Orient Express
“Food yummy
Chicken skewers, zucchini pancakes, hummus pizza are delightful.”
“I agree that the drinks are a bit pricey and they come in smaller glasses, but believe me they are delicious!”
“It's decked out with the trappings of a train car, complete with old school luggage on overhead shelves.”
Orient Express
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Orient Express is a super cute and small neighborhood bar. It'd be a great place to impress a first date (without breaking the bank!) or come and plop down after a long day at work. It's also close to Meatpacking, so you can start your night here and then wander up a few blocks to party.
The bartenders are quite friendly (Hi Woody!), though I think the owner is unfriendly at best and nasty at worst. The drinks are delicious… the first time I went, I had something I think they called a Rum Manhattan. It was rum, coffee, sweet vermouth, and orange cognac. It tasted like a chocolate covered orange. I could literally taste the drink in my mouth for a MONTH until I went back to satisfy the craving.
The last thing I want to say about the bar, which shows how cute it is, is that recently they celebrated their second anniversary. They had balloons, drink specials, and a small gift for anyone who came. Adorable!
I like this bar as a solution to a relatively quiet night or a pit-stop on the way over to another more lively place. Decor makes you feel as if you were in a first class cabin during the golden era of train travel (hence the name "Orient Express"). It's thoroughly enjoyable to sit with friends over a drink at night. Drinks were tasty and inventive, however we couldn't understand how a shot of whiskey came out to the same price as a cocktail– especially when the brand we asked for wasn't top notch and the other drinks had much more content… When they told us it was a "special version of whiskey" we were confused because we had ordered the generic and they had given us and charged us for a different drink. They didn't budge…
Brought to you by the owner of Turks & Frogs, this cocktail bar boasts an interesting theme. The bar resembles the inside of a rail car from the Orient Express… it's a very cool concept, but I felt like the decor fell a little short. As far as its competition goes, I think Raine's Law Room and PDT pull off a much better atmosphere.
The menu had a nice range of cocktails and at the bottom, Bartender's Choice, always a brave endeavor, but you'd be lucky leaving it in the hands of these mixology experts. The Mata Hari and Dirty Martini were up to my standards.
With all that said, I probably won't go back here anytime soon, and here's why… and maybe this is a sign that I'm getting older, so I'll offer that caveat… it was nearly pitch black in the place. I like a little dim lighting to set the mood and create a romantic ambiance, but the lighting was just one notch away from being turned off. I could barely make out my companion and even then appeared to be a dark silhouette save for the lantern offered at the entrance way.
The Orient Express is a perfect compliment to the wine bar Turks & Frogs next door. Wine isn't always in order so a cocktail may be a better choice on some occasions.
The dark wood international travel themed decor could be campy if it weren't so well curated. The posters and nicknacks provide the perfect environment for some fancy cocktails. The small, crowded space is reminiscent of a train car or a European bistro tucked away on a side street somewhere. The late night crowd is convivial and enjoyable.
The cocktails, of course, are outstanding. Other than one minor glitch where a Sazerac was delivered as a pour of rye rather than as a proper Sazerac cocktail, the entire drinking experience was top notch – and that mistake was quickly rectified by a contrite bartender who came personally to our table to apologize for the confusion. His subsequently delivered Sazerac was just about perfect. I haven't had better in NYC. They're usually too sweet or orange syrup flavored when the should be dry, rustic, and brutal. With a hint of sweet to soften the kick in the teeth.
Of note, and this is not a critique of Orient Express, but of the West Village dining & bar scene in general. The waiter, who made the Sazerac error, insisted, when I told him it was a pour of rye, that it was, in fact, a Sazerac cocktail. He basically told me I didn't know what I was talking about. Only my persistence revised his stance and he took the drink back to the bar. The difference between the waiter's attitude and the bartender's could not have been more apparent.
Which brings me to my comment – why are the waitstaffs in the West Village so invariably arrogant and unhelpful? Is it because they have to deal with arrogant customers every day? Has their sense of hospitality been slowly destroyed by self-entitled clientele so much so that every waiter thinks every person who walks in is deserving of derision instead of accommodation?
Great cocktails & cool vibe!
The best thing about this place, for me, was watching a crazy drunk chick try and sit in the same booth as a celebrity and his girlfriend. It was pretty funny.
But, if a celebrity isn't getting accosted when you're there, it's still a very cool place.
Drinks- Very good, different. Total mixoligist flare.
Atmosphere- Laid back cool. Looks like an old, 1940's train car. A little dark and stormy, but sexy.
Service- Quick, attentive. Not the nicest, but not in anyway rude. Just to the point.
Clientele- An older, well-off hipster vibe with a dash of forgotten celebrity.
Cheers!
They honored my 10:30 PM reservation on a Friday night when the place was packed and there were other people waiting for tables, so I really appreciated that. Drinks were great, aour waiter was very knowledgeable. Slightly pricey but not too bad for quality cocktails, only downside was it was pretty loud in there.
A brilliant and refreshing setting for a bar and but expect average service. I only ordered the Colonel (tequila, lemon, honey) and Danube and (vodka, lime, mint, and soda) and both are recommended if you like those ingredients.
I suppose you could ask off the menu but that seems to defeat the purpose of the bar. Likewise, although there was an okay small beer and wine selection, I would stick with cocktails from the menu. I didn't evaluate the food but again I wouldn't go above something to share.
I wasn't impressed by the service. I was treated nicely but others were given the famous New York hospitality. The bartender this night was new and was trying to close early as a result of low traffic and in the process turned a couple of people away. I don't hold it against them but if you're not from New York you've been warned.
It's slightly out of the way and small enough to serve as a local cocktail bar and keeps out the bros. If I lived in the neighborhood I'd be a regular.
As you enter, be prepared to be moved back into an almost prohibition era locomotive setting. Not only is the bar dressed in theme, but so are the bartenders and waiters along with their personalities as well. With vintage luggage and racks above every window, dimly lit red lamps and each table, and of course, the fun cocktails, this truly does play the part it's meant to play; secret indulgence on the run.
We came here for cocktails and desert after a nice dinner at the Spotted Pig across the street. Everything was delicious, although they were out of several alcohols we requested (mostly good Scotch, my dates request), but on the contrary it then truly did feel like prohibition.
I would definitely recommend this place for a starting point, or ending point, of a date. Great sport to grab a fun cocktail with a friend even too. Not a dinner spot, as they mainly have small plates and sweets.