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Categories: Bakeries, Breakfast & Brunch [Edit]
Neighborhood: West VillageHouston St (1)
W 4th St (A, C, E, B, D, F, V)
Christopher St (PATH)
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I have been coming to Blue Ribbon since the late 90's, and I can't recall a bad dish. Weekend nights you'll need to do a bit of waiting in the smallish bar area, (don't attempt to capture a seat unless you are experienced in sliding under folks as they put their credit card back in their pocket).
Once sitting, the place is bustling, but feels open due to the large corner windows. Large parties descend to the hip, moody brick catacombs in the lower level. Great bread (bacon in the bread?--yes, it certainly is) Don't be afraid to order a mix of (what are now called) appetizers. Sure the lobster and foie ravioli is great (and just about enough as a main) but the more humble dishes sing as well: Beet Vinagarette, Endive Salad, Fries. The wine list is fairly priced (by restaurant standards) and appropriate to the venue, with many interesting selections under $100. ) (Robert Sinskey Pinot, Tempier Rosé)
Good place to go when you have a wide variety of palates to please.
I'd always been hesitant to visit Blue Ribbon. It's in a great location (Downing and Bedford) in the west village, and the people eating inside always look like they're having a good time. But the prices of the food always stopped me in my tracks (Fried chicken for $26, $15 for bread pudding!)
My g/f and I finally caved in one sunday for a late brunch. After a 20 minute wait, we were seated not in the well-lit, quaint area we'd always seen through the window. Instead, we went downstairs (I never knew there was a downstairs) into what reminded me of a wine cellar/basement complete with the musty smell. Not exactly what we expected for brunch, but we rolled with the punches.
Our disappointment quickly disappeared with the complimentary breadbasket. And my what a bountiful basket it was. This was no microwaved italian bread or tooth-breakingly hard french bread. It was a collection of blue ribbon's finest breads baked that day in house: soft, yeasty, and simply delicious. We tore through that bread in a way that would make any atkins follower cringe.
We had probably eaten a little too much bread when we got our sweet and savory brunch dishes. We got the challah french toast with berries accompanied by maple butter (clocking in at almost $19) and the blue benedict--an eggs benedict with serrano ham, jarlsberg and tomato on top of toasted challah (at almost $16). The french toast was eggy, fluffy, and sweet, the berries complemented the french toast well, and the maple butter added a sweet touch, but all I could think about was that this was $19! The blue benedict was kind of like a croque madame except with soft, delicate poached eggs, and the runny yolks combined with the hollandaise to deliver comfort to our bellies.
The sweet and savory taste left in my mouth was stung quite a bit by the bill: $50 for two brunch dishes and two coffees was definitely a lot. The breadbasket did ease the pain a little but not enough. The food was very solid but I still scratched my head wondering how the prices could be so high.
I love you Bone Marrow. I wanna be with you for the rest of my life! Muah muah muah! Marry me!
Seriously, if it was legal to marry a food item, I would elope to Vegas with Marrow in a heartbeat.
The marrow at Blue Ribbon is just orgasmic creamy goodness oozing out all over the place like coagulating sexy time juices.. haha.. sorry for that unappetizing imagery (or maybe appetizing for some people i guess) but marrow really does epitomize arousing food.
There are definitely many other great tasting items on Blue Ribbon's menu, however. I especially like their small plates like the country pate which has a coarse, rustic texture and a mild gaminess. One of the most memorable dishes I've had there was an off menu item, a warm lobster, asparagus, and mushroom salad in a cream sauce. And of course, you ALWAYS have to get the mushroom ravioli... *thinking for a minute*... yup, never had a better ravioli dish in my life.
All in all, the menu is littered with WONDERFUL food, but at not so wonderful prices. Afterwards, I always leave feeling like I paid a tad too much.
But I guess you can never put a price tag on true love...
Amazing Fried Chicken - so good it will make you cry!
But a pricey place - my chicken's $25! but i keep going back.
