Freeman’s Little New York – Downtown

Not a pleasant experience! While our server was excellent, friendly and didn’t get anything wrong at a table of 12 people — the food and drinks were a major disappointment.
Went on an empty stomach and had two «double» mixed drinks before the food arrived and didn’t feel a buzz at ALL, so I’d be genuinely surprised if they didn’t give singles and/​or cheap out on the ozs.
My meal was overpriced and similarly unsatisfying. Fish and chips with poutine. The fish was soft rather than crispy. The poutine was cold and had a thick skin on the gravy when it arrived at the table.

Terrible. Had nachos and they weren’t good, even the cheese wouldn’t stick to the chip. how does that happen? Hamburgers may be home made but sure tasted like a prefab frozen patty. Wings were ok but hard to mess up wings. Fries were frozen kind and they were cold when I got them. People go here because the place has been around for a while and some think it’s hip. Kind of like Starbucks and that’s terrible too so…

I’ve been here quite a few times. Usually just to grab a drink and occasionally ordering food. Its not on my usual «rotation» of go to places, mainly because it is a little out of the way, and I’m not a huge fan of the atmosphere.
This Saturday after most of my usual haunts were without power due to some strong winds in the wake of Tropical Storm Arthur, I decided, along with my fiancé to head down to Freeman’s for some cheap drinks and some food.
It was a bit busier than it normally would have been that early on Saturday night, but there were plenty of seats left. We sat down, ordered our standard $ 10 pitcher and placed our food orders shortly after. The food was a bit slow coming out, but again, I know they did not expect to be that busy at the time of the evening. I had the sweet potato and black bean burger, which came with curry mayo and a side of sweet chilli sauce. I had a caesar salad as a side. The burger was tasty and a little bit different from your standard veggie patty, which I enjoyed. The salad was pretty typical. He had a burger of some sort, I think (the beer was flowing pretty freely at this point) and a side of onion rings, which we assumed were probably of the frozen variety.
All in all, although not blown away by our meals, we had no expectations that we would be. It still isn’t on my list of go to places, but I will probably come to Freeman’s again. Sometimes you just have to take a restaurant for what it is. The food is OK and at a decent price, the beer is cheap. If you are looking for something other than that, it may not be the place for you.

Freeman’s always held a place in my heart. While spending many late nights working at Wendy’s, we would head over to the Quinpool location and all hang out. And Freeman’s downtown was the celebrating site of an impromtu birthday, which I enjoyed. However, on this occasion, I wish I had my money back and will never be back.
Prior to going to the Mooseheads game we chose Freemans (and I must mention… it was early, about 5:10 and the game was not until 7). I am not sure why, I think we just thought it would be a change from our usual Argyle picks. Again, I don’t know why.
So upon arrival, it was busy… which is fine. A server greeted us and looked like she was trying to find us a table, but opted to ask the people behind us how many were in their party and found them a table first. I get it, they need to make the most of the space they have, but how about not making the rest of us feel like we are not as important because we only have two in our paying party and not four. This set the tone for our evening.
So we were told there was a table in the middle of all the tables where we were welcome to pull chairs to it. Gee Thanks. So being hungry folk, we complied. It was sooo cramped… we got hit by every server that walked by, it was freezing. And R. was sitting behind someone who added a table to a booth, that really couldn’t accommodate it, but yet they did it, and every server and patron attempted to squeeze through this small space, pushing and hitting R. every time.
So we did promptly get menus, and R. seeing they had a $ 10 beer pitcher special, asked immediately about what was on tap (which was the usual), and we ordered right away. As far as food went, the menu was quite different than I remember. It had the usual pub grub but it also had some more healthy and inspired selections. So it was a pleasure to choose our meal, with so much choice. We decided to split some food. So we got their veggie sweetpotato/​bean burger, the xtra cheesy garlic fingers, and zucchini fingers.
After 45 minutes, I really thought I was going to walk out. And it wasn’t just us, the people beside us were not getting their food, and the people behind us got theirs in stages, with some of their party not getting theirs until their party was finished. I know all of this because it TOOK SO LONG to get our food, with our waitress actually ignoring us, never checking in, that I had lots of time to watch everyone else…
So finally the food arrived, I then asked for some water because that was the first time I had seen the waitress since we got there. All I can say is maybe they should be better staffed, all around, for Mooseheads nights. When the first two items of our order arrived, we were impressed with the veggie burger, but the fries were ice cold and just your generic frozen ones. The zucchini fingers were tasty and there were a lot of them, however I did not get the choice of dipping sauce as the menu stated. But was impressed with the amount of them for the price. She then told us our garlic fingers were on their way. Another server brought them out later, where half of them were actually burnt. Hah, this was hilarious to me. They needed to take longer so they could burn them?
I never did get my water, as I watched other tables get theirs. But as R. pointed out, we probably were not spending enough to warrant good service. I was so thirsty, I brought out of my own bottle of water, and I have never done this before. Funny enough, the most we saw the waitress was after we got our food. But not to check on us, no to keep asking if we were finish and to clear away dishes. Yes, I understand they had a lineup, but really?? after waiting 50 minutes for food, we are entitled to sit for longer than 10 minutes to eat. R. purposely wouldn’t let her take our food because we knew we were being rushed (and ya know, we still had lots left). And there was no asking if we wanted to pack it up.
Finally when we were finished she did promptly bring the bill, which was hilarious. and then made small talk about how busy it was. Yes, it’s a mooseheads game in halifax, they tend to be busy nights. But we go to a lot of restos before games and never ever have we experienced this mess. From kitchen to servers… it was all horrible.
A simple apology or even checking in goes a long way.

