shitshow that Abigail calls service.
I have eaten here at least 4 times -mainly for brunch- and I am always shocked at how absolutely terrible and completely tone deaf the service is. The food is mediocre, but I'm not complaining about it- it's the completely clueless staff that really irks me. As a former server/bartender, I can say that it is not that hard to wait on tables. I've worked in the restaurant industry for 11 years and am completely baffled by how bad the servers at this place are. A 15 minute wait just to be greeted, drinks forgotten (my boyfriend had time to go to the bodega a block away and by a paper before I finally asked my server where our drinks were) and then (I know this is not the server's problem) at least 40 minutes before food arrived. It is not rocket science folks.
The most obnoxious thing though, is when the owner (I think?) came around jingling a plastic cup of change and dollar bills asking us to tip the band. We were kind of caught off guard and someone said, sorry no cash, and the guy just stared at us with the cup out and said "You can get cash at the bar." WTF? Does he expect the guests at his restaurant to pay the band? Get it together guy.
A restaurant is more than a pretty chandelier. Not going back. Sorry.
I'd really like to give this place 2.5 stars. Went here last night for their now weekly free stand-up comedy night. It's my friend's neighborhood place, not mine, and for that I'm lucky and grateful (no neighborhood spot in Brooklyn beats Vox Pop). I think about this place like her local hangout more than a restaurant. If Abigal Cafe thought of itself the same way, I think they'd be way better off. Good happy hour with great $4 wine. Nice loungy atmosphere. Fun comedy night.
But the food? Meh. And pricey. And the service? Friendly but slow. I actually had a conversation with the waiter/bartender about the asparagas and lardons salad (lardons is bacon, I learned - they should really call it bacon on the menu, it sounds so much better) and then ordered it After a really long wait, he brought out a side of asparagus. He apologized, gave us the asparagus for free so he wouldn't waste it - props for this - and after another long wait, brought out my salad. It was tasty but seriously tiny. My friend got mac & cheese which was lukewarm at best, and not very good. And tiny. Waiting a long time for small portions of OK food doesn't lend itself to a fancy restaurant atmosphere.
Abigail, I know deep down you want to be a cafe. Your family will understand and love you for who you are. Be true to yourself.
When the sign came up the familiar gurgle came with it...
There it was ...nestled under yet another condominium modeled in the spirit of a future I am not yet ready for....a future without brownstones.....a future where yuppies gaze out of their floor to ceiling windows their sun-drenched apartments ...squinting into the distance at the top of a Manhattan skyline plotting a comeback ....Coming Soon, it read.
Yes, I was torn. My stomach knotted. My jaw clenched as tears of envy mixed with guilty relief bubbled in the folds of my eyes.
I locked myself in my home for months refusing to give into my desires no matter how terribly convienant they were. Alas, I did not win...and one night I heaved my lazy boyfriend out the door with a demand of romance ; quid pro quo .
I sampled the garlic shrimp ($7) with copious amounts of free fresh peasant bread for dipping; satisfying if small . A robust red wine with citrus low notes accompanied the tasting ($12) and made a better companion to my palette then the mediocre flourless chocolate cake paired with an unsweetened whipped cream.
After the unnecessarily hefty bill came for what were simply a series of amuse-gueule , I left Abigail and never looked back .
Her grass may look greener, but it's still brown at the tips.
Abigail Cafe has a nice atmosphere and lovely decor. Unfortunately for them, their food is - at best - average and their service is downright terrible.
We went to Abigail for lunch/brunch with friends today. Our server distributed menus but failed to mention that we were only allowed to order off of 1 of the 4 pages of listing (brunch only). So, we had to order, be told we couldn't have any of the things we wanted to order, look at the menu, and then order again.
Then began the Long Wait. After about 20 minutes, they brought us some very nice bread and butter. Probably another 30 minutes later, our food finally arrived (we aren't talking brain surgery food here, either, but bagels, burgers, etc.). The food itself was fine - nothing amazing but nothing disgusting either....until.... I was really enjoying my bagel (they get them from La Bagel Delight) until one mouthful brought up a big wad of paper wrapping from the cream cheese. Ugh. A few bites later (yes, I persisted) brought another bit of wrapper.
Our waiters basically ignored us all throughout the meal and we saw a total of 1 other table receive food in the time we were there (though the place was full).
Seriously. We have to wait nearly and hour for our food and there is wrapper in it? I'll pass on returning here.
Jazz brunch is not to be missed. Great food, friendly staff, cozy surroundings. Can't wait to go back.
