Fedora

The food was absolutely wonderful but I knocked down the review 2 stars due to the HORRIBLE man who works the door. Two of us (of four) arrived five minutes early, and even though the table was ready, he wouldn’t let us sit down. He told us to put our coats on the table but wouldn’t let us sit — we had to stand next to the table and stare at it. Then, after just under 2 hours, he very rudely asked us to get up so he could have the table and didn’t offer any drinks (which is standard practice if you ask guests to give you back the table). Again, great food, great cocktails, and our waitress was fantastic (wish I remembered her name)…but this man should never be let near the front of a house again.

Popped in for quick drink on way to JFK. Friendly, warm atmosphere. Great drinks with gratuity included. Would love to go back the food looked superb.

Came here for dinner on a Sunday night and fell in love with this place. Such a warm, cozy and perfect spot for a nice intimate dinner. I couldn’t ask for a more perfect place to unwind.

Looking for a dinner spot before a night of fine jazz in the Village a Unilocal search resulted in Fedora. The menu looked interesting — hopefully fine French Dining awaits.
Arriving one notices the somewhat shabby outside «Fedora Bar» sign. As you venture down steps the door opens to…
1-​A bar on the left
2-​Tight seating on the right
With the «Pub» type ambience one wonders if there’s another «Fedora» down the block — or perhaps an extended dining room in the back. Neither on both — this is the place. A quiet drink at the bar as seating isn’t allowed until all parties (my brother) arrive.
Once seated — everything worked to perfection. We started with two appetizers. The Roasted Cauliflower with beans, radishes and walnuts was excellent. However the true standout was a beet salad special loaded with «everything». The combination of ingredients resulted in flavors that worked perfectly. A very satisfying starter.
The satisfaction continued as we both ordered «Maple Smoked King Salmon». Prepared as the chef recommended (rare) with cauliflower pancake, curry cream and almonds the flavors again flowed perfectly complimenting the salmon.
Because of kitchen issues there was a bit of a delay in receiving our main courses. We didn’t mind as we were catching up on things and still had time before the jazz show around the block. Waiter apologized — the chef then surprised us with a shared order of Brussels Sprouts. Whatever they were sauteed in — it was terrific.
Place gets packed and loud. If you can get by the tightness you’ll have a wonderful meal here.
Note: Gratuity Free Restaurant — Including Bar.
Prices obviously reflect this. Mixed feelings on this as tips should be based on service performance. However — It is nice at meals end not having to deal with the gratuity issue.

Very impressed with Fedora a couple of nights ago. Matthew Griffin, the chef, offered a fantastic selection of curated dishes, a feast to our eyes & tastebuds. A perfect mix of well presented dishes and seasonal ingredients, from start to finish. Excellent.

Just had dinner here. Only took a few months to get a reservation for a table of four.
They just instilled their ‘no tipping’ policy here about a week ago, which I was slightly concerned about… will the service be lacking because of the lack of incentive?
We were pleasantly surprised. Service was fantastic. Our mocktails were great (several of us are with child).
I wish I had chosen a different entrée because I was pretty disappointed in the food. I got the fried chicken. I didn’t mind the fried leg (or claw was it?) with nails still in tact (although some of the girls did mind), but my crispy piece of chicken was sitting in a bowl of gravy, which made it quite soggy and really defeats the purpose of FRIED chicken. And for $ 31? That better be one hell of a fried chicken. And it wasn’t.
Will I be back? Probably not. It took us too long to get a res and it’s pretty expensive, although the ‘no tip’ is now included in that entrée price.
Nice ambiance (although boring and very typical of the NYC bar). Small space.

KenScale: 7.5÷10
Fedora has long been on my list of restaurants to visit but somehow the right opportunity didn’t come about. One of the longer members of Gabriel Stulman’s little empire in West Village, the restaurant has been perpetually packed with its speakeasy vibe and active bar area. I’ve been here once just for drinks while waiting for a table at another restaurant nearby, but not the food with New-​American bent. I finally had a chance to come to Fedora for dinner at the bar area; overall, a solid experience but there wasn’t a show-​stopper that I would remember for a long time.
The menu at Fedora is more on the concise side and contains a variety of interesting dishes. Deviled eggs with American caviar were certainly a very good start to the meal (although it is hard to mess up deviled eggs). I was a fan of egg in a hole dish that had tripe ragout and cheddar. It was a decadent dish with richness that I found to be quite pleasant even though tripe is probably not my favorite dish in general. The entrees were a bit more pedestrian. Crisped duck leg that came with escarole, lardons and fingerlings was nicely cooked, but seemed to be missing that wow factor. Hampshire pork chop with Tokyo turnips, spaetzle and honey mustard also had nice balance of flavor, but I felt the meat could’ve been more tender and juicy. There was nothing wrong with both dishes; it’s just that I was looking for something extra that would make each dish more special than a typical duck leg or pork chop dish and New York City has a ton of restaurants that can give a bit more flair to both. Key lime pie was a nice ending to the meal, with delicate sweetness that I enjoyed but again would this be something that makes me come back to this restaurant? I wasn’t quite sold yet.
The restaurant has that awesome old New York speakeasy vibe that draws a ton of crowd just to get drinks at the busy bar area. Getting a reservation in advance is a must. Fedora is one of the growing list of restaurants in the city that have eliminated tips. I would definitely come back here for drinks, as the restaurant offers a lot of inventive cocktail selections (although my preference has always been Old Fashioned when it comes to cocktails, which the bartender makes quite well too). If you are not inclined to do a full dinner, Fedora is certainly a nice place to visit for drinks after work with some bites to go along with them.

