Jack the Horse Tavern
Category: American (Traditional) [Edit]
Neighborhood: Brooklyn/Brooklyn Heights66 Hicks Street
(between Cranberry St & Middagh St)
Brooklyn, NY 11201 (718) 852-5084
- Nearest Transit:
Clark St (2, 3)
High St (A, C)
York St (F)
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Dinner
- Alcohol: Full Bar
59 reviews
Neighborhood: Manhattan/Greenwich Village
"LIKES: lighting/ambience - nice fun party vibe tvs to watch bball games when you're bowling tastly delicious munchies good times for a group…" read more »
30 Reviews for Jack the Horse Tavern
There's so much here to call diners to attention, and as we found last night, there's so much to recommend. I'll be short with it: spaciousness, graciousness, and an open disregard for the perils of being too prosaic or too precious with the menu. In other words, the place exudes a kind of category-defying confidence I don't see too often in Brooklyn, and far less so in Manhattan. Everything tasted and drank winningly.
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I'M IN LOVE! If ever there was a place that embodied the perfect little restaurant, I would argue this is it! The atmosphere is warm and welcoming while still remaining special. The service is refreshingly professional without being pretentious. The cocktails are remarkable because they are truly unique, well-crafted with fresh ingredients and a sense of pride on behalf of the bartender. The food...well the food is simply amazing and unexpected from such an unassuming little enclave.
YOU MUST HAVE THE MAC & CHEESE! I understand that everyone and their mother will say their mac & cheese is the best but I assure you it is not...Jack's is the best! I have tried their burger, steak, pork chops and a veggie risotto special. All of these were divine! The menu at first sight seems simple but another look and you'll find that your meal will be just a touch unique. I happen to like places where I recognize the dishes and their ingredients but also know my palate will experience a new twist on the tried-and-true.
The atmosphere is storybook. Brick walls, big windows, candle light all hidden away in a charming little corner of Brooklyn Heights. Might I also add that the owner's love for his place & his craft is incredibly apparent. He was friendly with us and even bussed our table since he knew they were busy that night. You simple can't beat that kind of customer attention and appreciation.
I've been coming here since it opened and I've had many great meals and few disastrous ones. But I'll just write about the last one.
So, it's summer and recently my wife and I have taken to sitting at the bar and sharing lighter fare. Last time we had the heirloom tomato salad with buffala mozz -[just ok] - the smoked trout salad - [excellent - dense, tasty and filling $10] - and the pizzetta {$14}- I can't remember much about it other that it hit the spot. They seem really proud of their cocktail nerdiness - making one of the special drinks is like watching a science experiment performed by a bad mime artist - it always persuades me to go for a pint of one their local ales. They have a small selection of wines by the glass - but they are all good. I often have the burger - which I usually regret - firstly because I'm a chubby wonder, secondly because the fries are often over-seasoned, and the bun is gum splitting ciabatta, and the price is a hefty $14 - you can get a 100% grass-fed beef burger at SAVOY for a buck more. But it's a good local restaurant and as one the other reviewers stated - very much needed in the neighborhood.
In the cooler months we tend to sit down for a more substantial meal - which is where Jack the Horse really excels. The menu resembles upmarket comfort food - similar to what the Waltucks did at Le Zinc - for a while it was a bargain - but once they had found their customers the prices went up - which is fine when the meal is good, but an outrage when it isn't. So why didn't I give Jack the Horse 3 stars?
Because more often than not I can forgive the patchy service, the misplaced cocktail nerdiness, and the cavalier offerings because more often than not everything is great and yes I'm a fan, even when it fails it does so with panache and if you're ever lucky enough to be here to watch it snow through the huge side windows, it can be magical.
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Best cocktails in brooklyn, feel free to just ask the bartenders to make whatever they want and you'll have an amazing night. i havent tried their food but they're always packed for dinner.
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Certainly the most compelling restaurant in brooklyn heights. The drinks and dessert are absurdly tasty, while I have found that entrees, while creative, are often too fruit-embellished for my taste, though maybe I've ordered wrong. Still, it's a very worthy neighborhood restaurant, especially considering the dearth of good food options in this neck of the woods.
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Jack..the ass! My girlfriend and I had both been here before and liked it, so we thought we'd stop in for a quick bite on our way to a show. We figured 45 min. would be enough time to order a drink and an entree, especially since there were only a few tables occupied (we were there around 6:30pm on a summer Friday.)