Ah, you poor people who have high expectations for a restaurant when it first opens. Don't you know they need at least 3 months to figure out who the crackheads, cokeheads, and thieves are before they can fire them? You go in the first month, chances are your meal was cooked by some asshole who couldn't make it in any other restaurant or who worked at a Thai fusion restaurant in Palm Springs and came to New York to make it big, but couldn't get hired anywhere except on Classon Ave. That aside-
Hey, guess what? I don't like brunch in the city at all and I like brunch here.
Let me tell you why I like brunch here:
1. There's no long wait for a table.
- Thank god. I just don't wait an hour for pancakes. I don't understand how Brunch People do it. We live in NYC, right? I work a shit ton, don't you? I'm not wasting half of one of my days off waiting for some smarmy cook's idea of a salad with a fried egg on top. I've got shit to do. I've got to get back home and call my landlord about the fact there's a goddamn mushroom growing in my bedroom or figure out where me and Andy are going to get drunk cheaply while we pretend the Ravens are going to win.
2. It's not overcrowded.
- Also a small miracle. A nice restaurant at dinner turns into a horror show at brunch. "I just had dinner here a mere two weeks ago!", you might think. "It didn't seem that crowded when we were here, and it was full then too!", you whisper to your friend from out-of-town whom your trying to impress with your New York Cityness, because they keep on insisting that you guys Do Lots Of Things Together while they're in town for three days.
I don't know what it is about most brunch places, maybe it's that thick-ass Sunday Times sprawled around, or hats and gloves everywhere, or twelve empty Bloody Mary glasses on one table of four, or what. Either way, Abigail is spacious and I like that.
3. They have a jazz musicians.
- I used to sneer at such brunches, but you know what? Enjoying a meal while a bass player thumbs along with a saxophone basically fucking rules.
4. The food is excellent.
- Talk about miracles. I used to be a cook. Brunch cooks are the least skilled cooks in a restaurant, generally. You have a year or two experience cooking and you get hired for the cold app and dessert station 3 nights a week and brunch Saturday and Sunday. Awful schedule. No one wants it. Cooks drink and party waaaayyy too much to have to be back at the restaurant at 9 (gasp!) in the morning. Nope. That's why the salad douche does it. And isn't happy about it.
But Abigail does it right. The portions are somewhat small, but I like that about breakfast. I don't want to have to take a nap after breakfast. I want to be able to either a) get shit done or b) be able to have lots of fun.
Everything we tried was excellent. The pancakes were great, the eggs perfectly cooked, I can't remember what else we had, but it was really really good. And a pleasant surprise.
Oh, Abigail. I waiver between giving you 3 or 4 stars, just as I waiver between considering you my neighborhood coffeeshop or my neighborhood upscaly restaurant (just about anything that doesn't serve Jamaican patties or Chinese food from behind bulletproof glass is upscale in this neighborhood).
I have wiled away halves of days and long evenings at Abigail, as if it were a coffeeshop that happened to serve delicious food and wine. Free wifi, couches, unobtrusive music, sun pouring in through large window - it has all the elements that I want in a coffeeshop. And since I'm used to the long afternoons versus the quick lunches, the long wait times in service don't bother me.
It's also the perfect place to have a nice dinner and glass of wine as a lady alone. It's something that I enjoy doing, but rarely find a place where I feel really comfortable hanging out by myself. There 's no pickupjointness, no pressure of being in a busy spot, and again, the music is always chill - good for reading or internetting or whatever. And again, the slow waitstaff only adds to the leisureliness of my experience.
Nothing I've had here has been bad - I do stick to favorites, namely the leek and tarragon soup and the grilled cheese with pickled onion, but when I've ventured off-course, it's been good too.
Nothing, that is, except for the coffee. Sigh. The drip pot coffee tastes burnt, and the cappuccino is no better. Is it the bean? Is it the machines? Either way, stick to soup and tea, get comfortable, and enjoy Abigail's leisurely pace.
The food was quite good. I had a brioche breakfast sandwich. I liked it, but wouldn't get it again as it was too rich even for me. The brioche would probably be good with just some jam.
I hear what the reviewer below said about giving a place time after it first opens, especially when it's in a neighborhood that is changing. But since I don't live there, I don't have much of a reason to "stick it out" with this place. I felt uncomfortable the entire time I was there. The staff and two other customers pretty much stared at me and my friend while we ate. They also made me feel that every request I made was an unbelievably selfish demand, but actually I just asked for coffee and a breakfast sandwich, so short of not buying anything at all, I'm not sure what I could have done better for them.