Expensive but very nice. intimate space. Slightly crowded on a Friday night. The cocktails are great and they have beer on draft. The food is amazing. They now have gratuity included which makes the plates priced slightly higher but reasonable. The staff and bartender were amazing. We ate at the bar and it was fine. Very nice location. Would return again.

This might just be my new favourite restaurant in New York City. Funny how you can live here for 4 years then stumble on somewhere this good. A quiet, cosy restaurant/​bar, with great service and superb food. I ordered the oyster and shiitake mushrooms for an appetiser: delicious, crammed full of flavour and the perfect antidote to a cold sunday evening. That was almost enough for dinner on its own but we had already decided to split the ultra-​tender Wagyu steak … so so good. And then. just because we didn’t want to leave — we had freshly baked madeleines with some sort of lemon-​cream concoction that was a pretty much perfect finish to a perfect meal. Good wine and decent expresso too. Who could want for anything more.

This is a really cute, cozy bar in the west village that’s tucked off down a set of stairs. It’s easily spotted by the giant neon sign out front.
The bartenders and staff are great; friendly, helpful, can easily talk you through the menu. It’s a nice cozy neighborhood feeling bar.
The drinks menu is a classic hipster smattering of offerings that range through most of the liquor a clear to brown. The bartenders clearly know their stuff, as i overheard one giving a pretty solid run down of how to make your own bitters. Their wines by glass are a respectable showing with a good mix between sweet, light, and heavier dry wines.
The food menu is just a hair more exotic than an American gastropub’s usual offerings. They have a good selection between meat and seafood. Their appetizers however lean more towards seafood. My pet peeve is that the menu descriptions aren’t complete. I ordered the fried chicken (which was expertly fried) but did show up with a giant fried chicken foot in it that was entirely unexpected. It was also swimming in broth. I also ordered the roasted radishes which sounded divine but ended up having an overwhelming odor of fish about them (I think from the flakes on top which weren’t mentioned in the description). I’m not a picky eater but I do expect to be able to read a menu and reasonably assume that it lists everything that is a main flavor component or meat offering in that dish. That was a little disappointing to me.
I will say though that the meal was well cooked and the staff attentive. And I’ve read that starting in 2016 they will be eliminating tipping, so that may come as a shock on the bill but is an excellent step in the right direction.
All in all, a lovely place for a slightly more adventurous eater and certainly a cozy neighborhood bar.

For all the great reviews, I must say that I was underwhelmed by the food.
Service was good though. Seems like good date place if you want to impress.

We came here because it was raining and we thought it looked wonderful. We were right.
The lighting, the service, the décor — all perfect for a nice drink with someone special. We didn’t order anything fancy, but everything feels a little fancy here, in a good way. Our server even recommended nearby places since my boyfriend is from out of the country. Very professional with a personal touch.
I can’t comment on the food, but I’d love to go back so I can!

I came here for a special occasion. Fedora is a quintessential West Village bar & restaurant — intimate, cozy and lots of charm. We sat at the bar and they comped us some champagne, very nice. The staff here is very friendly and welcoming.
They have a great cocktails menu. We ordered the No, Peppers, No — made from gin, pisco, ginger and lemon. We did a few rounds of drinks and were well taken care of. Sadly, they take bar reservations and we had to head out. This was not a problem as they told us upfront that this would happen. All of that said, my evening at Fedora was as special as my first night there. I look forward to my next visit.

