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T Poutine
Rating Details »
Neighborhood: Lower East Side
168 Ludlow St
(between Stanton St & Houston St)
New York, NY 10002
(646) 833-7444
168 Ludlow St
(between Stanton St & Houston St)
New York, NY 10002
(646) 833-7444
- Nearest Transit:
-
Delancey-Essex Sts (F, J, M, Z)
2nd Ave-Houston St (F, V)
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Late Night
16 reviews for T Poutine
So, my Quebecois roommate has been dying for me to try poutine and she heard this was the place to go. She stipulated, "You can only try it when we've been out drinking until 3am." So, Friday morning rolled around and as we left the bar in the munchie state of mind, we decided to hit T Poutine.
First of all, I must state that French fries covered in gravy and cheddar cheese curds should not be an expensive item. But T Poutine managed to bring a little New York to their Montreal cuisine by charging about $7.50 for a medium sized order. I liked the style of fries, large and potatoey. The gravy was so overwhelming! It was a salt-fest and overpowered the rest of the dish, so I couldn't taste the cheese curds at all. It was really too bad, because I couldn't even finish the dish.
So, I'm sad to say that my first poutine experience was much like eating french fries drenched in sea water. C'est La Vie! Perhaps I'll make it to Montreal and get an authentic version someday soon.
Let me start by saying, I had never had poutine before (I swear poutine is so close to another urban item that I feel like a 12 year old virgin saying that). So that being the case, I was somewhat scared of the poutine.
I had heard many stories...from people who coveted poutine...ironically, three weeks before I went, I encountered a friend, all dressed up like he was going to a banquet or something, with some friends from outta town, and they were looking for some poutine...He was really really aggressive about it and despite his wardrobe and intent, I didn't know where the poutine was and I think he went home without any poutine.
I on the other hand, got lucky three weeks later. Or was I? Because I went and I had the poutine. It was creamy...it held my fork well, but it was not the heavenly experience I thought it would be. I thought the gravy was gonna make luther vandross sing from heaven. It didnt happen. I mean, for all I know, there may be good poutine and bad poutine...I don't know. It wasn't bad. It was filling. I didnt even finish it all. It was a lil weird to me but passed the smell test so, I tasted it. Unfortunately, it didn't rock my world. So I said to myself, self, why are you eating the poutine if its not even rocking your world? Then I stopped eating the poutine...that doesnt mean you should't eat it. It just means poutine seems cool to eat every now and again, but I'd rather not.
If you are drunk at 3am, there is not much to stop you from finishing whatever plate of food that is sitting in front of you, no matter how much it reminds you of canned gravy over elementary school french fries.
I was actually very excited when Poutine first opened in the nabe since it's a cool concept and there's not too many of these places around. But the execution is lacking. The fries are very mediocre, dry, and not crispy enough to hold up to all the gravy. Overall... very "meh" indeed.
Although proudly Canadian, I can't say that I'm much of an expert on poutine (blame it on growing up west of the Rockies). But I can say that I know what I like and what I don't like, so why don't we start from there.
Ordered the Morning Glory poutine because there is no way I can turn down a fried egg and bacon, especially at 3 in the morning. No points for the nicely done, crisp and properly seasoned medium-cut fries, because a poutine place screwing up fries is like Evian screwing up bottled water.
I think I was expecting to find the fries swimming in a sumptuous moat of gravy, each bite punctuated with a thick, warm bit of cheese curd melting in my mouth. Perhaps to their credit, their fries were not completely smothered and still maintained their fresh, crispy texture by in large. But I felt like I was missing out on something by having to wade down to the bottom of my pan before getting a few nice fries that had soaked up any of that good good gravy goodness. Even then, however, the gravy just seemed to make the fries saltier, rather than enhance the fries in any really notable way.
Also not sure about the cheese curds. Tasted ok, but temperature wise, they were incongruous from the crisp, fresh-out-of-the-frier fries and piping hot gravy. Just kind of felt like the curds never really got a chance to settle in and catch up with their buddies, always a few steps behind.
I think I was just in the mood for a hot, sopping mess of salt and fat. Whether or not that is what poutine is supposed to be like, I'll have to ask my more refined Quebecois companions. But until then, I think I'll save my next poutine experience for the next time I'm north of the 49th so I can figure it out for myself.
Mmmm...a shop that sells good old Canadian poutine! Hoorah! YUM YUM YUM! The best hangover/drunkard food EVER! A taste of the homeland!
The lady who works there took our photo for the Wall of Fabulousness! :D I'm definitely coming back for more.