My absolute favorite restaurant in NYC. Couldn't have a better menu or better service! Have a private party in their basement and prepare to be spoiled.
If you don't like poached eggs or french toast, you might want to reconsider going to brunch here, assuming you want a breakfast food for brunch. That being said though, my meal was fantastic.
Upon arrival, we noticed some people waiting for tables, but we opted to sit downstairs right away. It's kinda dark and cramped, but it didn't really bother me too much. When I go back, I'll probably choose to sit upstairs.
We started with an excellent bread basket, which I would expect from a place that touts itself as a bakery. There was a variety of savory and sweet breads. My wife and I both ordered the blue benedict, which was poached eggs and hollandaise, on top of serrano ham, tomato and grilled challah. We also ordered a side of the chorizo hash.
My entree was perfect but my wife's was cold, which I must say was annoying. Despite the heating snafu, my wife picked at the hash, which was awesome. There were nice chunks of chorizo and beautifully caramelized onions. The benedicts were out of control amazing.
The good food comes with a pretty steep price. This meal was roughly $75 for the two of us. Nonetheless, I'd highly recommend it.
Summary: Delicious but overpriced.
Had lunch here with a girlfriend, we ordered their famous bone marrow, escargot, duck confit, and banana-walnut bread pudding. Everything WAS delicious, can't complain about anything food-wise -- BUT it was also overpriced and its portion too small for the inflated price (almost $20 for a few spoonfuls of bone marrow and toasts?) The bread pudding alone was almost $15. While the portion was on the large side (and easily split by two people) it is still freakin' bread pudding and even four-star restaurants do NOT charge $15 for their desserts. Our lunch came out to be $93 including tip. With many high-end restaurants having $28-30 lunch prix-fixe all over the city, not sure I'd return here unless it was to purchase a loaf of bread (that I have to give them credit -- perfect bread served with perfect butter.)
But the food is damn good.
New. Favorite. Brunch.
Ok, the wait is not so awesome but the food definitely is.
Service is very pleasant and helpful.
Can't beat their eggs benedict on a sunday AM. Oh wait, you can...by ordering the chocolate chip bread pudding for dessert. That's right dessert with brunch. Try it -- you won't regret it.
+1 for their homemade hot sauce (for the eggs).
I'm going to have to admit something... something awful. I. Don't. Like. Sandwiches. ::gasp!:: I know, I know! My friends make me feel guilty everytime I mention it. So some friends were in town and we decide to go to Blue Ribbon. So I think, "OK, I'll deal, not a problem. I might as well tryyyy it..."
I've been a couple times since. I've had the poached egg with smoked salmon - which is my default brunch fare - and, which was absolutely divine at Blue Ribbon. Light fluffy egg, not-too-salty salmon, scrumptious rye toast. I've also had the grilled eggplant sandwich. I'm partial to anything containing any form of eggplant. I find, if the dish is good, the eggplant is only going to enhance it. I just love the stuff and Blue Ribbon prepared it well. Now my absolute most favorite thing I've had here is... wait for it... wait for it... goat cheese sandwich. I had a few of bite's off my friends plate and I was hooked. It's just such a perfect/clever combination. Creamy mild goat cheese, beets and onion relish (I miss onion relish from my England days...).
Truly delicious. If anyone ever mentions this place, I always throw in my vote of confidence! Which is kind of awkward when you're eavesdropping on people in the subway and happen to but-in on their conversation... but I digress.
Do go, you'll love it!
Today's great brunch experience is brought to you by the unfortunate departure of Barbara C. to Boston. Booo.
To compensate for the misfortune of New York losing one of its best Yelpers, we ordered a hearty and indulgent brunch for our last kick together. SO WE COULD YELP ABOUT IT.
1. Like everyone else has written, the bread basket is awesome. This cornucopia of carbohydrates included fresh challah bread, a raisin walnut bread, whole wheat loaf and some other miscellania. As a jew and inherent expert on jewfood, I can say that the challah was major jewish delicious realness. In fact one of the best challahs I've ever had - I would buy them ala carte and make french toast with them at home. The coffee we started with was also a nice medium blend perfect for weekend brunch.