New York can sometimes be overwhelming in terms of the food options. It’s without a doubt one of the best food cities in the world, which is why I often have a hard time deciding where to go.
Fedora is the epitome of what New York dining is all about to me. Casual but cozy with a warm atmosphere, great cocktails, a superb wine list, and food that’s going to impress. I think I’ve found my new go-​to in NYC. I’ve had this place booked marked for ages and I finally got to try it recently. I love that the space is dimly lit and a few steps down off of a bustling corner in the West Village.
It was absolutely packed on a weeknight so be sure to make reservations in advance. They even take reservations for their bar, it’s so popular.
The menu is Modern American meets comfort. We started out with the cheddar poppers and to my delight and surprise they were small crispy delights filled with the flavor of cheddar. I was expecting more of a pop over, but these were lighter and more flavorful. The shiitake and oyster mushrooms dish was so incredible. Brown butter and a poached egg make this dish rich, earthy and had me wanting to lick the plate.
Potato croquettes with squid ink aioli we’re another perfect nibble, just enough to whet your appetite.
For means we ordered the crispy fried chicken and the golden bass. Both were perfectly prepared. The fish was light white fish, with a crispy skin on a bed of smoky eggplant, capers, croutons, and cherry tomato. The chicken was mind blowing. Lightly breaded, it comes on the bone in a bowl with pickled cucumber, rice, siracha and the most delectable soy jus. We were practically fighting over this dish.
Unfortunately we were stuffed to the brim and could not try dessert. Next time I’ll save room!
Highly recommended!

We got here a little bit before 8pm and we were told the wait for two people is about 2 hours so we sat at the bar.
We started our dinner off with several drinks and let me start with the fact that I usually do NOT like mixed drinks. However, I really enjoyed every drink I tried here. For the first round we got the Songbird and another cocktail that I asked for to be tequila based, spicy and not sweet. The Songbird was amazing. I would definitely order it next time which is super unusual for me but it was THAT good. I also really enjoyed my drink which is typically what I get at restaurants when I ask for that (kind of like a skinny girl margarita but with better ingredients).
The second drink I got was a less-​sweet take on a gin gimlet which was really good. It had cloves, nutmeg and a chili in it and had a smokey flavor. I really enjoyed the fact that the bartender cared what we thought about the drinks and kept checking in on us, especially on me, to see if I liked what I ordered.
For the appetizers, we got the special which was a salmon belly and another dish which was the arctic char. Both were great but the arctic char was a small portion (maybe even too small for an appetizer) while the salmon belly was really large. Probably bigger than what most restaurants would serve as a main dish which was fine because we shared both. The salmon was my favorite of the two… It practically melts in your mouth and it has some kind of a cream sauce on the side with carrots. It was definitely the highlight of the meal.
Luckily, the dish I got as my main was on the smaller side which was fine because the appetizer was so large. I got he mushrooms which came with a brown butter sauce, bread, and a poached egg. It was super delicious and I would highly recommend it though it is more of an appetizer size.
Overall the meal here was excellent and I would definitely come back (and hopefully they still have the salmon belly)

This place is fab. Making (and changing) reservations is a breeze and super organized, and that same professionalism extends to the service in the restaurant itself. Food is great — had a tasty pork chop and great cocktails — and the atmosphere is lovely. Will definitely be here again!

Note: This was for a small private party that featured some prime dishes from the Fedora menu. While I can comment on the food, my experience may be different, as we were seated downstairs, and not in the main dining area.
A friend of mine was celebrating her birthday and she was a big fan of the Happy Cooking restaurants (formerly known as Little Wisco Hospitality), so she picked out a prix fixe menu at Fedora for a party of 8, priced at around $ 85 per person with wine, tax and gratuity.
We got there at around 7:30pm, but ended up having to wait another half hour for them to get ready. Not ideal, and the waitstaff didn’t really explain why or apologize, which was a bit curious. As a result, we just sat at the bar for a while until they were able to seat us downstairs. It’s usually not a problem if restaurants are a little behind schedule, but communication of issues is key.
When we were finally seated, our waitress came out with some bread and wine. The bread was a little lacking, so needless to say, we were hungry and anxious for the food to come out. The visits by our waitress were few and far between, and after waiting another 20 minutes, the food came out in a whirlwind of dishes, served family style. We got the spiced pork rack, albacore, shoestring fries, and Brussels sprouts with bacon. The pork rack was juicy and delicious and came with a few beds of arugula, and the Brussels sprouts were cooked at just the right texture. It was impressive because I know prepping that many dishes at once for large format dinners can be a challenge, and everything was executed very well. The meal ended with a large birthday chocolate tart, which was rich and delicious, and a good way to round out the meal.
In all, it was a 3.5 star experience, but bumped up to 4 due to the delicious food. I still say I prefer Joseph Leonard or Bar Sardine for their respective New American menus, but the consistency of food quality across these West Village restaurants is nothing to scoff at. Fedora doesn’t lower that standard of quality at all, but I think overall, the service and communication was a bit lacking. At those prices, we expected an impeccable dining experience, but with all of those hiccups, I was a little disappointed, especially because I’m a fan of the chain of Happy Cooking restaurants as well. Nonetheless, I’ll have to try the main dining menu one of these days, so hopefully, the experience will be a little better.

