On a mobile device? Try our mobile site, optimized for faster browsing.
Categories: Restaurants, Pubs [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Upper East Side, Yorkville77th St (6)
Loading...
When you're looking for a cheap place to grab a bite and down a few beers, what's an upper east sider to do? You go to the doc... especially if it's Doc Watson's. This place was great! I actually think I had one of those deja vu experiences where I may have been here before (my roommate had me meet her either here, or at another bar similar one night when it was really crowded about a year ago). I'd never eaten the food even if it WAS the place I thought, so I figured... let's try it out.
Melanie L. was along for the adventure (remember her from the High Line review?). We sat way in the back since the window was open and we could get a nice breeze. I ended up getting a burger with onion rings (fat kid HEAVEN!) and she... I'm not even sure what Melanie got. I think some sort of 'try all of our apps!' type of deal. It looked delicious, whatever it was. I ate way too much way to fast, which is the sign of some great bar food.
The service was okay... we had a cute little blonde Irish lady complete with accent and charm. It wasn't really that busy (business was leveling off while we were there, since it was 10ish), but I can't say she was super attentive; she was adding up bills or something and I felt mostly forgotten. She also did not tell us about this magical $3 beer we could have started off with, and I don't think I'll ever forgive her that. I would definitely go back here, and probably will. Try it.
Doc Watsons is your 'go to place' for a casual and inexpensive meal and drink on the Upper East Side.
I typically frequent the establishment for brunch with the objective to partake in their full Irish breakfast. This gargantuan meal consists of bacon, sausages, black and white pudding, fried egg, baked beans and toast. And as if that wasn't enough, they throw in TWO specified alcoholic beverages - all for a very reasonable price.
It is the perfect way to start (and end) your day:)
I went there for a friend's birthday party, and am willing to entertain the thought that I caught them on a (very) bad day. That being said, the only good thing I can say about this place is that it has a cool name, at least in comparison to other bars on the Upper East Side.
I was seated near an outdoor patio, which was carpeted-okay, so I suppose there are two things about Doc Watson's that don't completely suck-and promptly waited 25 minutes to be served a glass of orange juice. That would be the highlight of their service, as I was to discover when they told me that they were out of waffles, because one of the other guests had ordered the last batch.
However, the joke was on her, because we were later told that they didn't have any waffles for her either! After another fifty minutes or so-but who's keeping count-I was served a plate of delightfully soggy French toast and apple wedges. Yum!
The wait-staff was incompetent, the food blew, and even the beer wasn't all it's cracked at to be. In short, don't go here unless you have some masochistic fetish involving execrable bars/restaurants.
What can you say about a place that has absolutely nothing special about it or anything bad about it?
Came here for some drinks with friends on a Friday night and it was the PINNACLE of mediocre.
Service was good but not great. Drinks were reasonably priced but not cheap either. Had outdoor seating but my seat was wet, leaving me with a soaked butt for the rest of the night.
3 stars for seriously not knowing what to say about this place aside from pointing out its mediocrity
Revisit? I'll try others first
Here's the thing about Doc's: its a favorite for local patrons. I love Docs because the bartenders are my homies, and even the waitstaff are friendly, which is difficult to come by in that neighborhood. Sunday Nights are OFF THE CHAIN at this place; live Irish music and tons of hookups. Yes, Doc Watsons is full of strangers making out at all hours. Regardless of the usual love-fest between strangers (and friends), it's usually a really good time.
Cons: when it gets crowded, it gets CROWDED, and is nearly impossible to move let alone get to the bar. Also, the bathrooms are the size of my finger.
Went for brunch with a friend. Ordered the eggs benedict. The bar wasn't even half-full, and it took 45 minutes after ordering for our food. Waitresses didn't even give us an update or an explanation. When they finally arrived, the eggs were sub-par. The only redeeming thing about this place is the large window in back, that lets you look out on the sane world outside.
Came here for dinner on a Saturday night around 9pm with a few friends. Tables are in the back, behind the bar and they were all full, but the waitress said we could sit downstairs and move upstairs when a table cleared out if we wanted.