2. Barbara ordered the Blue Benedict, a Yelp favorite for a good reason. A perfect blend of mild savory ingredients makes the dish light, airy and delicious. Good though not *as* good were my Spinach, Mushroom and Bacon poached eggs. The flavors were not as balanced as the Blue Benedict but were nice - especially the small thick pieces of bacon*. The food also came out really quickly which is nice when you are hungover and starving and longingly having eye sex with someone else's food.
*Bacon - nature's candy.
3. Indulging in our last NYC meal together (until I drag her back), Barbara and I ordered the banana walnut bread pudding. This delicious warm bread pudding topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream was pure perfection. The walnuts were perfectly toasted and nestled between gooey chunks of banana all on top of a light sweet caramel sauce. After finishing my half I was as moist as a snack cake down there. Again I project my sexual and dating frustrations into eating high-calorie sweets. Ugh.
All in all it was a pleasant brunch experience, with the sun shining in through the large windows into the minimally-decorated dining room. If only it weren't on such unfortunate terms :(
We'll miss you Barbara!
I went for dinner, and it was certainly a memorable experience. Like most NY institutions, they have a good wine selection. One word, MARROW BONE! Everything we ordered was good, however, the Marrow Bone was excellent.
I didn't like how compact it was on the street level, but once they seated us downstairs in the "cave," I was able to exhale and breathe a little. Bread basket was good, but not the best (best is still a small bakery in Paris near the Louve).
If you are in the West Village in NYC, this is a place you won't regret dropping a pretty penny for.
Fantastic bread of course. Paired with fabulous cheese and delicious choices for food, prepared excellently. Try the rye.
Delicious brunch. I love the challah french toast!
This is my favorite brunch spot and it gets CROWDED. Those Bromberg brothers sure know their way into a lady's heart, I tellya, with this blue ribbon dynasty they got goin on!
The line forms 20 min before the door opens at 11:30am, but it is well worth the wait. If you get there after, the wait could be well over an hour. So stop hugging the porcelain god after that crazy night last night and get your tail moving over here!
There is seating upstairs and downstairs and they take reservations for parties larger than 5. If you get the chance to sit downstairs, you can check out their 135 year old brick oven where all that fresh bread and other bakery goodness is made. I LOVE the bread basket.
My favorite thing to order: Blue Benedict. It is your poached eggs served with serrano ham, jarlsberg cheese, tomato on a freshly toasted challah bread. In the words of Homer: "ahhghhgrghh" *slobber slobber* *dry hump dry hump* (i added those in). And get yourself a sidling of Chorizo Hash while you are at it. It is dee-lish-ness.
Other great things - French toast with raisin bread. Yeah I know, everyone loves challah french toast, but their raisin bread should be patented. Shit's goood.
I will say, brunch is pricey for brunch as most places charge $15 for entree AND hash AND mimosa all for the price of 1. But here, you are looking at spending $20 - $25 for all that.
We went here for brunch and dinner. Brunch was excellent. They make several varieties of their own loaves of bread downstairs (sell for $6/loaf) that is served with tasty butter. We had 1/2 Challah and 1/2 Raisin Walnut French toast, and Blue Benedict (served on Challah bread). We thought the brunch was excellent. They have nice, bold, non-bitter coffee.
For dinner, we shared and had the Mixed Greens salad, Mushroom Ravioli, Rack of Lamb, the Chocolate Bruno for dessert, and a glass of the Italian red wine. This came to a total of $100. The Mixed Greens salad was nice, it was a blend of 4 different fresh greens (arugula, frissee, etc.) served with a simple, light clear vinaigrette. The Mushroom Ravioli was excellent and a definite repeat-order. It's served in a nice, creamy sauce and topped with more mushrooms and shallots. Rich but not overwhelming. The lamb was cooked perfectly, served with 4 pieces on the bone, and sides of mashed potatoes and string beans. The lamb and underlying strong, savory sauce was perfect; however, the sides could be improved with more creativity and substance.
