09/10/09

Beautiful ambiance and fresh, delicious food

by Lisa22

I went on a Friday night with a couple of friends. The space is really beautiful and has a cool live green wall that gives the space a lush, tropical feeling, definitely a bright spot for the neighborhood.

We were greeted right away and recommended some cocktails. I decided on the Berried Treasure although sweeter than I generally drink it was refreshing. Our waitress was friendly and attentive. She told us about their new chef and the Greenmarket Prix Fixe. I have to admit I was a little skeptical about $25 for three courses. I chose the gazpacho, Cavatelli pasta and the Neapolitan for dessert. The gazpacho was really unique with fruit flavors but well balanced with just the right acidity and salt. The pasta had a really fresh texture and a pungent but yummy mushroom sauce. The dessert was well executed but rich for such a large serving. I was surprised how large the portions were. I will be back to try some of the other entrees because I am intrigued by the variety of fresh fish options and the use of local and seasonal ingredients. All in all it was a good experience and I will be returning.

• Pros: fresh, seasonal ingredients and unique flavors

08/23/09

amazing experience

by msica

Great food, very fresh and healthy but still a lot of attention to detail! Was perfect as I'm a vegetarian and my boyfriend a carnivore and we both found dishes we loved. Waitstaff is friendly and hip, great music, and after wards we went downstairs and had a few more drinks and danced. Definitely will be coming back here.

08/23/09

Simply beautiful

by RogerSmith

The food here is marvelous! Beautiful to look at, vibrantly flavored, with local ingredients. The restaurant is now less focused on vegetarian fare, and has a majority of meat containing fare. The restaurant is gorgeous, calming and elegant. And great value for your money

• Pros: great food

07/22/09

Great food, cool decor

by curlyabby

The food was really amazing, it exceded my expectations. The decor is very nice, has a cool edge to it. Only disappointment is that it's pretty quiet if you go on the earlier side, but it starts to fill up around 9:00 and once it does the restaurant takes on a much better vibe. Service was a bit slow, but the staff was very nice and accomodating and the food more than made up for the small wait. Will definitely go back again!!

• Pros: Food, atmosphere

07/22/09

Surprisingly great

by MindExplosion

My wife and I, who dine out often, were pleasantly surprised with our dinner at Broadway East last friday. We went into the meal with very moderate expectations, but we really enjoyed our dishes (our summer arolls appetizer was light and slightly spicy, my shrimp pasta was al dente and perfectly seasoned, and her crab cake was, for a change, mostly crabmeat) and the vibe, which is loungey but unpretentious. I've seen a few criticisms of the service in other reviews, but that certainly wasn't our experience - our server was nice and attentive. The room was less than half full when we arrived (around 9:15pm), but by the time we'd gotten our entrees, it had filled up. After dinner we enjoyed heading downstairs to the lounge to have a few drinks and listen to the decent DJ (who, we realized at that point, was supplying the music for the restaurant as well, which was a cool touch). Overall, we hope to return soon, and I'd urge those who haven't been to Broadway East to give the place a chance and judge it for themselves.

• Pros: Quality food, loungey but casual vibe

06/19/09

good service, great decoration

by bnur

Soft music, velvet seats, good lighting, excellent decoration, a wide selection of drinks and cocktails, overall, Broadway East offers a good romantic getaway for you and your special someone. The service was also great. The servers were very friendly and attentive. Serves some of the best veggie burgers. no lie

• Pros: atmosphere, food, service, decoration
• Cons: none that i can think of

02/03/09

Delectable new American cuisine on the Lower East Side

by condogirl

I know this place very well, having eaten here at least 5 or 6 times. Whenever I'm in the mood for a special evening of scrumptious food in beautifully comfortable surroundings, I come to Broadway East. The tranquil, even romantic setting is a welcome relief from the gritty LES streets. This place has come a long way from when it opened last Spring; it's much, much more than vegetarian. If you take a look at their new menu on their website (the place has a new chef) you'll see the mouthwatering offerings that would appeal to carnivores and non-carnivores alike.

• Pros: ambience, food, music, ability to talk without having to shout

A-listers convene at this hidden Chinatown lounge, tucked beneath Broadway East restaurant.

by Amy Abate

Walk through the restaurant, past the DJ booth and down a winding staircase, and behold the belly of the BEast. High ceilings, exposed brick walls and capacity for just 60 people add an intimate downtown vibe. Find a spot along the back wall, gaze up at the skylight, and snag a complimentary taste of one of the specialty cocktails that are passed out throughout the night to ironic-looking partygoers. The sound system and lineup of guest DJs are positively sublime--after all, BEast is affiliated with Andrew W.K.'s Santos' Party House.

Hits: The intimate seating makes BEast a great date spot. Grab one of the tiny alcoves in the long dark hallway to get your groove on.

Misses: With ingredients ranging from tomato vodka to pumpkin seed, BEast's specialty organic cocktails may seem too creative for their own good.

08/18/08

Awesome desserts (although not many vegan options), but usually empty

by jcus

I went there a few times, trying to give it several chances since I live nearby and it seems like a nice brunch spot. For lunch, my friend got the tempeh sandwich, which was really heavy and mayonaisey, and I had the veggie burger because the last time I'd had it at a brunch, it was delicious. It came up this time on two pieces of bread instead of a bun, which was weird, and no french fries. The seaweed salad and the cheese cake were terrific. Other than that, the food was generally very salty and overpriced, and the restaurant was empty except for one other table. When paying our lunch bill, we had to wait a while for the manager to come up an open the cash register since the our server couldn't give us change herself. When I had been there previously, the food was good, the drinks were good, but everything was slow moving. The place is obviously understaffed, and the other blond waitress/manager(?) kept snapping audibly at our waitress.

I ended up going with a friend for dinner a couple nights ago, which was very tasty, although very expensive, but the restaurant was virtually empty on a friday night. I'd go back for a cute brunch (try the tofu scramble or french toast) and delicious desserts, but nothing else.

• Pros: Dessert and Brunch Menu, Nice Decor
• Cons: Overpriced, Understaffed, Salty Food

08/05/08

Not all it should be

by oligray

Having seen this place get a great deal of publicity recently I thought I'd take some vegetarian friends along to show them the hot new joint in my neighborhood. The decor is certainly well done and the downstairs area flanked by vines makes up for the somewhat formal main floor. Beer options are good, but here's where it started to go wrong. Our waitress (who was fairly aloof the whole time) poured probably 1/4 my beer over the table by upending the bottle straight into my glass. Whilst this was mopped up swiftly, sadly I wasn't offered any recompense. Food wise, the cheese platter starter was well presented with delicious bread, but for $14 for 3 pieces I would like more than just a sliver of the blue cheese please. My companions veggie burgers also looked good, but my free range chicken must have been doing too much exercise, because whilst it was crispy on the outside it was quite chewy on the inside! All in all, given the relatively high prices I expected a better experience all round.

• Pros: Plush interior for the neighborhood, vegan options
• Cons: Expensive, lacks atmosphere