I've only had poutine once before, and it just so happened to be at what is probably the best poutine spot in Montreal. Only problem was the place was quite small and I decided to eat outside in the bitter cold, so I wasn't really able to enjoy it. What I do remember is it tasted great.
Wanting some poutine here in NY, where I live, I decided to check out T Poutine. Rather than just getting a regular sized poutine, I decided to get a burger with a side of poutine. The burger was a bit dry and lacked flavor. The poutine was pretty good, albeit a bit salty. I like salt, so this didn't bother me much. What bothered me was the food temperature. While the burger was hot, the poutine wasn't. It was warm at first, but quickly became cold.
Overall the food wasn't bad. Would I go out of my way to go back? Probably not. If I find myself in the area with a craving, however, I might grab another poutine but definitely not the burger.
tl;dr version: If you're curious and in the area, check it out, but don't go out of your way to get there.
Ok, so let me caveat this review with I had no idea what poutine was, except that it was open at 330 AM and I was drunk and hungry (not unusual at this hour). My friend and I tried the classic and burger poutines and ate quite a bit. In fact we may have even somewhat enjoyed them.
Fast forward to the next morning: I wake up feeling like I had just ingested french fries covered in gravy and ground beef. Oh. I had. The feeling wasn't even something that you could laugh off as a funny but slightly gross occurrence ( like the consumption of street meat). I just felt like I had treated my body like a dumpster. I felt dirty.
My recommendation is avoid this unless you really have no other options, this is not an excuse for a meal. And its really a poor excuse for drunk food. Go get some pizza, you will thank me in the morning.
It was late. I was hungry. A whole pan of freshly-prepared classic poutine was only $6.95, less than the price of the single skewer I had at Salt Bar a few hours earlier. After a night of great company but horrible dining experiences, T Poutine stood out as the culinary star of the evening.
The fries were fresh and thick cut. The gravy was savory and delicious. Some reviews complain that it is watered down, but I much prefer this version over one that is thick with cornstarch. The cheese curds squished and squeaked pleasantly under my teeth. The only thing I didn't love about the dish was that the curds were noticeably cold in the center.
I saw that they had different types of poutine on the menu, but I like my poutine to taste like poutine, not nachos or a pot pie. Just stick with the classic poutine if you come here and you shouldn't be too unhappy.
Btw, I get that poutine might taste better in Montreal. I find this argument annoying, akin to saying that gelato tastes better in Italy, Guinness tastes better in Ireland, dim sum tastes better in Hong Kong, or ramen tastes better in Japan. We're in NY - deal with (and perhaps even love) the substitutes because we're lucky to have them!
I have two general problems with this place -- bad customer service and bad poutine -- which is all to say that you should stay away from it at all costs.
First, I came to this place at around 1:00am on a Friday night with a few friends. (I should mention that, even though it was a Friday night, the place was not busy at all and there was no one in line in front or behind us at this point.) Four of us ordered the classic poutine and the fifth person ordered a burger. Three of our poutines came relatively quickly, but the fourth poutine and burger were not anywhere in sight even though the three people who had ordered poutine were almost finished their dishes (I should reiterate that we all ordered at the same time). One of us went up to the counter to ask what happened to the fourth poutine and burger, to which an extremely RUDE woman shouted that they're "working on it." What the hell? It's pretty obvious that they completely forgot about the additional poutine and burger and, rather than owning up to it, they decided to give us attitude about it. That doesn't seem like a good way of running a new restaurant, especially in the current economic climate. Then, when the burger finally came out, it was cooked well-done instead of medium as was asked for. When the cook was notified of this, he didn't say anything or offer to make another one or anything. Just overall BAD customer service.
My other problem with this place is with the poutine itself. I don't understand why it's so hard for NYC places to get poutine right. In Montreal, even the crappiest hole in the wall can offer decent poutine. But this super trendy place, which even has the word "poutine" in the name, cannot seem to do it right. The fries were too dry and cold, the gravy was too gloppy and salty and flavorless, and the cheese curds were the wrong consistency (and were probably too old, as they did not have the essential "squeak" that lets you know it's fresh).
Do yourself a favor and stay away from this place. Spend your hard-earned money at a more deserving restaurant.
And if you're really looking for good poutine, grab your passport and drive up I-87 to Montreal. Stop into a place called La Banquise. You won't regret it.
My friend got the spicy pepper fries to go and I have to say they were pretty amazing!
I must come back to get some of the cheese fries. This place is a little piece of fat boy heaven
Let me start off by saying that I love Disco Fries, Poutine, Chili-Cheese Fries, Cheese fries. Steak Fries with Cheese, Animal Style Fries, Pizza fries, Philly Fries and any other variation that includes cheese and fries.