The one disappointment at dinner was the Bruno. It was a little too rich for our standards. It is a flourless chocolate cake and mousse, but looks and tastes more like rich fudge served with 3 scoops of ice cream.
Located smack in the center of the West Village, Blue Ribbon Bakery serves up high end American and European comfort food in a cozy and quaint space. On a nice summer evening with the windows opened, there's almost nothing better than nabbing a coveted table on the corner of Downing and Bedford.
The food is above average, with a particular standout being the Duck Club sandwich - layers of duck and bacon - how could it not be good? Waffle fries top it off perfectly.
The list of appetizers goes on and on...bringing back memories of tapas hopping in Barcelona...
If you like cheeses, this is the place for you with with varieties of goat, sheep and cow cheeses that would delight the most discerning of palates.
One thing to keep in mind- it does seem to be mostly a date place with the majority of the tables occupied by couples and foursomes...so it may not be the best place for a "man date," although girl dates are seemingly seen everywhere :)
I have long heard about the Blue Ribbon stable of eateries from my chi chi friends who work in the West Village, but I visited the bakery for the first time on Friday. I'd eaten a monster lunch earlier, so opted for something "light" for dinner -- the escargots. The dish comes out in a plate with half a dozen little cups filled with garlic butter, parsley and the little escargots. It was deliciously tender, although a couple of the snails felt a little gritty and the butter sauce was a tad too salty. To combat the over-salting, I used some of the pillowy bread from the basket to make teensy escargots "sandwiches." My friend and I also split an order of the foie gras lobster ravioli. It was one of the most perfect meals I've ever had -- decadent but simple, with flavorful ingredients and a light sauce. My only real complaint -- being quarantined in the basement, where I couldn't get a cell signal. (Normally not a problem, but I was expecting a couple important phone calls, so I had to dash upstairs every 15 minutes.)
Cute spot in Greenwich Village. Went for a Saturday brunch at 2pm, and there was no wait at all. The ambiance is cute, and I was seated by the window on the quiet street (just west of the NYU bars)
I wouldn't say this place is spectacular for brunch or anything. Reason being they only offer "poached style" eggs when it comes to the egg selection, and coming to a spot for brunch, I like to see a little variety in the menu. They did offer salads, sandwiches of that nature, but I wasn't interested in having any of those.
We got a complimentary basket of their homemade bread, which was soft and delicious, and had little nuts in them.
I did like my spinach/mushroom/bacon on my poached egg, but the egg itself was so runny. I didn't get full off the meal since I wasn't eating the bread it was on (which turned soggy!) I would have liked it on the usual biscuit better.
I probably won't come here again since it just wasn't memorable enough.
Warm, rustic decor. Exposed brick. Dim, cavernous lower level.
My friend and I had brunch here. We arrived around 1pm on a Saturday. The wait was quoted to be 45 minutes so we walked around for about 20 minutes and came back, loitered for another 5. Then we were told that they'd already called our names. So I guess despite a 45 min quote, they prob had a table for us within 15 min! The host was really nice and gave us the next available table.
We were seated in a corner in the basement. The fresh bread basket was lovely as was the creamy butter. She got the pulled pork sandwich. And I got the spanish/mushroom/bacon eggs. Both were enjoyable, but not amazing. But I will note that the bread was really fresh since it was baked in-house. We also shared a profiteroles dessert. I've never had profiteroles with choc/strawberry ice cream, only vanilla. I've also never had it with thick fudge, only with chocolate sauce. The fudge was a little too heavy.
I think I would've preferred a seat on the first floor. I like eating my brunch with a side of sunshine... With all of the brunch options in the city, I will not be revisiting this place in the foreseeable future. Unless it was for dinner.
