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- Neighborhoods:
- Theater District - Times Square, Midtown
- Categories:
- Restaurants, Bars & Clubs, Bars & Pubs, Taverns, Barbecue Restaurants
- Cuisine:
- Traditional American, Southern
- Price:
- $$$
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At a Glance
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90% ambiance
“Reasonable prices too for the location.”
72% dessert
“However, the french fries with brown gravy and apple pie was very good.”
78% drinks
“The "knock me off the porch" tea was fabulous!”
82% food quality
“Waiter was nice but didn't spend much time at the table, just doing the minimum needed although it was relatively slow during my mid-afternoon meal.”
80% menu variety
“great atmosphere, good meat, great variety on the menu.”
91% overall
“It was also a great place to have drinks while waiting for a table.”
100% return potential
“The hushpuppies remain the best we've tasted, but the rest of the meal, including fake tasting macaroni and cheese will ensure that we won't return in the near future.”
77% service
“While the food was very good & the ambiance was nice the service was lacking.”
83% value
“Although none of the menu prices are expensive considering the quantity and quality, i'd say that the best value can probably be had in getting one of their sandwiches -- i.e. the ham or pulled pork.”
57% wait time
“The service was a little slow- and that is the only bad thing I have to say about the place.”
Write a Tip for Virgil's Barbecue
Tips for Virgil's Barbecue
September 04, 2012
I thought the food and drinks were pretty good. The service was just okay. The waiter we had was very slow and we were probably waiting for our check for a good thirty minutes when he saw us just sitting there. I do prefer Southern Hospitality on 9th ave but this is good for second place.
0
Heart
March 24, 2011
Take the boys!!. a friend had been urging me to go here for 15 years, but i resisted, too touristy. i took my 20 year old son this week and it was fabulous!! the atmosphere was fun, lots of sports on tv. our waitress, elizabeth, was delightful and informative. she even showed us pictures of the food on her phone. the food was great, huge portions. my son had a two meat combo and i had the bbq salad, perfect for my low carb diet. i would go back again, for sure!!
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Heart
December 31, 2010
Mediocre BBQ. The place was packed for dinner on a Friday night. We shared the Pig Out and an appetizer of onion rings. The meat was dried out and the onion ring salty. Even though it was crowded, service was brisk. We did have to wait a bit to catch our waitress's eye for the bill.
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Heart
February 17, 2010
What happened to the good ol' Virgils?!.
I used to frequent Virgil's often during the mid-late 90's -- it was a favorite pre-theater dinner destination. The food was delicious, affordable, courteous & efficient waiters -- you could throw a dart at the menu and not go wrong.
Fast forward a few years and the place is a tourist trap, complete with skyrocketed prices, lazy & ignorant waiters, and the food? Every recipe was revamped to taste like fast food crap. The ribs were not the original recipes. They were low-quality "meat" covered in jarred garbage sauce. Between the crap food and what must have been a gas leak, my friends and I got sick while we were there. When we told the waiter we couldn't breathe, that there had to be a ventilation problem or gas leak, we got a blank look and asked if we wanted our garbage to go.
Needless to say, an NYC barbecue legend has gone down the crapper -- where its food belongs.
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Heart
November 19, 2009
Great food.
Stopped by today for my third or fourth visit in as many years. The food has never disappointed. Portion size leaves a bit to be desired, and the prices are somewhat high (but typical for New York).
Waiter was nice but didn't spend much time at the table, just doing the minimum needed although it was relatively slow during my mid-afternoon meal. Still, he got the job done.
Overall a very good visit.
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Heart
September 24, 2009
lack of service. While the food was very good & the ambiance was nice the service was lacking. Not very attentive, never smiling & a bit cold. It was a birthday dinner & our server was unfortunately not "connected" to our celebration,
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Heart
July 31, 2009
Authentic Southern. The best and most authentic southern quisine I have ever had north of the Mason Dixon line. I recomend the biscuits and gravy appetizer and pulled carolina pork sandwich. You'll think you died and went to heaven! The cornbread and collard greens are delicious. As far as cocktails, try the frozen peach bellini, Outrageos! The margeritas are also outstanding. You won't find better food than here!!!!!
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Heart
June 15, 2009
Oustanding!!. Take it from a Texas boy who never expected good barbeque in NYC this place us great! Low price tasty food - very genuine flavors and service!
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Heart
April 03, 2009
Absolutely the best in NYC.
My boyfriend and I are constantly eating at BBQ places everywhere we go and no one has beat out Virgils yet. We have even been down south and eaten the ribs there, where supposedly BBQ is the best, and we still found that Virgils has them beaten. Now as far as other people saying its crowded and you have to wait long, well this is what happens when your a popular restaurant. They do take reservations and that is the only way you get seated faster. Also, there are a variety of ways to eat ribs, the most popular are dry or wet rubbed. Virgils likes to serve dry rubbed ribs but they do have sauces to slather on if you like them wet. They have never disappointed me or my friends that i take there. So in conclusion, if you want to eat ribs at a chain restaurant like Dallas, by all means go ahead. But that only means you don't know what true BBQ is supposed to taste like.
p.s. it doesn't hurt that their beer selection beats out probably any restaurant in NYC
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Heart
February 23, 2009
Overhyped and Overpriced. As a lifelong NYer I try to avoid the Times Square area on a Saturday night, but sometimes you have to do what the group wants. Any how Virgil's is by no means bad and if you are someone who really must have dry-rub BBQ you might still consider. I went with a party of 5 there was about a 45 minute wait which was within the expectations of time and area (although we called earlier and they said they were no longer taking reservations which was irritating). The service was mostly good, although our waiter seemed to disappear when we were trying to get the check. The BBQ was on the dry side. I understand they do a dry rub but pulled pork and ribs should still be moist. Not terrible not worthy of being sent back but definitely not up to par. Then when you combine the fact that the prices are high for what you get it was a mild dissapointment. I would definitely recommend Dallas's as a much better value (but does lack on atmosphere) or if you have the chance visit RUB further downtown (on 23rd if you can get in the place is on the small side). I would give it 2.5 stars but since only whole stars are possible I rounded down because I felt this was slightly below average.
0
Heart
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