No one else was downstairs except the pool table and old-school videogame thing (think Ms. Pacman). There's a really nice patio off the downstairs room, but because of the rain no one was checking it out. So we settled in for our own little private party. (Music is good too; and being away from everyone we could actually hear it)
I had a Doc Watson's burger (mushrooms, cheddar, bacon). It was pretty delicious. Nothing extraordinary, but a good, solid burger that'll fill you up. Lettuce and tomato looked really fresh too. The fries are the same kind of circular ones you get at JG Melon's except these were awesome. They were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Deelish.
Food came fast, service was friendly. Our waitress had a little trouble splitting the check, but we never realized how busy it had gotten upstairs so I think she was pretty stressed.
I was tempted to give them four stars, but when we had to leave our little enclave and head out through the upstairs it was yet another UES frat boy central, except small and thus super crowded. I think I would get annoyed quickly if I was actually here to drink.
I frequent this place about 3-4 nights out of the week. The ambience is awesome. It's a great place to go for some drinks with a friend or even to meet someone on a first date. This bar has a relaxed feel to it, yet still fun and vibrant. They have live music twice a week and it's just a lot of fun. They serve great food here also. It's not just a bar with pub food, I actually have come here on a Saturday for brunch with some friends. It's got a killer seating area in the back that overlooks a nice courtyard with trees. Just an overall cool bar!
Very nice and clean place. Cool place to grab a beer at reasonable prices for the area. Has the nice "pub" feel to it and the people there are really friendly!
I was always on the fence about their burgers and one of my buddy's loved them to the point of obsession. The beers are cold and the bartenders are nice. The pool table downstairs is, well, not so great; but on a quiet night it's nice to shoot stick with a couple people and feel like you're in a semi-private place.
I like Doc Watson's, but I'm not in love to the point of throwing it four stars.
eh, it was okay. Definitely the ratio of men to women was a lot higher than places that I have been to in the city. Seems like a cool bar, lots of screen TVs to watch the game. Good music, cheap drinks. Definitely would try it out, but just had a drink here.
(Yes, a one-day-later review update...)
You know how certain people (present company excluded, of course) drunk-dial or drunk-text? Well, tomorrow morning I'll have no regrets about drunk-yelping Doc's right now. It's not getting the 5th star yet, mind you. But I'm giving it a big kiss right on the smacker. Thanks, Doc's, for making me feel at home tonight, once again. And for the Guinness.
I don't know quite why, but I have such affection for this place. Likely one of those synergistic… Read more »
Bar/ Pub.
Who was Doc Watson? Did he drink here? What did he think of that staircase down to the mens room? Hell if I know the answers to any of these burning questions, but I have to tell ya, the bar which bears his name is damn fine.
First off- Boddington's is there which is almost reason enough for me to go anywhere. The place is set up nicely - long bar in front, big tables in rear and plenty of spots to rest your arse scattered around. There is a sidewalk seating area as well.
The bartenders were damn good- there when you needed, tossing the quick wiseass comment out when needed and they made the night fun.
Food was very good - the pizza was way better than I imagined it would be. Prices were fine and I can see why everyone on Yelp seems to like the place.
Crowd was mixed in age- which is always preferable to me...
Definitely going back.
Doc Watson's is a great time. We had an awesome bartender, very attentive, and she made sure we were taken care of all night. The layout is pretty straight forward. In front, they have sidewalk seating. As you walk through the long bar to the back, they have a little outdoor patio (which is nice touch for any bar in Manhattan).
So as other reviewers have stated, it is a gem of a bar located in the middle of the "Alcohol Induced Fratland" known as 2nd ave (btw 75th & 90th). Everyone who has been here knows what I'm talking about, and if not - you need to make your way down here and party at this seemingly end-less stretch of bars.
(No shameless plugs for any of the competitors, as this review is strictly for the Doc)!
Your my boy Doc, Your my boy!
On a stretch of the UES that's an eerie mirror of the UWS (Brother Jimmy's, Vynl, Sushi Hana, Hi-Life...), Doc Watson's is a refreshing UES original.
Agree with the other reviews that this isn't the typical UES frat boy crowd. The crowd is generally friendly and ranges the spectrum of age and attractiveness.
I've only had the burger on the menu. I think the other Yelp reviews hype it a bit too much (on par with Corner Bistro?!?!). I just felt it was okay and felt a bit ill afterward. The cottage fries were good.
Decent beers on tap and in bottle. Good service.