I use to love any building that had exposed brick walls. This goes back to me growing up in a beat down brick apartment almost my entire adolescent youth. I guess it has always signified home to me. This is one of the reasons why I love the look and layout of this place. Were seated next to the window on a misty Saturday evening. It was good. I loved walked to the restroom. Let me tell you why. As you venture downstairs to the restroom, you will pass by a few small little private rooms in which you can dine with larger parties. The closer you get to the restroom you will notice on the right hand side the little area in which they do all the baking. It felt like something straight out of a movie. A beautiful 135 year old brick oven. Loved it. I was ready to move in.
The food on the other hand was expensive and did not live up to the hype. The only thing really stood out to me was the Beef Marrow that which included only two bones and was unfortunately really expensive. Almost not even worth it.
In conclusion, love the building, didn't really care for the food.
On a downcast but somewhat warm March Sunday afternoon, the brunch line for two was about 30 mins. And you could tell this was THE place to have brunch as out of all the restaurants on the other three corners did not have lines. Why? Because the atmosphere is quaint and comfortable while still refined enough for parents/grandparents. Because you barely need butter for bread this good. Because the eggs in our eggs benedicts were PERFECTLY cooked. The white was cooked completely through and when we broke the yolk, it spilled like magma onto the rest of our plate. It is a sight to make any brunch lover faint.
I went with the Serrano ham/cheese on Challah toast. Brion had the spinach/mushroom benedict version. It took less than 15 mins for our orders to come out. And throughout dinner, service was great. Coffee refills were offered. Water glasses were never empty. And our table was thoughtfully cleaned before we were handed the dessert menus. Despite having filled up on their bread basket and our brunches, we still managed to find space for dessert (we'd seen a couple come out and they just looked too good). We both didn't know what the Chocolate Bruno was and when we asked the waiter and he said "it's like a chocolate mousse meets a flourless cake with a white chocolate crust with two scoops of ice cream", we were sold.
Except he lied. It is like a chocolate mousse meets flourless cake with white chocolate crust BUT it came with two scoops of vanilla ice cream and one scoop of chocolate ice cream. Oh, and the bruno is topped with a generous heap of chocolate powder. The size of the cake itself isn't much bigger than a hockey puck. But it is so much chocolate flavor condensed together that I was glad we were sharing. I think we could have shared it with a third person easily and that's saying a lot, coming from someone who likes chocolates as much as I do.
Pros: Good Bakery, bacon bread sticks.
Cons: A little pricey.
I ordered the Spinach, Mushroom, and Bacon poached eggs with red wine and hollandaise sauce. I should have ordered the hollandiase on the side since it was so rich. The red wine sauce would have been just fine too. The bacon is like this thick salty bacon.. not like the wimpy strip that you buy at the store or get at a diner. The portions were pretty large so I probably could have split it with someone. The atmosphere is very rustic.. as you walk to the bathroom you can see the bakers at work puting loaves in the oven. Afterward, we walked to the bakery down the street and bought olive bread to take home with us. The olive bread was so soft... i think they had some olive oil and garlic one too that was yummy.
Brick walls. Just put brick walls in a place and it looks pretty. Is it just me or are there too many brick-wall interiors in New York City? All trying to be charming and European. Well, it works. There I go rambling again.
Why I like Blue Ribbon Bakery:
-Their bread is amazing
-The lower floor is super cozy
-They make the best cream of tomato soup ever
-The bakery on the mezzanine floor smells like heaven
What I don't like about the Blue Ribbon Bakery:
-The waiters are not very friendly
-They don't accomodate vegetarians all that well
-Their reservation policy isn't great - always crowded and they only take reservations for parties of 5 or more.
The food is nice and tasty. A bit on the pricey side, i.e. dinner for 4 was $260. It is not exceptional, i.e. does not melt in your mouth, but if you want something proven, that's a good place.
They have a pretty cool downstairs area where you can see how the bread is made. Awesome!
Blue Ribbon presents itself as a casual inexpensive-looking place.
Casual yes. Inexpensive, no.
