The Breslin Bar and Dining Room....Off Night or Just Simply Overrated?

The Breslin was one of those restaurants that I've been really eager to try.  Helmed by celebrity chef April Bloomfield of The Spotted Pig fame, the restaurant features her take on classic British pub fare.  The Breslin has been riding the hype machine since it opened in late 2009, and I've read stories of two and three hour waits for a table during prime hours with their no-reservations policy.

We went on the Friday after Thanksgiving last year when the restaurant opened its doors for dinner at 5:30, and there was still already a sizable number of people at the bar waiting to get in.   The bar at The Breslin is supposed to serve great drinks as well as have a great selection of beers, but we didn't get any drinks that night.

For appetizers, we tried the lamb scrumpets, with a mint-vinegar dipping sauce

Arguably their most popular dish is their lamb burger with thrice cooked fries.  This fries were very crunchy

but waaaaay too salty.  The burger was a perfect medium rare and was excellent and the bun holds up well 

to the meaty burger.  It's also served on a wooden cutting board...Fancy!  At $17 it's well worth it.

The most disappointing dish, sadly, was the stuffed pig's feet for two.  I actually really like pig's feet, and the part towards the bottom of the foot was great.  However, the upper part was stuffed with a meat mixture that was way over salted and made the dish almost inedible.  Maybe it was meant to be had with beer?  Nonetheless it was one of the saltiest items I had at any restaurant.

Would I go back again, probably not.  I definitely would not recommend the pig's foot but would wholeheartedly recommend the lamb burger.  And if you do go, get drinks as a few other Yelp reviews also mentioned that some of the food seemed to be over-seasoned.

The Breslin Bar and Dining Room (at the Ace Hotel)
20 W 29th St
New York, NY 10001