Heavy Woods

Nice place, quiet, Good music, The food is not my cup of tea, The Cocktail r good,
I would say it’s a nice place for dating no more

To lead off in a positive tone, the food here and the drinks are incredible. It’s really a shame that the customer service is one of the worst examples of human behavior I’ve experienced. Because of the employees at this establishment I have decided I will never go back to Heavy Woods again. Scorned so much by the behavior that I have been shown and shown again by what I can only assume are money hungry people, I will never miss the opportunity to tell all my friends (and family that visit) to never visit this wonderful establishment. At this point, I have had two terrible experiences while being a ‘customer’ at Heavy Woods. The latest experience is as such: I walked up to the restaurant, asked Greg (one of the bartenders) if I needed to buy something to sit and work on an art project I’m working on. He said I did indeed, it was dinner time, and the right thing to do. So, ok, I don’t drink, but hey, I’ll buy someone a beer. Upon walking in, the only place that I saw open was a table with 3 seats, and immediately after sitting down, Greg asks me to sit at the bar so I don’t take away the whole table. Ok, you got it Greg, no problemo (I didn’t like taking away the 2 other seats anyway). I sit at the bar, strike up a conversation with a beautiful woman, and offer to buy her drink; there goes my part of the bargain to be able to hang out in this establishment (and every other place of business, I get it, the business needs money to survive, no biggie). However, I don’t know, an hour goes by, if that, and I had been talking to this girl and showing her my art books, and she was drinking her drink, and one of the other bartenders starts giving me these sideway looks and I can tell she is talking to Nina (I don’t know how to spell it, and I think she is a manger of some kind) about me. Now, I might just be paranoid. So I say it out loud to the blonde bombshell I’m swooning, I say, «They are going to ask me to leave, watch.» To which she responds to take it easy and there’s no way they would do that. A few minutes later, the unnamed bartender asks the girl I was conversing with if she’d like another drink, and she says no, she was going to leave soon, and I say no I’m good, I had bought her drink already. The unnamed bartender says (and I’m paraphrasing) ‘Well, you need to buy something else.’ Not only is this immediately shocking that I’m basically being told that my money wasn’t good enough (drink was $ 8 with tip) but that this woman has the need to say that. And I said, ‘I bought her drink. I already gave you my money.’ And the bartender says, ‘You didn’t give ME money.’ Of course, I corrected myself and said «You’re right, I mean I paid your establishment, my bad». And this particular bartender then demonstrated something ridiculously selfish (in my humble opinion) and says «Well, I need to make money too. And you didn’t pay ME.» HA! I wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation but I was so taken aback that my good deed of buying someone a drink, that my money (that I don’t have a lot of, struggling film geek/​artist living in New York) wasn’t good enough to her business, but rather, because it didn’t go right to her pocket, I was considered an issue. And I said, ‘Oh. I’m leaving then. What’s your name?’ And of course, she didn’t answer. Well, for all interested parties, I was there tonight, Thursday night February 5^th, eh I want to say around 9P — 10P. Not only did she not answer the simple question of ‘What’s your name?’ but she actually walked away, smirked, and ignored me. And I said, ‘Are you serious, what’s your name?’ Again, ignored. My next move, where’s my man Greg, ‘Hey Greg, can you come here? I asked her her name and she is ignoring me.’ Greg immediately takes to it like Switzerland and says «That’s between you and her.» Ah, ok, thanks Greg, I appreciate you not giving a care about me either. Thanks dude. And this bartender, the woman who needed more money from me more then she desired gaining a new loyal customer (which I am with restaurants I enjoy, banks that I enjoy, cell phone companies, grocery stores, the like) sells out Greg and Nina by telling me that she asked them if it was ok that she asks me to either buy something again or leave. Ok, I understand where I stand now, and it’s not where I like to be. I understand that people need to make money, we all live in an expensive part of town, and times are tough, I get it. However, I literally have $ 1.10 in my bank account as I type this because I gave Heavy Woods my second to last $ 8 to be able to sit there, and these ‘people’ are so infatuated with stuffing their pockets with dollar dollar bills y’all that they are cool with sacrificing someone (i.e., me) who would most likely come back time and time again. This was my third time going, so believe you me, I would’ve kept going. But now, I will never step foot there again, and to reiterate, will tell as many people to never go again. Thanks Heavy Woods, you almost had me.