Let's start with the dessert that everyone raves about, the chocolate chip bread pudding. It's $14.95. When have you ever seen a dessert anywhere for $15? Only the most expensive restaurants would ever consider charging that much for a dessert.
So what do you get for your money? A bowl with two pieces of bread pudding, a scoop of ice cream, and some quite good chocolate sauce. It's a bit larger than many desserts, but they were stingy on the sauce and I had to ask for more.
Was it good? Sure, it was fine. Was it amazing? Not at all. Was it at least double what it should have cost? Yep.
The high price theme continues across the rest of the menu. For instance, a perfectly nice mushroom ravioli dish was exactly three ravioli. For $16.
A cheese plate, consisting of three small slices of three different cheeses was $18.50.
This made the marinated baby artichoke app seem almost reasonable at $12.
Entrees are all in the high $20s to $30s.
For prices like these you should be able to expect service, right? But Blue Ribbon's service is in keeping with their casual image. Requests were forgotten, waiters had to be waved at repeatedly to get them to notice, and service was generally slow and inattentive.
If their prices matched their image and food quality, Blue Ribbon would be a perfectly good choice, but if you really want to spend this kind of money, go to a place where the expense is justified by the food and service.
A phenomenal yet fairly pricey brunch experience. I got the tomato soup (outstanding) and french toast (so delicious but couldn't finish even half of it because it was so filling). Great service, cute space, would definitely return.
On our usual weekend quest for the best brunch spot in New York, we picked Blue Ribbon Bakery based on word of mouth and its top Zagat rating.
I really have to wonder what all the hype is? We arrived before 11:30 am and were surprised the restaurant wasn't open yet. Everyone was quickly seated and the server quickly took our order. Bo was disappointed in his bloody mary and I didn't even finish half my mimosa. We both opted for the Blue Ribbon benedict which seemed to arrive quickly before we finished enjoying our baked goods. Timing is everything - in this case it all came too soon. There wasn't anything memorable about their trademark benedict. Unfortunately for a bakery, the bread they used was unremarkable, almost soggy. We left just as quickly as everything else and have no desire to return.
This is an awesome little cafe for brunch. I really enjoyed the times I visited on Sundays, although (without a joke) the waiting can be ridiculously long. I have found that it's easiest to arrive about an hour prior to the time you want to dine, have your name written down, then walk by to one of the nearby apartments and sit on the stoop and chat away. The french toast is the reason I go, the Mimosa's are potent enough, and the atmosphere is really sweet.
YUMMMMMM.... Loved it! Now officially my new favorite neighborhood spot!
From my delicious, juicy seared scallops w/cauliflowers to the plentiful fresh bread basket, had great first experience after hearing so much about this place from my roommate. (walked in here enough times and walked out after seeing the lines lol...)
I hear their brunch, soup, and seafood are good and will have to come back for brunch sometime!
This is my kind of food. Hearty, delicious, & inviting. I had dinner here in the middle of winter and it was the perfect time, because the food just warms you right up. We ordered the foie gras terrine & beef marrow for appetizers, which were amazing. For dinner we ordered fried chicken, duck confit, & lamb. It was truly comfort food at its best.
This is one of my favorite brunch destinations, and also one of my favorite places for a casual delicious dinner. One of the best dishes of bone marrow you'll find in the city, paired with a glass of Jever (my favorite pilsner) I'm in heaven.
The bread here is just amazing, I could eat basket after basket of it, and I would except for the fact that their food is so damn good I want to leave some space in my stomach. I always get a selection of cheeses, which are all just amazing, and wash them down with a couple glasses of amazing Scotch.
All the appetizers (there are a lot of them!) i've had are great, especially the grilled sardines, escargot, spiced coppa, and smoke red trout -- for a good time try the Butchers Platter Royal, it's overwhelmingly good. The warm goat cheese salad is terrific, as is the smoked trout salad. For entrees I really love the duck confit (consistently as good as any I've ever had), the fried chicken ($25) is truly special, the sweetbreads are simply prepared and super delicious, the hummus platter is terrific, the rack of lamb is superb, and the filet mignon (typically not my favorite cut of beef, i prefer things like skirt steak and flap steak) is just wonderful. The only thing I've ever not really liked was the duck club sandwich, which was fine but not on the same level of everything else on the menu (which is saying a lot)...
