Best of Citysearch
- Categories:
- Restaurants
- Cuisine:
- Traditional American
- Price:
- $$
- Restaurant Special Features:
- Payment Methods:
View Less
92% ambiance
“Both the decor and the food at Relish leave you with a warm glow, or perhaps the warm glow can be attributed to the Sidecar, a delicious cocktail no one outside of Relish seems to have heard of or be able to prepare.”
100% drinks
“The food was awesome, we got burgers, onion rings, beers (and they load your plate up with salad if you're trying to not be a lard-ass).”
95% food quality
“Even the burgers look amazing with the gigantic side of onion rings, but ive never brought myself to trying one for brunch.”
77% menu variety
“The menu is on the small side, but the preparations are always perfect!”
100% return potential
“Those complaints aside, I really enjoyed my meal, and I'll definitely be back.”
66% service
“The staff here is great even when they are slammed on the weekend, I have only had one occasion when they told us they had lost our order, and gave us free drinks.”
100% value
“The bacon slices are huge and crispy and the soft, flavorful meat never falls apart or soaks through the bun.”
Relish
Tips for Relish
Drinking Dinner Diner.
I'm not too familiar with the Williamsburg area, but we ventured out to this restaurant about 2 weeks ago with a couple of friends and thoroughly enjoyed it. As soon as we approached the block, we saw about 2 dozen motorcylcles and thought that we were signing ourselves up for some kind of raunchy adventure in a old school, diner. However, we were quite delighted once we arrived, found our party, and checked out the menu in this somewhat trendy and totally inviting haunt.
While the entrees looked delish, I settled upon the Pesto Marinated Grilled Chicken. Good choice because it ended up being the best grilled chicken salad that I have had in years. I've despised chicken for quite a while now, but this salad reminded me that chicken, and its rightful accompaniments, could actually be tasty and satisfying. Wow, were the grilled portabellas and the balsamic vinagrette perfect!
We did run into a miss in the entrees because our friend who ordered the Hanger Steak mentioned that it was quite tough and difficult to "saw" (yes saw - not cut ) through. Uh oh... Aside from that, our party indicated that the veggie burger and the grilled sirloin burger both were orderable but not memorable (a.k.a. "fantastic").
I honestly cannot speak for the rest of the entrees, but I CAN speak for the great time that we had at the restaurant and the fact that...were it more convenient to our house, we'd make it there more often.
Waiters with 'tude is right. I have an extensive group of friends that tends to grow exponentially if a few of us sit down at the table at a restaurant to eat. Call us disorganized, but don't make it into a big awkward problem if you're a waiter and you can't accomodate us. When two more friends showed up to join our table last weekend at Relish, our waiter snarkily gave us only one chair, as if to say that we should have to choose between who got to stay and eat with us. When the food came (on time, to their credit) the resentment I felt towards those who had brought it to me rendered all that I tried tasteless.
Whoreable service. Relish could be so awesome--its location and look offer so much potential, and it is kinda a neighborhood institution. every six months or so i try it again, hoping for a good time, and i leave wondering how this joint stays in biz... the food is banal and inconsistent and i don't think anyone ther ehas acutally ever crossed the Mason-Dixon line (that is not what grits taste like). the REAL ISSUE WITH RELISH IS THE ATROTIOUS SERVICE. honestly, there is a big dude bartender who is pretty solid, but every single waitress in the place is mentally handicapped and super snotty. Sorry girls, i don't care how skinny you are, it doesn't make you cute, hip or entitled to that 'tude. Walk 3 blocks to grand and go eat at aurora.
Another Williamsburg favorite!. The food was excellent. Service was acceptable. And atmosphere was casual chic. We had the monk fish which was amazing. And the champagne sangria was quiet unique. Would go back again.
Best food in Williamsburg. All the items on the menu (which changes every season) are excellent. The service is generally good, though some waiters can be aloof, and at times the music can be downright out there...but the excellent food makes up for it.
Good Food. Good Food / Nice Atmosphere / Great Location / Rude Slow Waitstaff with attitude
Welcome to Wannabe-ville. What could have been a wonderful meal (the food was overall delicious and well prepared) was completely ruined by the loud, extremely heavy metal "music" blaring from the stereo. We asked the waitress very nicely to please change the playlist to something more appropriate for dinner, she chuckled to herself and said "sure" but never changed it. We asked her again when she came to our table and she said "sorry, that is what we play here." There were hardly any other customers there. So, we left her a tip to match her snotty attitude. Then she loudly told the chef what we left her as if she expected to get tipped simply because she exists. Great food, but get it to go! And stay away from Dee Dee the Wannabe Waitress.
Bygone Days.
After seeing this chic diner in the film version of Angels in America, I hunted it down on my bicycle, using the Williamsburg Bridge for triangulation. That night, my girlfriend and I enjoyed an amazing meal, complete with prompt seating and friendly service. Unfortunately, return trips to Relish have been far less satisfactory than the first.
This is odd. The Macaroni and Many Cheeses has always been crispy on top and creamy inside, the Mixed Greens crisp and flavorful with a light vinaigrette, and the specials intriguing. In short, most menu items are tasty and adventurous, while staying true to their warped diner roots.
But my last three visits have been marred by both my high expectations and their rude service. My recommendation is: go once on a hot evening, sit in the garden, enjoy the cocktails, order several items, take pictures, and never go back.
Tasty Brunch.
I visited Relish for Sunday brunch this weekend. I was pretty happy with my omlette, and my date's prociutto and poached egg "benedict" was delicious...I had to steal more than a few bites! However, service was on the slow side (my glass of water was never refilled) and I would have been happier with the food if it had been hot when it was brought to the table, instead of just above room temperature.
Those complaints aside, I really enjoyed my meal, and I'll definitely be back. Maybe I'll stop in for dinner next time.
Did not relish this experience!. With all the great places to eat in Williamsburg don't waste your time on this overrated tin can. The food was average, the decor is cool but the service was overly pretentious!!! They need to round up all the wannabes that work there, attach a big truck to this trailer and hall these credit card hipsters out of the neighboorhood!
Relish
Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Facebook to see what your friends are up to!
Get the Citysearch Mobile app so you can spend less time searching for great places, and more time enjoying them.