2/22/14 - West 3rd Common in Greenwich Village

Another solo brunch outing for myself, I was feeling cooped up so I needed to flee the nest. Went into the city to grab a haircut from my barber of 20+ years down at Astor Place and wanted to check out the brunch at this place nearby. Actually meant to go here last week with a friend, but they weren't open when we got there. But this time, I made it.

West 3rd Common is set up like a large lounge. Huge areas of communal seating, plus couches, wide open spaces, it seems perfect for the mix and mingle crowd. Unfortunately it also gets very loud, and the blaring music they play doesn't help make it any quieter. Seating for small groups is hard to come by, and so I saddled up to the already very crowded bar.

Picture of the main area taken from website

The menu itself sounded very appetizing and filled with interesting dishes such as Spicy Chicken and Waffles, and Pancake Tacos. I went with the Fried Chicken Biscuits, because I hadn't had any since I started boycotting Chick-Fil-A and I was feeling a craving. Also....no Chick-Fil-A in NYC for me to boycott anyway. I also ordered a single bloody mary, to wash it down. The menu has options for both unlimited drinks with an entree for $30 or a single brunch drink with an entree for half the price.

The bloody was alright. Spicy, but not overpoweringly so, with flecks of horseradish and garnished with a single lime. Came in a huge glass too, which lasted me quite a while. But it seemed a bit straightforward, not very complex. Also, couldn't really taste any alcohol in it, but I know it was there, just not as strong as I would have liked.

Bloody Mary

The Chicken Biscuits were quite tasty. The biscuits were flaky and tender, baked perfectly. The fried chicken was tender and juicy, plump and delicious. Combined with the mustard and Gouda, it was like a party in my mouth. Definitely a fan. Unfortunately the accompanying sides did not reach the same level. The potato hash seemed like it came out of a pan, a little cold and rather lifeless. The arugula salad was missing something, the arugula itself seemed a little off (like it didn't have the requisite pepperiness).

There only seemed to be two servers on staff, one of whom was the bartender, which made service a little slow. I'm not sure if this was just an off week or what but I can only judge by what I saw. If I had gotten the unlimited drinks not sure how often I would have seen a refill. The service itself also was a little cold, like they were just trying to get through the day, and get people through the door.

Overall, I wasn't that impressed. The Chicken Biscuits were amazing. Everything else, left something to be desired. I guess when you have a food blog, not everything is going to be awesome. So I'll have to give West 3rd Common 2.5 Blood Maries out of 5.