It's a pretty cute place, and seems clean, but I probably won't go back because of the environment and service.
I missed the live jazz brunch by about a half hour. However, their bacon is AMAZING. The waffles were really good too. The mimosa was more than the waffles, which is kind of ridiculous.
Don't Bother.
The wine was not great for the price, the food was nothing special, and the service was a disaster .
To begin, there are no coat racks. If you come in the winter, expect for you and your date to sit on your coats. Your waiter will not offer to take them, but may make a joke about how there's no coat rack.
The waiter/bartender seemed a little preoccupied for the duration of our stay.
We ordered a salad that was simply bland and completely uninteresting, and a "Kobe" burger that tasted suspiciously like a meatloaf burger (also on their menu). To be fair, I take fault for ordering the Kobe burger, since I probably should have guessed it was a joke to begin with.
The clincher: the person who served our food- did so while talking on a cell phone. Picture it... Two hands full with plates of food, and a head holding a cellphone against one shoulder.
The wine is just slightly overpriced, and if for some reason I couldn't persuade friends to meet me somewhere else, I would eat before I came and nurse a drink or two until I could get to a proper establishment.
My boyfriend and I came to Abigail for dinner on what was maybe our 3rd or 4th night living in the neighborhood. It's a really new, upscale cafe and wine bar that doesn't have its liquor license just yet - at least, it didn't a little over a week ago. It's BYOB for the time being, but we didn't B anything, so we asked our waiter if they were serving any wine anyway. He brought us each a glass of malbec "from his personal collection", and it was delicious.
I wasn't all that hungry so I only ordered a side of smoky mac & cheese...and man, was it good. It was very small for a side, but rich, and totally hit the spot. There were plenty of things on the menu that sounded great and I can't wait to go back here and get dinner when I am more in the mood for it. And I bet once they start serving wine it'll be an even better spot. I only gave it three stars for the moment, but I think there is potential for more. Will update when I have more to say!
Picture this: The offspring is at her grandma's house in western NY for an entire week; the hubster and I decide to go to dinner at a location where there are no visible high chairs, crayons, or play-infused space; it's a hot night...get the picture?
So, we decide to head to Abigail's, a place I pass all the time on the B45 while on my my to Tar-zjay or perhaps surprise the offspring by picking her up from preschool.
Hubby didn't care where we went, as long as he could eat sans child and feel his wife up under the table (which he did and which I enjoyed!)
It is ironic that Abigail's is a wine bar that is BYOB, but that is because of the slow-ass NYC licensing authorities. They couldn't just sit around and wait to open. We all know how food establishments hemorrhage money.
Anywhoo, I liked that Abigail's has traditional appetizers and tapas-like small plates. Hubby and I enjoyed grilled shrimp and crostini with olive tapenade. I had the shrimp pasta with artichokes and he had the hearty spare ribs with mashed potatoes and veggies.
The food was quite delish! Couple that with the laid back ambiance and we had a great time.
Oh, and we also like that their busboy was a young kid from around the way. Many times, when restaurants open in gentrifying neighborhoods, they bring folks in with them instead of providing economic opportunities for the community.
OK, I am off my soapbox.
Abigail is very cute and like some of the other reviewers I really want to like this place.
As a coffee bar, they are fantastic. D is something of an espresso snob and claims that the espresso they pull there is worth going back for, even though it is served in a tumbler (or was the last time he went...maybe they have proper cups now?)
We've eaten one dinner and one brunch there. For dinner I had a fish dish they were having on special and I also got the gazpacho. The gazpacho itself was pretty good, but it was supposed to come with avocado and crab. There were two slivers of avocado and the crab was most definitely tinned crab, disappointing for the price of the soup. I think it was 8 dollars? The fish was alright, but did not taste very fresh. The best part of the dish was the bed of lentils the fish was served on.
Daniel had the kobe burger which came on a delicious onion roll. Although the burger was good it didn't come with anything on the side. And we didn't order a side, but the girl at the table next to us had ordered the side of potatoes and it looked very small (maybe 6 baby potato halves).
For brunch we both had the burger and although it was still good, mine was cooked nearly to death and quite dry. And we had to ask a few times for ketchup.
Verdict: Food okay. Nothing really fantastic.
