10/26/09

No idea how to run a business

by New Yorker

So I've been there once. They made us order an obscene quantity of food in advance for the privelege of sitting in their empty cafeteria (literally each one of us payed a ridiculous amount and took home several pounds of food. Price of admission?)

The main reason I'm writing is that I called them a month and a half ago to make reservations for my friend's bachelor party this coming weekend (close to hotel where my friends are staying and they take reservations). Spoke to "Junior" the reservation manager. He commented that there was no one else in the book, and that I was calling very early. He told me he'd call back to confirm on Oct. 7. I called a week after the 7th as I hadn't heard from him. When he got on the line, he asked "so what time did you want to come in?" as if we hadn't "made a reservation" a month ago. I told him I wanted to come in at 8, per the reservation.

His response?

Turns out his boss decided to have some friends in, so they were booting us out of our reservation. When I protested, he told me "but he made this reservation a while ago." Really? Before a month and a half ago when I made mine, and when you told me "Wow, this is really early - I can definitely give you whatever slot you want." Great way to run a business. You've just ensured that me, my friends, my friends' friends' and anyone who objects to being slapped around for the privelege of going to a marginal bbq place will never eat there again.

If you want bbq without a primadonna attitude, go to RUB. Or Dinosaur BBQ. Or Hill Country. Or Blue Smoke.

I've lived in this city my entire life, and I've never been subjected to customer service this ludicrously poor.

• Pros: They serve beer
• Cons: They're a bunch of idiots with no conception of service

08/11/09

It is NOT "the Best BBQ in NY".

by kelly_daniel

I decided to take my parents, who were visiting from VA, to Daisy May's b/c it got great reviews on Oprah and GMA. Huge Mistake! It's a cafeteria style restaurant which means you have to order your food and pick it up before you sit down. At 6PM, the food had already been sitting out for a while and was very dry and tasteless. The only item that was good was the sweet tea, which is hard to find in the city. My parents and I were very disappointed and next time we will try the BBQ place in Harlem. Hopefully we will have better luck there.

• Pros: Sweet Tea
• Cons: dry food and everything that comes along with it

08/01/09

Stay away from this place

by hweed

I was there on my Bday .location is not the greatest at all.Like the chef says hes is there for the food not for the location or the place. No place to seat...I was looking foward to see for my self cause all the news about this place on TV.Well stay away from this place Im still burping.The seasoning is better you do it yourself and beleive I eat out alot.Even my husband say the worst BBQ ever.The ONLY THING I LIKE was the CORNBREAD evrything else not real BBQ at all.The people that goes there very low life.You need to go to the bathroom YOU get a KEY i felt i was i HIGH SCHOOL all over again asking for a PASS.Well parking another story is better after 8 pm.But walkig around tis place is not the safe place to be alone.Good Luck

• Pros: Not impress at all is better BBQ in nyc than THIS ONE
• Cons: Way too overprice,bad seasoning Im still burping

06/01/09

Not Even Close to Southern BBQ!!!

by dbarnes963

We went to Daisy May's Saturday night. 3 of the 4 of us are from Tennessee, but live here now. In summation: totally and completely underwhelmed by the entire experience. Not even CLOSE to Southern BBQ! We ordered the "Tasting Menu" for all of us so that we could try a little of everything and were assured a reserved table/ service. (You must pay up front on the phone when making a reservation and you must order from the catering menu which basically gives you the chicken, ribs, pulled pork, several kinds of ribs, corn bread and 3 side items.) Service was great, atmosphere is bland and boring as was the food. The BBQ sauce tasted like it could have been bottled from the grocery, although the cole slaw had a nice taste. Mac and Cheese was bland and soupy. We had to ask for the corn bread that was supposed to come with the meal because they gave everyone "Grecian Bread" (as we call it in the South, although it is also referred to as "Texas Toast.") You can only order wine BY THE WHOLE BOTTLE, not the glass! Since no one was drinking wine but me, I had no choice but to go without. There were only 2 selections anyway- Pinot Grigio and Malbec. $15 charge for bringing in your own wine. I really have nothing positive to say about this except that those who do not know better, might like it?

• Pros: Good Service
• Cons: Food, atmosphere, wine

10/17/08

So much food

by TardyKat

My friends and I ordered up individual plate. What appears to be small portion soon reveals itself. There was just too much food. I ordered the pulled pork with creamed corn and dirty rice. The pulled pork was very tender but soon, the sweetness of the thing was too much. The creamed corn was delish, the dirty rice a bit dry. But if you mix it with the pulled pork, it's not too bad. I ordered the sweet tea in a mason jar, it's very sweet and very good. I tasted my friend's brisket, it was just as thick and rich as my pulled pork. The sweet potato mash was nice as well. The creamed spinach, I did not like.