Worst service ever, manager told me to never come back. Who does that at a business?

This is not the best place to go to for dinner. It’s more suitable if you’re just looking to have a few drinks and pub style food. It’s dark and noisy and not very clean. The narrow space made it seem more crowded than it actually was and the staff seemed kind of disorganized. The place is supposedly New York style but the only New York characteristics I noticed were some street signs, the dirt, and the attitudes of the people there.
I made the mistake of ordering the broccoli chicken alfredo and parts of it were undercooked. The salad that came with it was soaked in dressing and I didn’t taste any garlic in the «garlic bread». I ended up having to take my boyfriend’s silverware because mine were dirty. This could have all been fixed but our waitress never came back to check on us. Some other guy who looked like he came straight from the kitchen brought us our food and we never had the chance to order any drinks.
I still feel disappointed with my experience there and I won’t be returning.

Some delicious gooey pizza and equally gooey poutine. The pool table’s a bit battered, but still serviceable.

Great place for a late night munch if you have a couple wobbly pops, but can be very annoying if you are sober with a bunch of intoxicated club-​goers around you.
Pizza is great, otherwise it’s just average pub style food, which is great for a late night grease fix.
Atmosphere really depends on when you go, pleasant during the day, a little rowdy late night on the weekend.

Free billiards table… need I say more? Well of course I do but all in all, the Freeman’s location on Grafton St isn’t half bad. We were really there for a pint and some pool but the server was very friendly and the place was clean. I have yet to try it out on a busy night (it is JUST across from Cheers afterall) nor have I eatten there so I can only go by what I see. I have eatten at the Quinpool location and enjoy their food so I can only imagine it’s on the same level. It’s a great place to visit with a group of friends or a casual date — not for a family meal or a special evening with your man or lady.

Freeman’s is my favorite pizza joint, and one of my favorite restaurants of any type, in Halifax.
Unfortunately my most recent trip was marred by some poor staff, (didn’t know how to change a keg, didn’t know what beer was on tap, didn’t tell me that they didn’t have the beer I actually wanted until my meal was over), though I believe that was an exception to the normal experience.
On all other of my many visits to any of the three locations in HRM, the service has been great. The food is equally as good at any of the locations. Pizza being the most popular menu item, and probably the thing that sets them apart the most from other restaurants. They also have a good selection of milkshakes, beer and decent coffee.
What really wins me over though, is the atmosphere. It’s a pub feel, but more secluded due to the prevalence of booths. My favorite location is the Quinpool Road one, as it seems cozier, and the old NYC décor is very nice.
The downtown location benefits from having the latest open kitchen of any place downtown (if you’re looking for some after-​clubbing food), and has more space (so they put in a pool table).
The Dutch Village Road location is their newest, and is one of the nicer places to eat/​drink in Fairview, with separate dining room and lounge areas. I hear they have a trivia night once a week now, though I have never attended.
They also deliver!

It’s good to have an all night restaurant in town. After a couple bottles of wine in the backyard, my friend was hungry and wanted a snack before returning to Cole Harbour, so we made our way to Freeman’s, the down town location. There were lots of drunk 20-​year-​olds around, which made for some entertainment. A table of pre-​med guys all took their shirts off and where hitting on the waitress. Only Freeman’s can offer this kind of stupid drama. This place still has the feel and look of Apple Barrel, the previous restaurant that used the space.
I ordered a clubhouse. It seemed like a reliable option. Instead of real turkey, it had a thin, fried, breaded chicken piece that must have been from frozen. Yuck.
I’ve eaten at the uptown location a few time. The food is inconsistent there. Sometimes it’s the best version of the option I’ve tasted and other times it’s a big let down. The prices are usually a few bucks more than comparable joints.
The fries were good but the club was unusually poor. My friend had a burger and she commented that it was not good either.
Being the only late night or all night option, Freeman’s is a bit of a monopoly, but they did suggest they strive to be the «best value and service in the world» in a return email when I sent feedback.
Live and learn. It you are very drunk and need to cram some greasy food into you to help you sober up, this is an option, the only one. I wouldn’t go here otherwise.

