Monday, March 9, 2009

About Blackbird

Blackbird Parlour, on bedford and n. 6th, has oft been labeled as a nice place with crappy service. I think this is a pretty accurate appraisal, but let's delve a little deeper.

Blackbird has a laid-back vibe that is perfectly suited to nursing a cup of coffee, (s)pot of tea, or glass of wine. Today I was pleasantly surprised to discover that they offer a fairly impressive brunch menu as well, with a charming selection of sandwiches, frittatas, and salads. There are also plenty of snackier options, and the requisite mimosa/bloody mary offering.

And now, the service. It's not that Blackbird has bad service. You sit down, they bring you a menu. They are pretty on top of that. Once you order, the food & drink is quick to come. After you ask for your check, you get your check. I guess that is really all you can ask. Just do not expect to doted upon. I don't believe any of my servers there have ever said more that 5 words to me, and they all seem to avoid eye contact at all costs. But really, when you think about it, is this any reason to cry foul?

Nah! All things considered, Blackbird is a great little spot in a super-convenient location with a pleasant ambience and satisfying menu. And if I was working there on a monday afternoon, I probably wouldn't want to talk to anyone who was having brunch on a monday afternoon either.

1 comment:

Z said...

Blackbird is beautiful, but it seems like they poured all of their startup capital into the ambiance and didn't really work out the rest of the business. I feel like their food (well, drinks, anything) is a bad value, probably to make up for the astronomical rent they're paying at that location. And yeah, unfriendly service. I don't think anything really excuses getting the slimy eyeball from some hipster douche-tard when all you want is to ask for milk with your tea. Sorry I made you get up from your seat, sulkypants!

That said, I had a business meeting in there the other day, and it went well. So it's good for that sort of thing.