Reviews & Ratings for Frank Restaurant

06/30/11

Can't Handle Big Parties + Dishonest

by AdamG777

I had read a review about how Frank is bad at handling big parties, so I knew that it would be a good idea to make sure that all members of my party of 16 people were at the restaurant 15 minutes prior to our 8:30 pm reservation time. And, when I called to make the reservation I was promised that the restaurant would hold the one large table in the room with the bar for me so long as all members of my party were ready to be seated at 8:30pm (so I was aware of Frank's policy). Yet, despite having all 16 people show up at 8:15pm (15 minutes ahead of schedule), the host informed us upon arrival that he had just sat another group of 16 at the table that I had reserved. The host then said that the person who confirmed my reservation on the phone (his name is Vasi) was not authorized to reserve any particular table and that there was nothing that could be done about it. I was so frustrated because I had called to confirm the reservation on several occasions that week to make sure that there would be no screw-up. Eventually, the restaurant was able to seat us at 8:45pm at a very cramped table in the main dining room. I spoke to the manager about this several times and he was unsympathetic and rude. The way the restaurant treated us was very dishonest and I would never go back again. The food is just average (it used to be good) and the service is awful. Not a nice way to treat people.

05/07/11

Don't Go

by justtryingtowriteareview

Terrible place, terrible service, so-so food. Had been to Frank's several times over the last few years and always considered it a good place for Italian. Sadly, after tonight, I can promise you that I will never return. My husband and I were seated at a two person table and almost immediately after we were seated, the host seated 3 people at the two seater next to us, so that one person was practically sitting on my husband's lap. Frank's is a small restaurant, but tonight's seating was ridiculous. Every time the other patron adjusted her seat she knocked into either my husband or the table. When we noted it to the host, he shrugged and basically told us to screw off. For the first time ever, after ten years in the city, we left a restaurant before dinner was served.

01/25/11

Best Dish I've had so far this year.

by GregPoole

Spectacular ambiance, spectacular service, inspired cuisine. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

12/15/10

Charming, Softspoken and Characteristic of Old New York

by ChickenMan23

Had my birthday party at Frank last week, walk in without reservation. Shortly I was able to sit at the bar with few and then more friends as they arrived.

I was very pleased, the atmosphere is softspoken as in the restaurant doesn't define but enhances a certain mood of contentment. I felt very at home compared to restaurants which force you to conform to a style such as business, upscale. Everyone seemed to blend in akin to an old new york speakeasy where people of different walks mingled without caution.

As far as the food, I had the Rosemary Chicken which I can say with confidence should be a signature dish. The chicken was delicate, which moved to dazzling with the mashed potatoes and ended with delicious as I ate more than my share of birthday tiramisu.

The service was great, unobtrusive to my party while being polite and attentive.

Price? My dinner was around ~$20 with dessert (I don't drink), an extreme bargain considering the area is filled with $70 haircuts.

Needless to say, I'm going back!

07/22/10

GONE WAY DOWN...AVOID!!!

by ed111

A group of six of us ate at Frank's last night. Half the group were "foodie" types, the other half fast food types. Regardless, the unanimous consensus was the food sucked -- big time. My wife had the mussels. She thought they were day old and felt sick later that evening. My daughter had the gnocchi which was very mushy, and I had the tagliatelle with mushrooms. the Tagliatelle wasn't cooked evenly. Pieces of the pasta were stuck together and uncooked -- crunchy. Likewise, some of the mushrooms were cooked and others hard and rubbery. The "fast food" type group ordered spaghetti and meatballs -- the weekly Wednesday night special. Their comment was it tasted like spaghettios. I've never had spaghettios but I know it comes from a can. Bottom line, this place has gone way down. The food really sucked big time.

• Pros: The wine was nice
• Cons: BAD FOOD

05/20/10

Lazy food and service. I will not go back.

by rach52

So, I had noticed the definite decline of Frank and so so food, but wanted to give it another shot. I went last night with my boyfriend and the deal is sealed - I don't want to waste anymore money there. First, the atmosphere obviously is not good, but I could deal with that if the food was worth it. It's not. The pasta was clearly from dry pasta out of a box, and the sauce is just not that tasty. The eggplant rollatini app was $14.95, and it was miniscule and ranked on the far lower end of the spectrum compared to rollatini elsewhere, including the frozen section. The service is dismissive; you basically just sit there and wait until someone feels like coming over.

Overall, we felt robbed when we left. I am totally willing to spend money on a good meal, but the prices at Frank are unjustifiably greedy. Lesson learned.

• Pros: umm? the ravioli was ok
• Cons: most food, price, atmosphere, service

04/24/09

Great Ragu sauce

by shert

Rigatoni Al Ragu was like heaven. Tons of food, delicious real Italian gravy, meaty. The wine choices are good too. Daily specials are always tasty. The down fall is it gets really crowded and there isn't a lot of space so you get bumped a lot, but that kind of adds to the feel that you're in someone's kitchen. Bravo!

• Pros: Food, ambience
• Cons: small restaurant

12/21/08

Obsessed...

by NYC1223

with the burrata mozzarella (expensive, but totally worth it). Crowded, but that's part of the experience.

11/29/08

Somebody please beat the hostess over the head with a sausage...

by jcandkceatout

My date and I went to Franks last Tuesday to enjoy Frank's wonderfully silky tiramisu. We were seated in the dining room close to the computer that was feeding music to the speakers throughout the restaurant. We wound being one of 2 tables left at the end of the night. Apparently, the hostess who was young and had light brown hair (the description is here to assist management in identifying this vile person) felt like she could change the music from whatever they were playing that was pleasant to music that resembled a baby lamb being massacred by its own mother while its father was urinating on him. I can't stress enough how bad this music was. It was so bad that the illegal Mexicans wanted to cross the border once again. It was the one time in my life where I thought that being deaf would be a blessing. My date, who was having a wonderful time listening to my melodical voice ended the date prematurely because of this wretched hostess who obviously enjoys listening to children suffer. I've been to Franks many times in the past and always enjoyed it but if they are going to allow this kind of music to be played, I'll have no choice but to just get up and leave. It was that bad. I'd rather have Yanni or Paula Abdul sing at my wedding.

PS - the tiramisu was really really good.

• Pros: Really good tiramisu.
• Cons: Really terrible music and lack of concern from the hostess over the patrons enjoyment of the music.

11/28/08

Terrible service, unethical business

by JamalCrawford08

This place is terrible, unethical, and dishonest. Let us know that the "specials" would cost more than any other entree on your regular menu.

I could sense that the waiter kid was trying to push the idea of ordering some "special" entree that was probably the most costly and neglected to tell us what the other "specials" were.

The table was also too cramped, and it was only after the night that I found out we could have waited for a table in their other room. The cramped table by the bar made things miserable for us.

Never again. Guess what? There are numerous places to spend good, hard-earned money on for dinner around the East Village area. You're not the only game in town, so wake up and improve your business, a##holes. I will take my money and friends elsewhere for dinner in the future.

• Pros: Nothing, really.
• Cons: Unethical business practice.