When you just want to have some good beer in a pub and not pay cover, this is your place. On a Friday night, it seems Halifax pubs like to charge cover… silly pubs!
When we went they had $ 10 pitchers of beer (Moosehead, Canadian, and a few others) YAY! Cheap beer. As far as the menu, we only had the mozza stick appy, it was delicious and perfectly cooked, all stringy and delicious. Only downside; it was served with mayo, not ranch or marinara sauce (I know the horror!!). Everyone seemed to be enjoying the pizza and nachos (every table at at least 2 of each on it) so I definitely will be back to try more.
The pub was nice, dark, but not too dark, classic semi run down pub filled with great staff and people just wanting to have a good time.
Only negative would be the bathrooms, grungy toilets and sink. Its pretty bad when you don’t even want to touch the soap dispenser because its so dirty.

Still gets the three stars, but apparently nachos can be screwed up…

Last year when my mother came to visit, we ordered Freeman’s Pizza in, and were horrified to find the toppings under the cheese and the pizza stone cold. I vowed never to eat there again.
Fast forward a year of people telling me that it’s their favourite pie in Halifax, but still gave me cold feet. That was until I was forced to attend through a gathering of people I did not know.
I went to meet them at the giant 10 seater table and waited over an hour (they never showed, and never cancelled the reservation… kids)
So instead of running out, I gave Freeman’s Little New York a second chance…
First of all, the restaurant is almost pitch black, even in the day, so much so that it hurt my eyes between the contrast.
After perusing the menu I first chose a banana milkshake. I wouldn’t call it so much a milkshake, but a smoothie due to the large ice crystals in the mix. However, it was good enough to order, first a lime flavoured one (but the waitress told me that it wasn’t really limey enough so I didn’t order it), then a delicious mango one.
Then came the pizza. Oh lord help me, it was one of the worst pizza’s I have EVER eaten. The cheese slid everywhere, but the worst part was the copious and gooey sauce that left a bad taste in my mouth, literally. Every New Yorker pizza eater knows that the foundation of a good pizza is the sauce, so this was unforgivable. I was shocked and saddened that anybody would say this is their favourite pizza in town, when there are much better options (The Argyle and Morris East)
The one bright point besides the milkshakes were the staff. They were all perfect angels. The waitresses never came to rush me out of the giant table, and offered frank advice as well as great casual conversation.
Bottom line: If your friends from New York come up, do not take them to Freeman’s, they might just get back on the plane and go home.

Ever finish up one of those epic nights and there’s just nothing else you want accept bacon and eggs? Well here’s one of the only places in the city I’ve found that will do that for you at 2am. On top of that they make some of the best pizza in the city in between many other delicious items listed on the menu.
A lot of late night food venues around town thrive off of the tipsy crowd leaving the bars and in search of that greasy or cheesy fix before bed. However I have found that a lot of these places aren’t very welcoming. After a little time in Freeman’s to gross over the menu and chat with the incredibly friendly staff, you start to feel a at home. On busier nights things can get a little slower and stress levels can rise but I haven’t had an unwelcoming experience yet. It is certainly a nice change from the drunken masses spilling into the streets at the infamous «pizza corner» a few blocks down the road.
Whether you’re heading here at 2am or 2pm it’s definitely a great choice. There’s nothing outrageously priced on the menu and you certainly get what you pay for. With a full bar open until 2am you can find whatever you need to wash down that «New York Style» pizza, burger or breakfast. They’ve also got a great deal on «Free Food Fridays,» buy a drink and you’re getting your appetizer for free. Not many places can beat that.

You gotta give it up to Freemans for years of putting up with the people that stagger in there until 5am. Located near Boomers and across from Cheers I can just imagine…
Or they could go to Freemans for one of the tastiest pizza’s. Topped to the nines with whatever you chose it will leave your taste buds delighted. I would recommend that when you go if you are having one of those quiet nights to get there before 11pm so that you can enjoy yourself.
Great place to grab a slice on the way home but as well the menu is stacked with some all time favourites.

Even though Freeman’s doesn’t technically offer the all day breakfast that I love so much, it is the only place in our fair city that you can buy breakfast during the wee hours of the morning. Freeman’s is known for its extended hours, open until 5am every day. Whether you are on your way home from a night out on the town (Freeman’s is located right across from Cheers) or just an early riser, this is a great place to check out for a hearty start to your day.
The pizza at Freeman’s is a major positive note. Variety and decent prices, along with the option of purchasing by the slice or the pan can please any picky pizza lover. On Fridays Freeman’s has a deal on appetizers, buy a drink (alcoholic beverage) and get a free app! I recommend the Mozza Sticks, they taste great, but without the discount they can be pricey (when you consider the small portion you receive).
The only issue I’ve had at Freeman’s is with the service. On busy nights it can take a while to get your meals. I’ve had eyes rolled at me by waitresses here, but then again I WAS ordering extra bacon with my breakfast at 3am.
Hot Hint: Freeman’s just started hosting trivia every Wednesday night, it’s a great time!