The biscuit was amazing! The crawfish mac and cheese was really good but I wasn’t a fan of the pork po boy. Margarita was standard and not special at all, the Green Kiwi would make a great brunch cocktail but was good, not great.

Came here least night with a few friends for some drinks and a bite. The place has a very cool vibe and plays great music. They have a great list of Cocktails. I went for my usual margarita and it was delicious. We also were with a New Orleans native so please know that this food review is as legit as can be. we got the crispy pork belly cracklin which was amazing! Followed by the crispy chicken biscuit (a little to much sauce but still yummy), the catfish po boy, crawfish mac & cheese and jambalaya. All of these items were authentic and delicious. We ended our meal with a slice of chess pie. I have never had it before and I must say it was incredible and a must try! A special thanks to chef J for making these incredible goodies and our awesome waitress Patty!

We had the funniest/​best waitress I have had in a long time. Great beer selection, delicious meatballs and fried chicken. And the apple pie was so amazing!

Great customer service. Always end up staying for hours when I bring a friend for brunch. The food is heavily influenced by new orleans cuisine and they have multiple options for vegetarians.
I’ve checked this place out on a Saturday night and it was packed. Turns into a bar type vibe.

The food is great. The beer is great. The reference in the name is great. You get the picture.
This is the place you go when your friend with the leg tattoo and bicycle cut jean shorts wants to grab a drink in his neighborhood, or if you’re that friend, this is where you wheedle people into meeting you. In all seriousness, it’s not every day you find a place doing Cajun food successfully in Bushwick, especially with people serving it in a friendly, efficient manner. Now that the back room is open, hopefully the occasional crowds will subside a little bit, but even if they don’t, this is a joint worth visiting.

I come here often with my boyfriend and we LOVE this place! The food is out of this world and full of flavor, the prices are totally reasonable and the staff is super friendly and attentive. Ronald is an awesome server, and we highly recommend the jambalaya, gumbo and spicy pickled green beans (beware, they are SPICY!)
Also, if you walk in the front door and it seems crowded, head to the back room where you will definitely find a table.

I’m surprised I haven’t written a review for HW. Although it’s been some time since I’ve visited, I can say with utmost certainty that my opinion hasn’t changed. The staff is great and the drinks are well balanced. Depending on what time of the day/​week you swing by, it can get a little hectic, but since they’ve opened up the back room I’m sure that the traffic jam situation has died down.
The only reason I’m not a regular here is because it’s quite out of the way from where I live in BK and where I work in Manhattan (alas, like so many wondrous things in the ‘Wick). However, if I’m anywhere within a half mile radius of this spot, I usually try to convince any companions to tag along, and with good reason.
the food is rich/​heavy (no uh, pun intended?) but if you’re boozin’ hard, you’ll probably be thankful for something substantial so soak up all that alcohol.

A long time ago I gave this place 3 stars, stating that the food was amazing, but the service was terrible. As the service got better, I deleted that. But it has only this year gotten good enough to warrant a 5 star rating. Johanna is a ridiculously good waitress. You just don’t expect people to be that agreeable and efficient in Bushwick. (Let’s face it, Bushwick has shitty service overall.)
The food here is still amazing, even if they took the BBQ Shrimp all the menu (cry). The bartenders are pretty damned good, a great step up from the ones they had when they opened. (They’ve always had one or two good server bartenders, but now it is across the board.
The new room in back is also super nice.

REVISED REVIEW:
I came here for breakfast /​lunch this past Saturday morning with the boyfriend who absolutely swears by this place and raves how good it is here.
Straight to the point, we walked in was greeted and seated right away.
We ordered:
— Crispy Chicken Biscuit
— Crawfish Mac & Cheese
— Crabby Jacques
He was right, everything was beyond deliciously good.
With that being said, 4 stars for this place. It would have been a 5 star for me. However due to our encounter months back. When he took me and we were greeted w/​a «hi seat yourself» and the waitress was gone like the wind. Totally not acceptable. (I’m still not over that)
Maybe, my next encounter. I’ll get over it

It’s a small setup, but they have every thing from great coffee to delicious southern cooking. Paula Deen can’t touch them. I ordered three different kinds of specialty coffees and each time my server made them perfectly. One of the best items on the menu is their crawfish mac n cheese.