Probably a bar I'd go to for the first or last drink of the night but not for the fun ones in between...
Last night my department had a Holiday get together here. Some of the guys had been there before plus I have a friend who lives in the area and it use to be a regular spot for him so I was pretty confident going in that the bar would be at the very least alright.
Well... I'd say it was a bit more than alright. Entering I saw my group crowded around the bar and chatting up a storm. For bars the most important thing is service and bartender personalities, here both are great. For the early evening Mora was the lucky gal to serve us and later on Alan (who has a really sexy Irish accent and I would sit and order or inquire about anything to hear him talk, lol). Next important aspect of a bar is space, though limited here it wasn't that bad. It did get tight towards the later hours of the night but if we didn't have such a large group the place wouldn't have felt over crowded. The food was decent. We ordered all sorts of stuff ranging from different boneless wings, onion rings, potato skins, quesadillas (which were really good).
Overall we had fun. The age ranges at my office are pretty spread out and everyone enjoyed themselves. Some of our guys managed to smooth there way into playing Janga with a group of gals at the bar too so other patrons seem pretty cool as well.
If I were up here more often I'd definitely hit this bar up again. It had the rustic feel I like and again the bartenders were cool.
One of my favorite hang out spots on the UES. Awesome service and great beers on tap. The burgers RULE! They aren't too expensive and they actually come with fries believe it or not. That's rare these days. I have Irish blood so that makes me like it a little bit more. They make Irish style food and have live Irish music too. The only bad experience I've had here was once when they were obviously way over capacity and they didn't seem to mind letting more people in. It took me, what seemed like 10 minutes, to get out of the damn place. Other than that, this place is a sweet establishment.
The Upper East side has it's fair share of post college, ex-frat boy type boys in this neighborhood. In fact Brother Jimmy's is right across the street, and Mo's is about a block south.
Not that there's anything wrong with these bars....if you're 22. Me, I'm about a decade older then most of the crowd at these bars, so Doc Watsons is a much better fit for me. Ambiance is nice, and the crowd is mellow and friendly. I liked the food and the staff is friendly. I only give this place 3 stars, because our food took a really, really long time to come out. If you go on a weekend, expect to wait a bit for your food.
Place is very casual, and prices are reasonable. Food is typical Irish Bar fair.
Basically a low key Irish bar in the middle of the Alcohol Induced Fratland known as Second Avenue between 75th-90th. Enough tvs to keep up with the sports action (I happened to stop in for the last game of the NBA Finals), bartenders who know how to pour a pint of Guinness and reasonable prices all equal A-Ok by me.
You probably aren't going to have the best night of your life here, but if you're looking for a laid back place to chill with some friends where you can actually talk to each other and won't hear drunken 22 year olds scream about how cheap PBR is, Doc Watson's will serve you well.
Probably one of my top 3 bars in NYC.
No idea why... it's really just another irish pub, but for 2 years I always wander back here.
The bartenders are all great.... authentic irish bartenders, know how to pour a great guiness. The food service is always good.
I like to sit downstairs on the outside patio... and even if we're the only ones down there, they'll still serve us... it must be such a pain in the ass, but they're awesome like that.
The downstairs pool table is cute too.
The crowd is chill... a little older than the across the street Brother Jimmys.
Tons of TVs, really great place to watch european soccer... lively and friendly patrons.
Recently moved to the neighborhood and decided to try this place for a casual dinner at the bar on Sat and actually had lots of fun! Both bartenders were very friendly, introduced themselves and were always very attentive! Talked to a few people who were also very friendly... definitely good vibes here, nothing snobby, everyone seems to have a good time! I did try the turkey burger and it was not very good (on the cardboard side) I don't recommend it.
Really top notch Irish pub. I would say most notable are the burgers. I would rate them on par, or at least close to, Corner Bistro.
A quintessential neighborhood Irish bar-- mixing class & warmth with whiskey & blarney. When I was there it was cold outside, and you could feel the chill leave as soon as you walked in the door.
The bar was decorated with white and blue Christmas tree-style lights, and there was a guy playing some classic American tunes as well as Irish favorites on his guitar (live music on Sunday nights). Good bar food, several beers on tap and a smile from the lady that served us. There are several tables in the back room, in addition to ample seating at the bar--it's a large enough place to be welcoming, and small enough to be cozy.