• Pros: no fuss BBQ, cafeteria-style service
• Cons: limited seating

09/06/08

was alright...

by nycguy2003

was there last night; friend's b.day. this was my 2nd time there. note to newbies: no waiter service, you pick up your food, and head to dining area; which i think is a bit small; why they dont expand, and provide outdoor seating is beyond me. they raised prices from last time i've gone, a thumbs down for me. food, overall, decent; I ordered the Oklahoma beef rib; that was really, i would definitely recommend that; i tried the ribs as our party shared; i'm not an expert on BBQ, but i thought the ribs shoulda been more tender, for all the raves that it gets. the sides, avg., tasted heavy; i wouldve liked if it were made w/ a lighter recipe. the staff, overall, was generally nice, the 2x i went there. dining area, i cant quite describe it, quaint, feels a little like ur in a family game room, long wooden tables (3); seats 12 (each), so basically, the restaurant can seat 36 people.

the restaurant is a little out of the way, but i suppose u can take the cross-town bus (M42) to 11th ave., and 4 blocks will get u there.

i read a bunch of the review, and i couldnt agree w/ the rave reviews, so i wonder if it was much better some time back.

or..., is consistency the problem?; it would be great if restaurants kept their food consistence, whether good or bad; that way, i'd know where to go back to.

if ur in the area, i would give it a try, but i wont go out of my way to make a trip.

take care...

• Pros: Oklahoma beef rib
• Cons: the bump in price; ribs were avg., not as spectacular as rave reviews might suggest

07/28/08

Over rated food no ambience

by rfoster

I love BBQ and was drawn to Daisy Mays by the rave reviews, but the food just doesn't cut it. The previous reviewer had mentioned that the chefs used too much sugar and I have to agree, everything tasted overly sweet from the baked beans to the pulled pork and Brisket. When you consider that the special plates (1 main plus 2 fixings) costs around $17 you'd expect better quality food, instead we found ourselves walking onto the back room with a collection of plastic containers filled with over-sweetened food. The brisket was bizarre to say the least, in my experience brisket should be sliced and resemble beef, what we had was small cubes of beef drowned in a sticky goo, the sweetness masked the natural flavor of all the food.

There are better options for BBQ in New York, both Virgil's and Blue Smoke have far superior food. If you find yourself wanting to see what all the hype is about try the street carts they have scattered around the city, that way you can sample the food with lower expectations and a fraction of the price. I will not be returning there any time soon.

• Pros: They serve beer
• Cons: The food is over sweet and over priced

05/08/08

Worth a Visit by Budget-minded Diners Who Don't Mind a Grim Commercial District

by nycinephile

Three members of the New York City Thrifty Gourmets Meetup group and I field tested Daisy May's this past Tuesday evening. We sampled ample portions of the dry and wet ribs, pulled pork, mashed potatoes, dirty rice, peaches, sweet potatoes, corn bread and iced tea. The ribs were thick with meat, if a bit fatty. The pulled port was moist and rich, but overly sweet. The mashed potatoes were a real treat...creamy and laced, I thought, with some cheese...cheddar, perhaps? My fellow Meetup-ers and I agreed that the cooks used too much sugar and salt when preparing the dishes.

The man who took our orders was distant and unenthusiastic. We could have simply picked up our orders from an assembly line. With only one manager-on-duty and a counterperson, the restaurant would not have been able to serve a large crowd.

The restaurant was brightly lit and generally clean.

My bill came to just over $19. Daisy May's is worth a visit, therefore, by budget-minded diners who don't mind trekking through one of the city's grim commercial districts (I saw a man squatting and relieving himself as I walked to the restaurant).

We were glad that we visited this well-reviewed restaurant, but our search for the city's tastiest, affordable 'cue will continue....

• Pros: Ambience, Value
• Cons: Service

03/16/08

The Best Pulled Pork Sandwich by far!

by Yeya

I was there this weekend and I really like the fact you pay ahead of time and don't have to wait to be seated. Some people may not like that but to each is own.The menu is very limited but they're pulled pork sandwich was one of the best I've ever had! The sticky ribs and bourbon peaches were excellent as well. Seating area was a little crowded, would be nice to have more space but overall a great place! Their staff were very nice and helpful. Will definately go back when I'm in the mood for BBQ!

• Pros: Awesome food!
• Cons: Limited menu, small seating area

09/22/07

Be careful of the Big Pig Gig

by gullet

Was there recently for the Big Pig Gig for a half pig at $240. It's advertised for reserved seating up to 6. What they neglect to tell you or advertise is that each additional person beyond the 6 is an extra $35. Does that mean you get an extra 1/3 of a pig? Nope. You pay for the "waitress service" and a few other additional meat options, none of which justifies the extra $70 expense. I have to admit that I should have called and confirmed that eight people were coming, but in New York, it's tough to coordinate anything and you almost always get some last minute changes. No where on the website or when I called, was I told that extra persons were an additional $35.

Waitress service consists of the staff of dropping the pig on a picnic table that has a plastic tablecloth. After the staff leave sides and that's it. I had been looking forward to enjoying the meal especially after reading the glowing NY Times article, but after getting charged an extra $35 per person after the sixth the meal seemed expensive and it ruined my mood. Even with eight people and paying an extra $70, we barely dented the half pig. One person probably took home almost 4 lbs of meat alone. While the pig was good, instead of a nice crispy skin found on some roasted pigs like the ones in Spain, this was tough and almost impossible to chew. The pork was tender and the salt and the honey enhanced bbq sauce was nice but if anyone goes to Daisy May's for the half pig, be wary of possible additional charges for people after the sixth. They may change the policy, but until they do, I will be definitely telling people to consider other barbeque places that are not so expensive for whole barbeque cuts.

• Pros: Go for the Beef Ribs
• Cons: The Big Pig Gig is expensive and you can't even take that big of a group.