* Teddy's
image c/o www.urban75.org
CUISINE: Pub Food
ADDRESS: 96 Berry Street, Brooklyn, NY 11211
PHONE: 718.384.9787
HOURS: Sun-Thu, 11:30am-2am; Fri-Sat, 10am-4am
CARDS: MasterCard, Visa
BOOZE: Full Bar
AVERAGE ENTREE: $10
MENU: Click Here [PDF]
BRUNCH: Yes, Sat-Sun, 11:30am-4pm
OUTDOOR DINING: Yes, a few tables
SUBWAY: L Train to Bedford Ave.
MAP: Click Here
DELIVERY: No
WE SAY: The best bar food in the Burg! Outside seating during the warm months is a nice touch to this delightful bar. A longtime Williamsburg favorite that outdates most of the other neighborhood establishments, Teddy's caters to a less homogenous crowd and is one of the few places where the locals and the just arrived can meet. Try their salmon club, or any of their tasty sandwiches and you will not be disappointed. And don't miss their yummy, all you-can-eat Friday fish fry. With live music, a great jukebox, a nice staff, and an unpretentious atmosphere, Teddy's is a Williamsburg treasure.
FROM NY Magazine: This 120 year-old bar exudes the kind of "authentic" character chains like Bennigan's try to emulate, beautiful stained glass windows included. Since changing hands eighteen years ago, Teddy's now offers food (including an excellent brunch), and Thursdays through Saturdays, and an eclectic DJ spins where you'd expect to see a TV tuned to ESPN. Live music in the spring and sidewalk seating in the summer are welcome bonuses to the job this place began more than a century ago--serving cold brews to the diverse neighborhood.
From Village Voice
"Go for the cheap potent margaritas, and bask in the outdoor season during the warmer months. On the whole, it's a restaurant -- and a pretty good one, too -- but yet again, we come back to the margaritas. "
From City Search
"Teddy's dates back to the turn of the century, when loft spaces were still factories and nary a pair of math rocker glasses could be found on the streets. Outside, cheerful tin lanterns hang underneath the awnings, illuminating summer's outdoor drinkers. A step inside finds all the trimmings: a sturdy wooden bar filled with budding hipsters and old guys sitting side by side, an intricate pressed-tin ceiling and light fixtures older than your grandma. The stained-glass sign outside advertises a long-gone ale—Peter Doelger's Extra Beer—but fret not, Teddy's is sure to have your brew of choice, in addition to disarmingly hip selections like caipirinhas and frozen cosmos. Settle in for well-executed bar bites (enormous burgers, crunchy buffalo wings) or a surprisingly tasty apple crisp, topped with heaping scoops of ice cream."
Comments
This place is an overrated disaster. Not only is the food aggresively mediocre, but the hipper-than-thou staff is rather obnoxious. The worst thing about this place, however, is that the last two times (and the last two times, mind you!) I went, the server (2 different ones) kept the change without asking... literally kept the "change" part of my change (all the silver). This is unheard of and, frankly, illegal.
Posted by: Dan | March 24, 2008 09:46 PM
I've gone here several times on Sunday nights and haven't been disappointed. I've had the same server the past couple of times who was very helpful (and honest) and told us what to order and what not to order and how to make our food better- and the choices have been great. The crispy asparagus, turkey chop, and tilapia are all winners, as are the salmon BLT and the Cuban sandwich. And the spicy fries are always worth it. I've had some sub-par food here (the veggie burger is awful), but the atmosphere is laid-back and unpretentious, and apparently there's some decent food on the menu.
For burgers, I'd go to Relish, Dumont, or Diner for a much better burger at about the same price. But if you're looking to avoid the hipster crowd but still get decent food, Teddy's is your place. But, really, don't get the veggie burger.
Posted by: Monica | August 2, 2007 08:02 PM
Sorry to say that another great place is going down the tubes....This was our favorite spot, with great food and a super brunch, but we've stopped going because the food and service seems to be on the decline. Getting stuck in the back and forgotten about a couple of times was one thing that bothered us, and lackluster food preparation followed. Did the place change owners? The last straw was the time we ordered a meal that contained an allergy-unfriendly ingredient that we had talked to the waitress about before ordering, and after complaining about it we were completely ignored and left with an inedible meal that we were never offered a solution about.