Like I said, I really want to like this place. And I want them to do well. And I like the fact that they hire people from the neighborhood. But they really need to train their waitstaff a bit more. The staff still seems very disorganized and maybe some of them have never waited tables before, and that's fine. But there are some basic things that every new server should be taught. Like, have the silverware out before the food. If someone orders a burger, just bring the ketchup, don't wait for them to ask. But all of these things are trivial and easily fixed...I'm rooting for Abigail, although I think they should rethink their menu a bit, as they don't really have a "fine dining" type establishment. I think a casual menu would be more fitting.
One final thing. They really need to implement uniforms or some kind of dress code for their waitstaff. When I went for brunch, our server (male) was wearing cutoff ratty denim shorts, grubby sneakers, and a mildly pitted looking tee-shirt.
If I am paying 12 bucks for a burger without sides I expect a certain standard of cleanliness and personal hygiene from my server. I don't want someone that I wouldn't want to sit on my couch to touch my food.
I am so torn about this place, but I've only been there once......I need to go back and give it at least a couple more tries.
The service was friendly enough, but really slow and inefficient and I'm just not sure why. It was not busy when I was there.
I had the pork belly entree. I'm happy to have a place in the neighborhood with a, shall we say, "ambitious" menu, but I'm not sure whoever is in the kitchen really knows what they're doing.
I will try again, fingers crossed.
A wine bar that's BYOB? Perhaps my sense of irony is just a bit on the metallic side these days.
This establishment is definitely catering to the new yuppie vibe infusing the old Caribbean neighborhood; definitely for the upwardly mobile rather than the true locals. Gentrification goes on!
Rating may improve upon liquor license, but until then I'll stick to BYOB at Casa de Ting.
WOW, a lot of the reviewers for this place are MEAN. Yikes. Maybe it's the NY attitude... (sorry to blanket judge all you New Yorkers...) Anyway, I thought the food was delicious! Definitely get the stuffed peppadews... *drool* The decor was sleek, the ambiance was inviting, and staff was so kind and pleasant. One of the owners was nice enough to personally check on me and see if everything was okay. You just don't get that these days, y'know? While yes, it was BYOB, they JUST opened. Cut them some slack. I mean, at least they had a sign that let you know ahead of time before you ate there that they were waiting on their liquor license.
Why am I getting so defensive? I don't know... The people there are just super friendly and the food was super yummers. And that's bonus points right there.
Anyhow, I will definitely come back when I'm back on the east coast.
Went here for brunch yesterday. What I liked about it: the food was good, there was live jazz music, the service was friendly, the atmosphere was nice and the bathroom was clean, what I wasn't jazzed about: 3 of the 4 of us getting our orders...not so cool forgotting to even put in the 4th person's order, so we shared some of ours until hers got there but pretty bad error. Might have helped if the waiter had written it down? Also our toast never came, had to ask for that again too. The music was a little loud where they sat us, would have been nice to not be right on top of the band...
Otherwise might try again if happened to be in that very spot in that neighborhood, not sure what the other options are.
The food was good, toast is separate item on brunch menu. You go to order an omelette with any 3 items but it doesn't tell you which ones so you can choose anything I guess? I got mine w/mozzarella, pepper and some kind of hot pepper thingy they had on the menu, was good combo.
Also liked the french-press style tea pot they brought when I ordered tea.
Worth a try... hope you have better luck w/getting your whole order.
So what is up with this place? Its pretty spendy and the portions are small and well, they are still working out the menu. That's right, spendy, small portions and the food is just average. Good marks to the waitstaff, though they kept reminding me they could make coffee...
I'm willing to spend more for something, usually an experience, good food and ambience and this place just doesn't have it. This place was playing Spoon, loud. Me? I like Spoon, but its not, um, spendy dining music, and not played loudly.
The space is laid out nice (its really dark inside, creates a nice atmosphere) maybe they'll get it sorted out. I'd like something different in the area but I don't know if this is the right kind of different.
I feel bad giving Abigail only two stars. In fact, my first instinct was to give ONE star, but I felt too guilty, because this is a new place, and the people were nice, and the interior is beautiful -- so I think with a little work and some more attention, this place COULD be nice.
BUT. Abigail has been open since the summer (it is now November), and after 3-5 months there is no excuse for offering a full food menu... and then not having anything that's on the menu. If you don't have croissants, waffles, yogurt or granola "yet", they should not be on the menu. Period.
(After being denied our food choice twice, I wanted to say, "Why don't you just tell us what IS available and we'll order that?" But wait -- isn't that what a MENU is supposed to do? Tell us what is available to order?)