I'm usually too full for dessert, but they have a great banana split, and of course the root beer float is a favorite... The service is super warm and informative and friendly. I love sitting in the downstairs area, it's beautiful, super cozy and relaxed -- but it's also nice sitting upstairs where you have a great view of a really beautiful (and rather hip) block of the west village.
Vibe - Not that cute; terrible bathroom set-up.
Food - Over-poached eggs really sinks a brunch.
Service - When asked about drink choices, your waiter should not tell you they only have coffee or tea.
WONDERFULNESS! My friends and I were walking around the west village trying to decide where to have dinner. All of us had been to Blue Ribbon Sushi, but not Bakery, so we said, why not, let's give it a try. So glad we went.
The bread was delicious!! They give you a variety of of their breads and if you see them cutting some for others that didn't end up in your basket, you can ask for some and they'll gladly give you some. The hits at our table were the brioche, raisin walnut, country white, and jalapeno.
Entrees: fried chicken, duck confit, and smoked trout salad were all hits.
Our waiter highly recommended the duck confit, and looking around, someone at almost every table ordered the fried chicken. And I was in the mood for a salad, so our waiter said his favorite was the smoked trout. We all devoured our entrees. Everything was flavorful, but not too heavy in the sauces/dressing.
We were so full from our entrees and the bread, that we didn't have room for dessert. However, one person in my party really wanted to try the profiteroles. When they came out, our jaws dropped. They were humongous! Three of them, one w/chocolate, another w/vanilla, and the last w/strawberry ice cream. All topped with fudge. He enjoyed them, but didn't come close to finishing all of them. Next time though, we're getting the chocolate chip bread pudding. That's what they are famous for! And they allow for a half order.
The service was so wonderful, we gave them a big tip. Even the manager came to check on us during the meal. Def a fan of this place and for sure coming back!!!
The food here is good, but I think this place is definitely over hyped. Everyone I mentioned it to immediately lit up and got all excited. Really? The bread basket looked great but the bread didn't taste as good as I expected it to. It was good, but not good enough to make me want to run back every weekend. I especially liked the bread with the ham and onions in it. Salty deliciousness, hello!
My eggs were ok. My friends' food looked fine, but nothing looked too outstanding. Of particular note was the iced tea. Holy cow was it good iced tea. Apparently, it's so good, they felt justified in charging me $3 for each of my 3 iced teas, thus violating a sacred rule of charging for iced tea refills. My $4.50 iced tea at Sarabeth's now seems to be a bargain!
Oh and they also ran out of chairs, so I had to stand awkwardly at our table for about 5 minutes. Then the host brought over a bar stool, so I could uncomfortably sit above everyone else in the room. After about an additional 10 minutes we were re-seated at a booth. But seriously, we were at a 4 top and there were only 2 seats and NO extra chairs in the entire restaurant. That's f'ed up.
Came in here looking for a good hamburger after a long day walking around the city, and I found it. It was a little expensive, but the quality of the hamburger matched its price, so no major complaints there. The bread was excellent.
If you go here, be sure to make a trip to the restroom. You'll walk right past the bakery in an old-style stone basement, and a table facing it where it would be very cool to sit.
Went in for a late dinner and order a bunch of stuff that i thought looked good.
Garlic Shrimp and Chorizo was terrible. Should not be on the menu. They took Chorizo and fried it, then threw in some shrimp and served it. It was not seasoned at all. Not sure why its on the menu.
Bone marrow was HUGE and tasty.
Warm Goat Cheese salad was boring.
Sweetbreads were overcooked and dry.
Rack of Lamb was good, but still kind of boring.