There is also a garden patio in back, which was closed due to the weather when I was there. Now that things are warming up, I think it's about time I make my way back to Doc's.
Very average pub, in my opinion. The extra large beer selection gets an extra star, but they promptly lose that star by virtue of the veryyyyy sloooowwwww service. Maybe it was just because it was Sunday, but our brunch took over an hour and a half. Yikes!
Hey.. Irish Breakfast and 2 Pints of Guinness for about $20 Bucks! Need I say more...
Really cool bar with great burgers. Went here for a friends Birthday for the 1st time and had a good time.. nothing special but just nice bartenders, good food, and a cool pool table room.. will def come back if ever on the UES again.
This is one of my favourite bars in nyc never mind the UES,great atmosphere,loads of girls,good staff,good food and the most important thing great guiness
Food is good.The Irish breakfast is the best, I mean maybe the best in town.I should Know as I am Irish!A great hang out place.
We went for live Irish music, but were a bit overwhelmed at the crowd on a Sunday night. I felt like I got a few unwelcoming glances from patrons while here , but maybe it was just me being paranoid. We had to go downstairs to the pool table because the already tight bar area was jammed. I wouldn't mind this on a Friday night, but for a relaxing end to the weekend, we chose the wrong venue. The staff was very accommodating though.
Doc Watson's is a great UES pub. The food is pretty good for standard bar fare. You can't go wrong with a burger, and their fries are yummy. Even the up-tight Upper East Side bitches and post-frat guys seem to mellow out at this chilled out bar. Drink a Boddington's and grab a table. Not a bad place to start or end your night. For an extra special night, wait for the old couple to come in-- she will balance your beer bottle on her head a dance around while he shines a toothless smile at you. Classic.
This bar is great. The bartenders are really nice and it usually has a good amount of people there. Great place if you live in the UES.
Pretty sweet place. We had nachos, a turkey burger and a salad, all of which ended up being damn tasty and in good portions. Service was nice - the waitress was nice enough to go out of her way to get us a Guinness clover logo. It got loud towards the end of the dinner/beginning of the night, but the back restaurant area was still tame enough to hold a decent conversation.
Why did i get pork chops in a pub? I should have gotten the burger. They actually weren't terrible, but the had definitely been in the microwave. I think they were delicious when thy were first made, it just felt like i was eating the leftovers grandma sent me home with last night. Unfortunately we just ate here, so i can't say much for the scene. standard ues crowd, slightly more chilled out. The waitress was overall cheerful, even if she charged me extra by accident. But all with a smile. I don't think i was deliberately go back here, but i wouldn't put up a hug fight if someone else wanted to. I will jsut have to get a burger
Unpretentious Irish bar. Standard beer selection. Nice outdoor and window seating. Didn't have the food, but it looked amazing. The space indoors is long, with an outdoor patio at the back, and they have a number of flatscreens showing sports. Nice place for an easy weekend stop.
Walked in on a quiet afternoon, attracted by the fair price of their fish and chips. Had a couple of beers and a great talk with Darcy, the bartender for the day. Very nice, prompt service and really cool. All you can ask for!
when i was there they jukebox or ipod or whatever it was kept playing the pogues and U2 and van morrison so i was happy. good taps, friendly people on the other side of the bar and irish music (at least, irish artists). Slainte!
I would like to add that on Sunday nights they do indeed have a live session with traditional Irish music. Great vibe...
cant complain about this place.. the crowd is cool, and its also in a good spot if you want to do some bar hopping (i.e: jimmys, vero, stumble, etc).. it will be added to our starting rotation of bars.
this is a good place to go on a sunday if you live on the ues. get there at eleven and start your irish brunch. you get two bloody mary's with brunch - the warmed spinache salad with chicken is really good, typical bar food. the weekdays its really loud but your typical irish bar always is, right?
Happy Hour All Night Sunday
Neighborhood: Lower East Side
3 Drinks for $12
Neighborhood: Chelsea
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Category: Pubs
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Category: Pubs
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Category: Pubs
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Category: Pubs
Neighborhood: Upper East Side
Category: Pubs
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
The good, the bad and the mediocre in NYC…
I'm still hitting burger places in NYC, but of the…
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
My local dry cleaner, watering hole, deli, cafe,…