Finally we settled on the Abigail brunch: eggs, bacon, potatoes and greens ($7).
Service was friendly but slow. We had to ask multiple times for everything.
My food was tasty, but my boyfriend's was cold. (As though they had made one dish first, and then let it sit out in the kitchen while they made the second one.)
And, no toast with brunch. I realize this is a small detail, but I have never seen a brunch without toast before, and it's the small details that could save this place.
Without the toast, my boyfriend was still hungry, so he ordered a miniature danish ($2).
Overall, I think the true source of my disappointment is that Abigail offers so much promise (it really is a beautiful bar) and does not deliver. I know it is new and is maybe going through some growing pains, but it's had a few months now to work out the kinks, and I just don't understand the point of offering something on the menu that it doesn't have.
i think i am totally loyalist about my stars... this one gets my second 5-star rating because abigail's is really the best! it helps that i currently live within walking distance of it and i find myself ordering in going there and always being around abigail's... it also helps that the wonderful wonderful people of abigail's share their space uninteruptingly and without any lousy stares for as long as you choose to sit there sipping on coffee with your lappy... free internet babies
order the pickled onion and cheese or the smoked mozarella with artichokes oo and the tomato bisque .. and make sure you order the molten chocolate cake as soon as you get in so they have the time to prep it for you .. aww they make it special ..
last sunday they ran out of the champagne for mimosa's so we got the fancy rose champagne and it was wonderful!! abigails' is wonderful
I tried this place for lunch a couple of weeks ago. The tuna melt was disgusting and the artichoke soup was boring. There was a puddle of grease on top of the soup and the tuna tasted like it had been sitting around for a couple of weeks. The people are nice but they hardly come to your table even when there are only three people in the restaurant. The only thing I will ever try here again is wine because I like the atmosphere but the food is not good. I've been here four times since it opened for brunch, dinner and lunch. I didn't really think the food is good especially for the price.
This place should have waited to open. Everything is mediocre or worse from service to food and… Read more »
Disclaimer: I tried the place opening week, so they've probably improved on the following since then:
The portions could be larger for the price, esp. for the neighborhood. Service could be faster.
But her food is very good!
Dunno if she makes it, but the bread is phenomenally good.
Try: English Pea Soup with Tarragon (7) , Manchego (4) , Hanger Steak. (22)
= 33.
Hopefully by the time they get their liquor license, everything will be ironed out.
I live in the neighborhood and finally had a chance to try Abigail for the first time. My friend and I had plans for brunch, and after walking by this morning and noticing the sign for live jazz starting at 12:30, I decided to take him here.
When we got there around 1, the music was going strong and the place wasn't packed but it was decently busy. We sat at one of the few empty tables near the door and looked over the menu. Chris went with the $7 Abigail breakfast with scrambled eggs, and I decided to try the "baked eggs" with cremini mushrooms, tomato, and gruyere for $10. Our server Keema came by within a short while and we put our order in.
Over twenty minutes then passed without our food coming or even so much as a word from our server or a refill on our waters. Finally I got up and caught her at the bar to ask for some more water and to ask about our food. She said she would check on it, and in another ten minutes or so we were finally served. (Half an hour to scramble some eggs?)
Chris's plate of bacon, eggs, potatoes, and greens was a solid deal for $7, but mine was about half the size and $3 more. There's no way that the pair of glorified eggs over easy should have been $10, even if they did have some fancy cheese on them. The least they could have done was include some toast or potatoes.
Apparently Chris thought his was undersized too (even though it was quite a bit more than mine), or maybe he felt sorry for me, because he asked me if I wanted to split a bagel with creamcheese ($2.75). I agreed, and we finally had an opportunity to ask for it ten minutes after we had cleared our plates. Another 15 minutes pass and finally we get our toasted bagel.
With three servers to about 15 tables, this was not a case of understaffing; this is just basic incompetence. Sometimes it's evident that a party is in no hurry and won't care if their food takes a while. (Even in this case, it's only proper to check in on them periodically.) But we were clearly starving, and had politely communicated as much. At one point our server came up to the table next to us (the first time she came to our end of the restaurant in 10 minutes), and then promptly left for another 10 minutes, without even thinking to turn around and ask us how we were doing.
