09/12/08

Great Coffee/Wine Bar

by Korinek

Cocoa Bar is one of the best coffee/wine bar in the LES. There aren't really any great places to get coffee; Sugar is awful, Starbuck's is far too commercial, and D'Espresso is way too overpriced. The place is really cozy and I have no idea why the prior comments were so negative. I honestly go to Cocoa bar a couple times a week and stay for several hours because I am studying for my CPA and I have never been treated poorly, in fact everyone is very kind and they don't make you pay until you are ready to leave. My brother who is also a coffee/wine snob also loves it!

• Pros: Great Coffee and Ambience

03/06/08

over rated

by dxmup

place looks cool, music is too loud, staff is nice, way over priced, the previous comment seems to come from someone who works there (good luck reading the tiny print in near darkness and who insults people in a comment thread?)

• Pros: nice staff
• Cons: over priced all around, very loud

10/25/07

try it out for yourself

by bizbuzz22

ok, i never write reviews but it REALLY annoys me when people blame others for their own stupidity (refering to the comment below). cocoa bar's menu CLEARLY states that their cocktails are made with wine and port bases. this is what is innovative about their drinks. i immedietely noticed this the first time i went to cocoa bar and ordered a cocktail just to try it out and OH BOY was it amazing. you would never know the "hard liquor" is missing. so, next time you choose to ignore a menu, don't expect anyone to feel bad for you and give you a refund. but, please don't flat out lie because you missed out on important information. anyway, try it out for yourself. you will see, like many others that you can't tell the difference. so far i've tried the blueberry mojitos, the chocolate martini and the espresso martini and all have been EXCEPTIONALLY GREAT.

• Pros: great drinks, chocolates and ambience
• Cons: full on weekends

10/11/07

worst cocktail i've ever had

by cameron82

$12 "Bloody Mary" made from sake and port. That's NOT a Bloody Mary!!! It was never advertised as a non-traditional bloody mary, nor did the bartender say anything. They had already taken my credit card and refused to give me a refund. Then when i asked for a beer instead i got a full-price, $6 Sam Adams straight out of the bottle.

• Pros: free wireless internet
• Cons: $12 falsely marketed cocktails, argumentative wait staff

07/06/07

Not What I Expected....:)

by southerngentnyc

I had high expectations for Cocoa Bar. The service was great. The space is cool and minimal. The menu is not what I expected. There are no "in house" made dessert creations. Pretty much, the menu includes truffles, bon bons, a heated brownie and drinks. Don't go expecting creative chocolate cakes, pies, souffles,etc. They do not exist.

• Pros: service, atmosphere
• Cons: menu

06/05/07

must visit!

by klutz111

we stumbled across cocoa bar last night as latin jazz tunes were being played by a live duo. AMAZING. the jazz added such an incredible vibe to the ambience. tried the sake and wasabi pairing- yum! as well as a blueberry pepper mojito (heaven), a white russian and margarita. these were the best cocktails we had in a long time. my mum had a cappucino and swore she can never have one anywhere else again. not quite so sure why the other reviewer has a hard time ordering a coffee from the bar unless he's less than 4 feet tall....highly recommend you check it out. i didn't know there was a park slope location too! cool....

• Pros: beautiful. great drinks and chocolate. amazing live jazz.
• Cons: might need to wait for a table. a bit pricey but worth the extra few dollars.

06/05/07

go to park slope instead.

by klm1977

i have been a big fan of the cocoa bar in park slope for some time now, so i was please to see from my apartment that a cocoa bar was opening on my block. but that all changed once i realized that i would be able to hear their music over my own stereo or tv. (a phone call to them does nothing.) i can only imagine how loud it was from inside the bar.

it is also the most awkward place to order a coffee. it's like stepping up to a bar to get your drink, which is the last thing i want to do in the a.m. it's difficult to get to the register or prepare your coffee. then you can walk around the place with your empty sugar packets while you search out the trash can hidden in the corner. the place looks spectacular from a design perspective, but not well planned from a customer perspective.

my advice: go to park slope and enjoy their outdoor garden this summer.

• Pros: pretty, well-crafted beer selection, tasty sweets
• Cons: somewhat overpriced, loud, one woman who consistently had served me the wrong drink

06/02/07

cool place, great cocktails

by krumpie

me and my girlfriend went on a thursday night when there was a DJ spinning. the music was great and really added to the environment which is super nice - trendy but not too pretentious. we mainly drank their cocktails which ROCK (we weren't in the mood for the chocolate shpiel). the blueberry mojito was fantastic and so was the strawberry margarita. my absolute favorite was the portonic- I guess its more of a guys drink. honestly, best cocktails we had in a while. we also nibbled on one of the chocolate bars (something spicy....) and it was really good as well as the beer float. overall great experience. would definitely go back.

• Pros: great music, really nice scene, AMAZING drink menu
• Cons: none that i can think of

06/01/07

beautiful atmosphere

by lillywilly

after reading the great review in the NY press I finally checked out cocoa bar with a group of my girlfriends. the bartender was really great (and cute!) and the crowd was happening. we tried several of the wine pairings and i must admit the biggest winners were the pbj chocolates, the flight series with sherry and the prosecco with passion fruit. my friend loves the sake and wasabi pairing but it wasn't my favorite. we all agree that the spicy brownie gelato dessert and figs were the best things we've ever eaten. i've never been to brooklyn but i might make the treck just to check out the cocoa bar there. only downside- they were out of a couple of bon bons we really wanted to try ;(

• Pros: great service. delicious product. gorgeous atmosphere.
• Cons: out of chocolates we wanted to try.

Editorial Review

by Contributor

Chocolate and wine bar in the Lower East Side creates an environment catering to the after dinner crowd.