Bottle or Rombauer Cab was nice.
It was pretty much a forgettable meal with the exception of the Bone Marrow.
I hear so many great things about this place. Maybe I ordered the wrong stuff.
I have better food in the East Village for cheaper. Doubt I'll go back.
Blue Ribbon Bakery & Cafe's bacon and shrimp hash was the perfect antidote for my sunday morning sake induced hang over. The eggs were perfectly poached.
The space its self is intimate with huge windows, very bright. It is a nice spot to linger and people watch over a few hair of the dog cocktails. However due to the fact that I was with the guy that i had broken up with the night before and my hair was being held up by my elastic bangle, i ordered, shamelessly ate a basket of that delicious bread, scarfed down some hash and bounced.
We like to get to NY at least every year from our home in Minneapolis. This is our #1 destination every time! The food has been excellent each time, which is why we continue to return.
My husband dreams about the chocolate chip bread pudding!! It is outstanding. The half order is very large in my view, but he likes it so much he orders the full order every time!
The neighborhood is so delightful and the restaurant is cozy and friendly. I've brought friends there numerous times in the last 7 years from Minnesota and everyone loves it! We've sat in the private room downstairs a few times which works well for groups of 10. But for just two people, sitting by the windows looking at the beautiful brownstones in the neighborhood is wonderful!
The bakery is in the basement and you need to walk by it on your way to the restrooms. If you find the aroma of fresh baked bread to be one of life's greatest pleasures, you will want to come here!
The evening began around 8pm at a bar I don't feel like reviewing...
We moved to Blue Ribbon Bakery around 9pm to sit at the bar and await the arrival of our fourth.
The bar is small and while it doesn't have a large liquor selection, the wine list provides more than enough for one to choose. I had the Spanish sparkling wine, what can I say, I'm a fancy lady.
We came to this restaurant for a specific reason: a boy. So, even though our fourth arrived at the reservation time, we had to wait...thus the manager provided us with a free cheese plate, which consisted of Manchego (goat); Camembert (cow); and a Sheep's milk cheese whose name I cannot recall. The Camembert was out of this world, it had a very earthy almost broccoli like flavor to it. The Manchego was also delicious and nutty, and was enhanced by the raw honey provided on the cheese plate.
After two glasses of wine each (and a cocktail prior) we were seated. Our hawt server (hi there) helped me pick out a nice bottle of Zinfandel, well it was the cheapest one. I cannot remember the name (this will be a theme) but it was a good Zin, and only about $40/bottle.
We ordered four small plates:
1) Bone Marrow with Red Wine Reduction: different than that served at the Brasserie, but delectable, orgasmic, and sinfully delicious nonetheless.
2) Steamed Artichoke: a little small, but great flavor, so much that I didn't even use the dipping sauce.
3) New Orleans Shrimp: the largest shrimp I'd ever seen (that's what she said); spicy and delicious, and did I say huge (that's what she said).
4) Steak Tartare: holy crap, this was good, so light and smooth, flavorful and um, really just great, I don't have words...
Second bottle was ordered...things are a little fuzzy for me at this point...
We for some reason ordered the fried chicken, it's really good. I don't remember eating any of it? Someone needs to fill me in here.
I think dessert was ordered, and uh well I don't remember if I ate any of that either? Help?
Our hawt waiter was very good, attentive, tall, had great hair, and ....
I can't write this review without mentioning how luscious it is to go downstairs to the bathroom. Because...you pass the bakery in progress as you make your way to the potty. The wafts of freshly baked bread, dough rising, and just bakery goodness are enough to drive a girl insane, and, make her take an extra trip to the potty just cuz.
All You Can Eat Mussels!
Neighborhood: Fashion District
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Neighborhood: SoHo
Neighborhood: West Village
Category: Bakeries
Neighborhood: West Village
Category: Coffee & Tea
Neighborhood: West Village
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: West Village
Category: American (New)
Neighborhood: Nolita
Category: Breakfast & Brunch
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