All in all, the food was tasty but overpriced and undersized, and the service was abysmal. The only decent thing about the whole experience was the music, a jazz trio consisting of upright bass, drums, and tenor saxophone, which played standard fare but with finesse. (I'm a jazz musician myself and I can vouch that these guys can hang.) It's a shame everything else was so poor. Not coming back any time soon.
like most reviewers of abigail, i feel guilty giving 2 stars to this joint, because it is new and might be working out the kinks. but according to all the reviews they have been open for over 6 months and some of those kinks should be wrinkled out.
the decor is fairly modern a very chic, but i think that most of the staff here is very lazy. an example, like many others my girlfriend and i had an appetizer and some cheese just to check it out. the waiter didnt write any of the order down, forgot to put it in the system and was just jacking-off behind the counter and giving candy to children (please don't visualize this too hard, as it was halloween).
the waiter was seriously condescending and weird. i asked for a wine recommendation and he told me that malbec was the best wine in the world.....hmmm as i had been in argentina a couple of months before-hand i took his word for it. i tried it and was definitely corked! best wine my ASS! i did get another glass of wine without his recommendation. and when you constantly have to see the waiter for water refill and you being the only table in the restaurant/cafe, makes you feel that this is an establishment that doesnt even try. i wanted this place to be my go to joint to just chill, as i live 4 minutes away, but FAIL!
i really wish that this place survives, as the neighborhood is changing for the better, but i just hope they buy a really huge iron and iron out those kinks and fire some lazy-ass waiters!
I wrote this review a while back.....
Went there last night and had a really nice time. Food was excellent- 2 different crostini- artichoke & olive tapenade with a light salad, mom had the artichoke and mushroom soup (I liked it, she wasn't as crazy), and crab cakes (on special) were good.
Entrees: mom had scallops (she said they were great), BF had the chicken special with pasta (also good), and I had the hanger steak (very good, loved the red wine reduction sauce).
Dessert: the sticky toffee pudding and the chocolate almond bread pudding. Liked the sticky toffee better.
We also had the special wine, a good pour, for $3.50 per glass.
I'm really happy I gave this place another try, we really enjoyed it. The owner, Jason was extremely attentive and made us feel quite comfortable. Our waitress was "spunky," and even gave me a comp wine due to their run out of prosecco.
So while the entrees are a little pricey, if you factor in the cheapo special wine, it comes out to not that expensive overall.
Subsequent visit for brunch didn't go well:
A few weeks after my review, me and the BF went back for brunch. We were barely seated (I think it was calming down at that point, and the servers were clearly not interested in flipping tables), we waited about 10 minutes for menus. As were were waiting, the people next to us had just gotten their food. They seemed relieved. I asked how long they waited- they said "an hour." As we were pressed for time, we walked out, noticing that the servers couldn't care less they just lost a table.
I'm not sure what the owner's deal is. He seems so nice and makes to sure ask people how things went. I don't think he's ever around during brunch, because if he is, he should fire some of the servers. I have it in mind to stop by there one evening and talk to him. Don't think he reads this board...
came here with a couple of teacher friends on a rainy thursday after school - the place was virtually empty. but by the time we left (after 8) it was packed, presumably b/c of the live jazz that was about to start.
i had the house red wine (a cab sav i think - tasty) then a mulled red wine. hot diggity!
the menu was overwhelming - in a good way! we all had soup - tomato for me - and loved them.
i also had a cheese/tomato sammich, which was hot and pressed and tasty.
my dessert was aight - it was a fancy bread pudding. would skip that.
our waiter (dude in the wheelchar) was helpful and fun and nice, maybe b/c we were damn near the only ones there.
will definitely check it out again.
I am delighted to write a follow up to my previous not so incredible experiences at Abigail. I'm even more delighted to be able to follow up with such a rave. And thank you Yelp, as it could not have happened without you.
It turns out the new manager reads Yelp, took notice of the less than stellar reviews, and actually did something about it! I was contacted by him with a sincere apology for my previous experiences, and offer for a free dinner if i would give them another try. The manager who contacted me was cool and kind. He communicated with a really great attitude which was my first sign of changes to come.
I took him up on the free dinner (for 2!) (with wine!!) and had a fabulous experience. It began with being greeted not once but twice at the door, which is two more times than ever in the past. We had water with our wine, and even though the pitcher was at the table various staff swung by to cap us off throughout the meal.