Having completed my first year as a New York public school teacher, a celebration was in order. My wife booked us a reservation at Fedora, a spot we’d looked at but never made it to before. We sat at the bar and looked over their whimsically names but extremely meticulously crafted cocktail list. We settled on the Black Squirrel Old Fashioned, which was marvelously smooth and flavorful.
With menu perusal done and only the final considerations of what to order left to go, the bartender threw a wrench in the works by mentioning several specials. One was a salmon head, the other a 32 ounce steak for two, which he regretfully informed us was the last of its kind available. With his eager description of these dishes we had no choice but to immediately order them. Preceded of course by a dozen oysters.
The oysters were briny and delicious. The salmon head was amazing. The sriracha glaze had the right amount of sweet and hot and the whole thing was cooked to perfection. We left nothing but the bones behind. The steak was a masterpiece of meat. Perfectly seared on the outside while pleasantly rare inside. The steak came atop a bed of duck fat fried rice which was studded throughout with chunks of beef tongue and strips of kale. The whole thing was a marvelous assemblage of flavors that fed us for two additional meals.
We ordered the key lime pie and they graciously sent us out an additional dessert, the butternut squash pot du crème. Both were marvelous. The pot du crème was particularly good as it was like a blast of pumpkin pie without having to deal with insufferable relatives.
Throughout the service was excellent. We were sitting at the bar so while help was never far away, it was a busy night and even the bartender was hustling to keep everyone happy. At the end one of the owners stopped by to chat and thank us for coming in. Such a marvelous experience, we will definitely be back.

3.5 stars
I like this place. Small, cozy and charming. Friendly service and all of the food was very good.
I would come back — but there are so many places to explore in this area.

I had a very disappointing meal at Fedora with my friend last night. We arrived at 9.00 and were told that we were first on the list, but then had to wait 40 minutes until we were given a table. Never mind, these things happen.
However, 15 minutes into our meal, just as had received our starter, a troupe of about 40 loud, drunk office-​workers who’d clearly just come from a boozy work event charged into the small space, one of them leading the pack and shouting aloud ‘told you guys we’d end up at Fedora’.
The problem was that the bar, which was already full before these guys arrived, is only about 4 feet from the restaurant tables, so these guys were essentially standing on top of us, shouting so loud we couldn’t hear ourselves speak to each other. We spoke to the diners around us who were equally dismayed at having their calm evening ruined by this. Even our waitress complained to us that she could barely get our entrees to us because the whole space was heaving.
Giving up on our meal, we decided to finish our food and drink as quickly as possible and leave, and asked to speak to the manager to complain about the noise level and ask for a discount as a gesture acknowledging that we’d now have to find a new place to spend the evening.
Instead, the manager had the nerve to tell us off for not knowing that a restaurant with a ’19-​seater-​bar’ can get noisy on 4 de Maio, this while she is being jostled by the 60 or so people standing around the bar meant for 19, and even though she could easily have decided to refuse this party entry if she had wanted to. Needless to say, she refused our request for even a symbolic discount.
All in all, we left angry and frustrated: not only had we spent $ 120 on one starter, 2 entrees and 2 drinks that we’d had to consume in 25 minutes to get the hell out of there, the manager made it clear that she didn’t care one bit that by deciding to pack the place with 40 drunken loudmouths half-​way through our meal she had ruined our night.
I would comment on the food but except for saying that the portions were tiny, the experience didn’t allow me to appreciate it much. So 2 stars for the benefit of the doubt towards the actual food.

The old fashioned is probably one of best I’ve had in NYC. Definitely recommend, would come back just for this.
For food, we had the crispy pig’s head, bone marrow/​escargot toast, shoestring fries, shiitake/​oyster mushrooms and duck breast. All were pretty good, but what stood out was definitely the mushrooms. It was served with a poached egg on top and an amazing sauce. They provided bread for us to finish up the sauce (much appreciated). Will definitely order the mushrooms again next time.
Ended the night with the BEST key lime pie I’ve ever had. Just the right amount of tart, and a generous amount of crust.
When we got the check, there was a vintage NBA player card attached that I was happy to keep. I did ask for a New York Knicks one. but all they had were Milwaukee Bucks. Still a nice touch haha.
Great service all night. Will definitely come back.

Good tasty cocktails; no stupid speakeasy wait here.
The glasses were sticky on the outside.
Last call was 2am when we went; there were still a lot of people inside though as it is totally the kind of place you would be happy to hang at late into the night. Locals place.
I haven’t tried the food.