The only reason I cannot give 5 stars is due to the restroom — the graffiti on the walls and lack of attention take away from the overall cool factor this place exudes.
The breakfast menu rivals any Sunday brunch I have had in the city! Flavorful comfort food with a surprisingly elegant touch and charming presentation. Heavy Wood is memorable food with a casual rustic vibe — this chef knows who he is and what he’s about!
Sean both managed the bar and our table with ease — he makes a mean Gingersnap Lattee as well!
Roll in for lunch — leave a happy and satisfied camper!

Solid place with great food. Bartenders are fun and helpful. Cheap drink specials are awesome.

BASIC. I went with a friend on a Sunday, weren’t too busy which was cool because it meant not waiting too long for the food. Ordered the catfish po boy, crawfish Mac n cheese, biscuit, and the jambalaya. The Crawfish Mac n cheese was a little spicy but not bad. Nice and cheesy but very few pieces of crawfish. The catfish po boy was also decent but nothing special. The slaw and sauce were good but breading on catfish was too simple. The jambalaya was too spicy and seemed to only be spicy to mask how basic and tasteless it was. HOWEVER, Biscuits are dope. Get the biscuits

The food is FRICKING DELICIOUS.
Only issues. There are no substitusions — also those chips that come with my burger was OILY. But I didn’t go there for the chips lol.
Waiter.WTF! The place was empty and there was an extensive wait for everything. At some point I literally got up and went to the bar to grab my beer after it was just left there.
I suggest that you try it at least for the delicious food. We actually wish there was an option to tip the cook. :)

Another solid meal at Heavy Woods.
Had the BBQ shrimp. Came with a side of warm baked bread. Great for dipping. Filling (granted it’s mostly a fake full because of the bread, but nevertheless).
Sauce was flavorful. It was difficult to eat though as the shrimp come head-​on and the sauce is sticky so you have to put up with that.
Chicken biscuit is always a crowd pleaser.
We also both had the Duck-​Okra Gumbo. At $ 6 a bowl it’s at the top of the mark as far as price, though was deep brown, hot and flavorful.

We were in the area and looking for a place to have a quick dinner on Friday night so we stopped here as the menu looked good.
We walked in and helped ourselves to seats at the bar. The place has in interesting look. The seating was an eclectic collection.
As for food, we ordered off of the daily special menu. I had the watermelon feta salad and ordered a biscuit on the side. He had BBQ Cajun shrimp dish. As for the salad, it was simply the most amazing, tastiest salad I have ever had! What ever slightly spicy delicious dressing they used for this dish, it made me want to lick the plate. The biscuit was slightly over baked but it was still quite good. As for his shrimp BBQ, the taste was spectacular. The only thing we didn’t like is that the shrimp came completely in it’s shell… legs and all. The dish was really saucy and it was hard to get the meat out of the shell as we were afraid the red sauce would splatter on our clothing. We didn’t really feel like working for our food and using our hands to separate the shell. We left quite a few shrimps for this reason.
For the service, we sat at the bar so not much to comment on. Someone was available when we needed something.
The bathroom grossed me out. It was covered wall to wall in graffiti and grime and no mirror. Would be nice to get a cheap mirror or something from IKEA as us women like to check ourselves out before departing a restaurant.
I wouldn’t be totally opposed to coming back if ever in the area again.