I started with pumpkin soup (my fiend had the lentil) both were delicious, and quite hot upon serving. For my main course it was the seared sea scallops which, although the portion was smaller than I'm used to, was perfect for me! I would rather have the meal taste wonderful and finish full then taste okay, or lackluster and walk out stuffed. The scallops were seared with care and not too drenched in a lovely cream sauce. My friends' spinach stuffed chicken, though not quite as tasty as the scallops, was very good as well. I hadn't planned on desert (and hadn't thought it would be included - but it was!), and oh man it was freaking awesome. It's called the seasonal fruit crumble and I had the same thing on one of my previous visits but I must say, with certainty that it was completely different this time. The crust was amazing, the fruit was fresh and I had a lot of trouble eating only my half of it. Yum, I am so going back there for another glass of red wine and more of that.
Anyway, I am aware that I probably got a bit of special treatment due to the circumstances, but I will be going back, and when i do I'll follow this up with my experience as a regular paying customer. I have a good feeling it's going to stay good though. The night I chose to come in was the managers night off, but halfway though the meal he showed up to check on us and shake my hand anyway. Whether he lives in Queens, or around the corner, that's a classy move in my book. Cheers to Abigail!
This place makes me sad.
The menu is nice and the decor is lovely. I came back 3 times and had pretty…
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Two stars just because the servers were very apologetic.
You see they had to comp me on my salad because the chef took 45 minutes to get it out. I called and ordered it in advance. I kept thinking, it will be up any second, any second now, trying to give them the benefit of the doubt. The other part of me was sitting there thinking of just running out, but was too pussy to do that to the waiter. Luckily I had nowhere to be. I was embarrassed for them. I saw the waiter making a ton of effort to pressure the kitchen, without looking too anxious in front of guests...I felt sorry for him for his tip situation that night.
When the salad came it was really insultingly tiny and sparse in everyway. It did not have any ingredients listed on the menu except lettuce and tomatoes. Seriously. The only reason I had a salad in the first place is because they were "out of" the only pasta dish on the menu.
I agree with MacKenzie's review fully - I wonder if we went on the same day - at least I hope it wasn't like that on many different nights. I had been wanting to try this place for some time, too. I can't believe it's a wine bar that doesn't serve wine! (is that mean to say?) I really tried to be gracious, but somethings are really really obvious - it seems like they spent a lot to renovate and build the interior....so why didn't they invest in managing strategies, and salad ingredients, and noodles?
After waiting all that time, and eating that tiny salad, for some reason I wasn't angry, I was just sad that this place was bombing so hard, and I just know that lots of locals have given it a try, even routing for it. Abigail's is really losing out on lots of opportunity here. They still have time to save themselves if they just get that wine/beer license, and get it together with the kitchen/overall management approach, but also the menu, which is lackluster. I just plotted where I would go after for my actual meal while I ate that pathetic handful of salad, which was just as MacKenzie described it. I didn't even ask to be comp'd for the food and drink, as it was the least the waiter could do - he knew what was good in the hood....not Abigail Cafe.
I tipped him well for all his well-meaning gestures, and left feeling let down that I will have to strike this neighborhood place off my list, and mark it as one I will just have to pass up. I can't go through that again.
update:
i hypocritically stopped in there today for coffee and had the very pleasant experience of talking to the kids at the counter, enjoying the jovial and laid back energy during a block party over there, because I needed a coffee. They offered me 3 free cookies because they just felt like spreading the love since they were just baked. That is the second time I got something free there without asking. I saw a bunch of people perched in there with laptops like a coffee house. Then it occured to me that I may have judged this place before based on expectations that it be a bistro-y wine bar kind of place, but i think it's actually more of a coffee house ala 1990's Friends. More of a hang out. I could even see the bathroom activities that are known to occur at Soda, also take place here with time, but don't want to blow up anyone's spot or create rumors that are unsubstantiated. Anyway, when viewing it as a coffee house that also has slow table service, I'm not mad at them at all. Infact, I can see it comparing to a sort of Tea Lounge (Union St., 7th Ave in Park Slope) kind of place in time. Not so bad. So they got one more star from me....
I don't get why everyone is bashing this place! My girlfriend and I went for brunch last weekend and it was spectacular! They have live jazz on Saturdays and the band is really good, I believe they play another night of the week during dinner as well but I'm not sure which one.
Anyway, we started off with some of their delicious coffee. I am a bit of a coffee snob (can't stand the 'Bucks no more) and I have to say that their coffee is some of the best I've had in Brooklyn, if not the best. Not kidding. I was originally looking for something off the breakfast menu, but our server, who was extremely friendly and efficient, talked me into the kobe beef burger on brioche. I've seen these burgers go for as much as $25 in bistros like this and it was HALF the price, and just as good, if not more so, than overpriced Manhattan burgers. The salad on the side was also succulent and consisted of a lot more veggies than your usual greens. My girlfriend had the smoked mozzarella, roasted tomato and artichoke panini and it was fantastic (I was able to sneak a bite in to verify this).