Posted by: disappointed | June 30, 2007 04:56 AM
Honestly, I've been here a handful of times for brunch over the past year and the only thing that's kept me going back was the tasty food at decent prices (and the friends I was with). The crowd does tend to represent an interesting mix of the neighborhood, but that being said, there are too many similar and better restaurants in the area to justify ever going back. The dining area is awkward, but my main beef with Teddy's is that the service ranges from impersonal to absurdly awful.
Today I went to Teddy's for the last time ever. After waiting 10 minutes to be seated, we waited a long time for a rude waitress wearing pajama pants to appear and take our orders. A FULL HALF HOUR LATER the waitress has not reappeared once and we're starving. A large group that arrived after us was brought their food by our same waitress, who ignored our attempts to get her attention. We got the host's attention, which lead to the waitress finally coming by to tell us that the kitchen had lost our order but that she would try to get our food as fast as possible. She took our order again. Then another neighboring table which had sat down after us got their food, and this table had waited almost 20 minutes before a waiter had even taken their order. At this point I realized that we had been sitting in Teddy's for about 45 minutes, still no sign of food, and I had to leave to go get ready for work. I ended up scarfing down a sandwich from Hana Foods while changing and heading to the subway.
If you do go to Teddy's, don't get the Hibiscus Iced Tea (the only thing I ordered that actually made it to the table). It's total dogshit. Just like the waitstaff today.
Posted by: Henry_T | April 29, 2007 08:31 AM
Sold out the neighborhood by letting a huge film shoot in the bar for the last two weeks. No parking and lameass film people in the hood. Way to go Teddy's, make a buck, not a friend.
Posted by: Jackson | November 19, 2006 09:18 PM
stick with the burger and eat at the bar.
Posted by: Lupos | November 14, 2006 05:33 PM
ive been there a number of times and the food is good . sometimes servixe is slow but attentive . i used to bartend and i didnt like the time i ordered a tequila sunsise and they substituted cherry juice for grenadine . i find the drinks average , depending on who makes them it could be average
Posted by: joe p | November 6, 2006 12:58 AM
Is it just me or has the food gotten pretty bad?
Posted by: JQ | September 16, 2006 11:23 PM
I've been twice. On the second trip we were put in the back room and promptly forgotten about. When my portobello burger came out it was half-nuked and postively disgusting. I can't think of a worse meal I've had in Williamsburg since moving here a year ago.
Needless to say, I can't in good conscious recommend this place!
Posted by: N | July 16, 2006 08:22 PM
one time i was in this dump and there was a mound of ants feasting on some slop that was stuck to the floor. Normally I dont like to complain to a server or hostess but when this bitch actually said to me that I could switch tables if I wanted but there was no one available at the moment to clean up the ants I felt like asking her to hop her big ass onto a mop and clean it herself. I mean serioously. bugs? in the daylight...during business hours? come on. good bloody marys and the salad with the grilled turkey is amazing. Place looks sloppy as shit though-with a waitstaff to match.
Posted by: jane | July 6, 2006 10:54 PM
Damn, why the service suck so bad and I live a block away? If they could fix the bad service, I could live there. Buffalo wings are the best in NYC, but when you add in the service, it makes it the worst.
Posted by: James | June 20, 2006 11:09 PM
menu sucks on sundays after brunch. better the rest of the week. sandwiches are pre-made, and you can tell. the veggie-burger sucks. service varies. brunch pretty good.
Posted by: bf | January 29, 2006 07:20 PM
i might have come across the same waiter as Mia. we still love your quesadillas!
Posted by: lala | December 15, 2005 01:16 AM
the food is good. the service blows. the worst service i've ever ever ever had. by far. my guess is my waiter was new so that's excusable but the manager was horrible. so the waiter gave me french fries instead of homefries and when i told him i ordered homefries he told me they ran out. i asked why the rest of the people at the table got their homefries and he said they just ran out. fine. so they ran out but why in H would he just hand me some french fries and not say anything. did he really think i wouldn't notice? then i was like, alright, well why didn't i get the toast that was also supposed to come with the meal (like everyone else at the table had)? and he was like, oops i forgot about the toast i'll get that to you as soon as possible. never did. also didn't ever bother to apologize. the manager saw the whole thing and was totally apathetic and unapologetic. it was horrible. although, not gonna lie, the food was good.
Posted by: Mia | October 24, 2005 03:34 AM
Teddy's has the best brunch in the burg! Crab cakes benedict and the bloody marys kick ass... But not as much as the super duper waitress MEG!
Posted by: Amy Dee | March 28, 2005 01:22 AM