I was so confused when I found this place on Unilocal.I saw two listings (this and Tchoup Soup) with the same address and both had very similar menus with the exception of 1 or 2 dishes. I finally pieced the puzzle together and realized Tchoup Soup is the Creole food featured at the Heavy Woods bar. Why two Unilocal accounts though? You get free gumbo with check-​in at Tchoup Soup but not Heavy Woods. Weird.
Nonetheless, we headed over to Heavy Woods for dinner the other night and I was incredibly disappointed. I walked in and stood at the entrance for a solid 2 minutes, which is a long time when you’re just standing there. No one acknowledged me. There was no waitress or waiter in sight and only 1 bartender manning the bar. I go up to the bartender and she tells me to sit wherever. I head to the back where it says «Lounge» to get away from the noise. There was a couple already seated back there so I was glad to know we wouldn’t be ignored.
I sat for another 5 minutes while I wait for my boyfriend to arrive then I see a girl walk by so I ask her for 2 menus. She brings them over, then while I’m using the restroom (which is gritty and filthy) she takes away one menu. Maybe she needed it but when my boyfriend arrived she never gave us another. It’s a short menu anyway, so ended up deciding on cracklin’s to start and the chicken biscuit and pork po’ boy for our main. I tried the Kiwi Green cocktail which was a decent summery drink.
I’m going to side track here and say we just got back from NOLA the day before so we were riding off the vacation high and was craving more creole food.
Cracklin: Crazy small serving, but who should have too much of this anyway, right? My main issue with this dish was how greasy the pork belly was. It was like they let it sit in the fryer for 2 minutes too long. Every bite you took grease would pour into your mouth. It was soo unappetizing. I had to damp it into a napkin before taking another bite.
Chicken Biscuit: While the chicken had good flavor, this just didn’t do it for me. The biscuit to chicken ratio was off, with almost no biscuit. The dish was too simple, it came with nothing, not even garnish. There were 3 highlighted ingredients, chicken, biscuit, jam, which just left a lot to be desired.
Pork Po’ Boy: So dry it’s crazy. Granted I asked for no mayo, but the slaw and the pork should’ve been the juicy ingredients. The sandwich had an overwhelming amount of bread which made it even drier (opposite to the chicken biscuit). If they had added more slaw and maybe had juicer pork this wouldn’t have been too bad.
Service was blah, our waitress was mainly out front and barely checked on us. I really wanted to like this place since it has good reviews but it seems like the chef just handed over the menu to inexperienced line cooks and let them butcher it up.
I’d rather head over to Montana’s 3 blocks away.

I came here on a Sunday early afternoon for brunch with my boyfriend who is from Louisiana (cajun country). I had gone this past November and fell in love with boudin. And being asian helps with loving pork cracklins. Heavy Woods came recommended by you fellow Unilocalers!
Let’s start with the food. We ordered boudin balls, cracklins, and deviled eggs for appetizers.
Boudin balls are basically the balled up fried insides of a boudin sausage (mixture of rice, seasoning, spices, and some kind of meat). For someone craving boudin, I was very happy about these boudin balls. They tasted just like boudin-​the-​sausage, but without the casing and with a much crispier shell. YUM!
The cracklins were perfectly done. They were seasoned with some sea salt, served hot. Thumbs up!
The deviled eggs were covered in paprika and very spicy. I enjoyed them but they didn’t really blow my mind. Then again, deviled eggs don’t really blow my mind in general, so that was to be expected.
For our entrée, I ordered the Holy Shiitake and my boyfriend had the The Red Eyed Bandit.
The Holy Shiitake was basically cheese grits with eggs and bacon covered in a mushroom gravy sauce. The bacon was thick and juicy, but I could only eat one because of the pork cracklins I had been shoveling into my mouth earlier. Grits were different (sweet), but still very tasty. The mushroom gravy was my favorite part, it definitely brought back memories of Texas for me.
The Red Eyed Bandit had tassou meat in it. It was well cooked and the biscuits were soft, warm, and moist. The eggs were done well and loaded with spices. This too was covered in gravy. Absolutely delicious!
The only reason I’m not giving this place a 5 star is because of the service. It took forever to get our drinks. And even though we placed our food order with our drink order, the food still took a very long time to come out. The place is not that big and there were 2 servers. I have no idea why i service was so slow.
This place is definitely worth the trip out to Bushwick. Go on a lazy day when you don’t have any plans afterwards!

**CASH ONLY**
This cute café is a must try when you’re in the Bushwick area. Everyone around this neighborhood are laid-​back and that transcend the atmosphere of this café.
Do get:
Mimosa– Whether it’s freshly squeezed or out of a Tropicana the mimosa was so delightful. I ordered seconds b/​c it was that good.
Fried Catfish Po’Boy– Fried fish with savory cabbage topped with mayo and pickles served in a baguette. It was beyond delicious, I’m craving for it now.

I would just give this place 5 stars for the banana with nutella bread dish. It was so good and I wanted two but refrained as I wanted to try some of their other offerings. Out of their hot drinks we enjoyed the mulled wine the most. The irish coffee was good but not as good as the mulled wine. Anyways if you’re in the area and looking for a coffee shop to start your day, a restaurant for lunch, a bar to casually drink at or a sports bar this place will meet all those needs. They have a second section to the bar which feels very much like a sports bar and they had a ton of Saints fans here on a Sunday.
Also, be sure to take advantage of their beer and shot specials. I especially enjoyed the Pacifico with tequila and Tabasco. Wish I lived closer to enjoy this place all the time.