This is definitely a place where you get your money's worth. We were completely full after our two entrees and the bill was only $27, not bad at all for a nice weekend brunch. I haven't been there for dinner yet, so I can't speak to that (although the menu looks ridiculous) but I have been in there at night to have a beer and the atmosphere was very nice. Extremely pleasant and fun staff all around.
I talked to the owner while I was there as well and he mentioned they are also going to be doing some movie nights in the space downstairs where a live band scores a film...a pretty cool idea! It is nice to see a place in the neighborhood trying to do a lot of different things while still maintaining their identity as a bistro. I recommend that you all give it a try regardless of what the rest of the people on the board say. All in all an excellent experience.
Another of the joints to open in Crown Heights in the past few months, Abigail offers something other than the Caribbean and take out Chinese that makes up most of the neighborhood's cuisine. I had a really decent tuna melt for dinner on my first visit, and a slightly dry but tasty strata for brunch on visit #2. The atmosphere is nice, albeit not very busy yet. The service was pretty lazy and one of the waiters was very nice but kind of a clown. I think once this place hits its stride and the staff gets their act together, it will do ok. I'll be back to sample the wine list now that they have their booze license.
I really want to like this place. The interior is spacious and nicely decorated. The food is also pretty good. But its supposed to be a wine bar even tho they have yet to get their liquor license. While this may take some time its seems like the owners should have anticipated this lag before opening their doors. I mean you don't open a bar before you're able to sell booze right?
Also both times I've been there the service has been pretty lacking. It took a while for the food to show up.Things we ordered never came but we were charged for them nonetheless. And they said they didn't have enough change for the cash we gave them.
I think they are still working things out so I have great hopes for this place as its a cute resto and the food is pretty tasty.
I was surprised to find such negative reviews here - I've been to Abigail for brunch twice and had very positive experiences both times. Maybe it's because I've only ever eaten their eggs benedict, which were delicious, or because it was after walking around and around the neighborhood and i was just so thankful to sit down and have a glass of water. However the service was attentive and friendly, beers were cheap, and while waiting for me a friend was able to plug in her laptop and get some work done. My only real complaint was that the jazz was way too loud! Although I don't know if we can blame Abigail for that 100% since we were the smart ones who sat right across from a five piece band...
I recently tried Abigail Cafe and Wine Bar (as of July still no wine) for brunch. The quality of Abigail's food seems to be quite good--certainly better than average with freshness, organic, and quality being a few words to describe what emerges from its botanist/chef's kitchen.
Many rightfully argue that the portions are a bit on the meager side, though the servings are not completely out of line with the simplicity of many of the dishes, mostly comfort foods and standards executed with honest flavors and care. Diners will likely be left wanting more, both a nod towards how good the food can be, as well as a fault with how little is on each plate.
Service seems to be another slightly unsatisfactory, though not wholly unpleasant aspect of Abigails. Brunch time was full, but not busy, with virtually no wait. Enthusiastic, friendly and very likeable, the staff of 4 at brunch managed to give us napkins long before silverware, coffees when we'd asked for water first, granola without a spoon, a long-awaited for water carafe without any water glasses, strangely staggered food & drink orders, and one coffee so cold it had to be sent back. That said, we certainly liked them and they generously kept our coffees coming (and handled our many requests for missing or forgotten things with grace and a smile).
Friendly, good food sans pretension, wine bar sans alcohol, with a brunch that is a bit of a better deal than dinner, and absolutely perfect 75 cent homemade cookies in chocolate chip, pistachio shortbread, and oatmeal raisin that shouldn't be overlooked.
in NY in general its not easy to get a liquor license, so I pardon the wine bar for being BYOB. after all, they have to pay the rent, so it would be unreal to stay closed just because you cant sell liquor. (people, unclench. its better for you price-wise anyways.)
the food? its good. the stuffed peppadews are to die for, and the steak was good. however, very overpriced and the portions are on the small side. also tried the mac and cheese, which is baked and nice, and the "kobe" burger (which is IMPOSSIBLY really kobe, at $12). another friend had the salmon, she said it was ok. the salads are good, the dressings light.
the ambient is great, laid back, the service is genuine and nice, so overall ill be going back, i know theyre still working the kinks out, so ill bear with it, since its on my street.
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