I found out about this place about two months ago through Urban Daddy and couldn't wait to visit. I've called every couple of days, walked by Ludlow St, and checked their website throughout this summer anticipating T-Poutine and it's menu of different types of Poutine. I called last week and was surprised when someone actually answered the phone.
Looking for some food to coat our stomachs because we had been drinking and were going to keep on drinking, we kidnapped Allen "Apples" and decided to finally to visit what I thought was going to be Heaven...........
Awful!
We ordered the Classic, Burger, and Meat Lovers Fries and we were all disappointed. The gravy was gross, the cheese curds should have been melted or warm at least, and the Burger was just a mess.
I wonder what a Canadian would say about this place?
Two stars because they are open until 4 am and They have those cool chalkboards in the bathroom.
'Humiliation galore.'
I should have read the reviews here. I should have gone with my gut when I saw the logo 'Pimp Your Fries'. I should have walked out like I wanted when the chef reprimanded the cashier in front of us and another customer. But it's too late for should have's. Now my goal is to stop anyone else from making the same mistake.
I know your curiosity is going to make you think the reviewers here might be wrong or too harsh. I understand it might be late and you've had too many drinkys and think poutine is just the right thing to do. I get that Canada's greatest export is appealing. But this is not it. Don't do it.
2 small sliders for $9.75? psssh...
Cheese curds or cheese wheels? What the hell man, melt the cheese or cut it smaller or something!
Gravey.. Canned or bottled?
Truffle fries... Concept sounds nice, execution is just oily/greasy fries..
Save your 10-20 bucks and go get fast food, it's not that different.
This place is Awesome! I love poutines, and I have been craving a good poutine place in the city after the Inn LW12 changed ownership and ruined their previously decent poutine.
We had the breakfast poutine which was delicious with a perfectly-prepared over-easy egg served on top like a croque-madame. We also loved the traditional poutine which stands out with delicious squeaky cheese curds and savory gravy.
Thierry Pepin, the owner, and Kathleen Lucier are very friendly and really care about the quality of their establishment. If you have been craving some real poutine, this is your place!
I think "Meh. I've experienced better." is exactly how I would describe this place.
I was in Montreal two weeks ago and had Poutine at La Banquise, I LOVED IT! Their gravy was thick and savory; and the cheese curds were chunks of what tasted like mozzerella.
This place... Meh. Their gravy was kind of watered down and the cheese curds were cheddar cheese which melted after a few minutes. So I ended up with cheese fries and gravy. That's not poutine, that's called, "Cheese fries with gravy"
If you've recently taken a trip to Quebec and really want Poutine... well, it's like this:
You ever have a dish that grandma makes really well and mom swears she can make it the same way but it's not quite right? Yeah... that's this place. It's not BAD, it's just not how I like it.
Let me be honest. Until today I've never had poutine, especially not the authentic Montreal style. So I'm coming at this from as total virgin to poutine. I don't have the real thing to compare to. I'm reviewing this place from a non bias perspective. Just stating the facts.
It's a cute little place situated in the LES. They offer a little under a dozen different Poutine styles and combinations. We tried had the classic and added applewood bacon to it (no brainer.) All for about $8-9.
The gravy did seem like it was the canned variety, not too much gravy flavor to it. And it wasn't hot enough to melt the cheese curds which was abundant. The fries were so-so quality. The flavors were very salty. In my opinion from someone whose never had the real deal, it was okay. It could be better and I cant wait to have the real thing, but it hits the spot if you're in a pure mood for fries of any kind. I wouldn't come here JUST looking for this place, we happened to be around the area taking care of business and had 15 minutes to spare so we popped in. I guess reputation spreads like wildfire in this city as this place was virtually empty if not for us and one other couple.
It's kind of sad that if they don't do something quick about the recipe this place is probably going to fold in no time.
To think that the food here is good, you would have to be drunk, high, or a combination of the two. Seriously. This looks like a great place to have fries- the menu sounds appetizing...it only SOUNDS appetizing. What you get is borderline horrific food from a small place that should probably go out of business (but wait, there are lots of young people out and about at 4 AM with a huge craving for anything shitty...shit this is). I have never given a place 1 star, I mean, "Eek! Me thinks not" First off, the fries were not cooked well- and how could you go wrong with fries? Cold, soggy, sad fries. The hamburger meat was flavorless and boring...something literally anyone could cook. AND cheese curd...flavorless rubbish that should not be eaten. The only okay thing there was the gravy, but come on, it's gravy (probably pre-packaged, by the sound of things). If you think I am being rough, read some other reviews. This place got an overall rating of 2 stars. 2. And that's being nice. Absolute crap- you can do way better, even if you are drunk and stoned out of your mind.