We were wrong! Got our wine and then we waited...and waited...while our waiter disappeared behind the bar to mix drinks, the chef came out to chat with the table next to ours, and the rest of the waitstaff (and some of the kitchen staff) stood around in the back of the restaurant chatting. No one came by to check on our table, even as (the few) other tables got their entrees, then their desserts. Finally, I went to find our waiter, still behind the bar. He sent another waiter to check with the kitchen. Waiter #2 reported back to him, not to us, so I had to get up again and ask him for the scoop. His response? "If you're in a hurry, I guess you'd better go, because your order got lost." Lost? With maybe 6 tables occupied in the whole place? Hard to believe they could be so sloppy and unconcerned.
The bar manager, who overheard the waiter's comment, did run out after us to apologize and offer us complimentary drinks in the future, but at this point, we're pretty sure that Jack doesn't know jack about decent service.
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"try the behind the knees cocktail! I GUARANTEE you will like it!" so began our evening at Jack the Horse Tavern, with a confident and totally accurate endorsement of a delicious cocktail by our exuberant server. The other cocktails we tried - the Brooklyn and something with Tequila - were also smash hits.
the Mac & Cheese comes in a small dish for the price, but you will overlook that based on phenomenal tastiness. (Ben: "this tastes like it might have bacon in it!" Dee, a vegetarian, shoving mac & cheese into her mouth: "I can't see any, so I don't care." I actually think its just the smoky flavor of the gouda.) Even without bacon, I'm prepared to say that this mac & cheese cannot be improved upon. That's a bold statement, and contrary to my usual position on everything being better with bacon, but I'll stand by it. The sprinkling of bread crumbs provides a lovely crunch, and the combination of cheeses is lipsmacking good.
The entrees were also great: the pork loin was succulent, the monkfish with mussels and little potato disks was so amazing we had to ask for another basket of bread to sop up every last bit of sauce. The only thing that underwhelmed us was dessert - the brownie was too dry.
The atmosphere is relaxed and charming. We stayed quite a while and weren't rushed at all. The restaurant is on an adorable corner in Brooklyn Heights and has giant windows, and the sight of the old Brooklyn veterinary society with its quaint red door across the street nicely complemented the meal.
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I love this place. I went on a friday night. The wait to be seated was a little long but the hostess was very sweeat and took my number then called me when a table opened up, so I was able to take a stroll around the heights before my amazing dinner. everyone that works there seems almost as great as the food I will deff be going back and will be bringing my friends. and the cocktails are AWESOME
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This is the cutest little restaurant in a Brooklyn Heights neighborhood. Kind of a hidden place you would have to stumble upon to find.
The food is really good. We had deep frind oysters, mussels with bread, macaroni cheese (hi-so if you wish), and french fries. All so good.
But this place gets five stars for the bartender/mixologist. He makes really good drinks with crazy sounding names. And puts on a good show doing it. Lighting up a fresh orange peel to float in my drink. Apparently he has won awards for his drinks. Ask him about it.
My first Brooklyn review! No way! I am off the island, did I get lost? What happened?
Only a good friend's birthday (or a date with a cool guy [hint hint]) could get me out to the BK. Last night we ended our night here, it was warm, inviting, and the food smelled great.
Max, the bartender, was very knowledgeable, friendly, and a great mixologist. Now that I'm trying to incorporate Bourbon into my cocktail rotation, I decided to have my first mint julep. It was delicious, slightly sweet, slightly minty, and very borboun-y.
Next I had the Behind the Knees since it's made with St. Germain, which is also a booze I have been trying to incorporate. I'm not sure what's in the Behind the Knees, but it sounds sexy and tasted amazing. Once the kitchen closed, the place cleared out except for a few of us booze hounds, which we truly enjoyed because then we were able to sit at a nice round table and have some pretty heated convo.
I left this establishment the way I always want to end a Saturday night, past midnight, pretty tipsy, and not alone. Damn he was just a friend...
A very cool place in the BK, I will definitely be back.
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Stop number 2 on a mac and cheese crawl. OMG I think I am in love. And last time I checked, I cannot marry a bowl of macaroni and cheese.
They hostess here was very accommodating and very friendly. Although they don't normally take reservations, they did for us Yelpers. Kudos to them.
Between the 8 of us ordered 4 plates of Mac and cheese. They gave us the 5th on the house. AWESOMENESS
ANNDDDD their chef even came out to meet us and introduce himself.
Now, down to the cuisine. As previously mentioned, I'M IN LOVE . The mac n cheese was crispy, oohey and gooey. The chef did not use regular macaroni. Instead it was tubular and long and twisty AND DELICIOUS. Everything about this dish makes me want to travel two hours to Brooklyn Heights for some more of this mac-and-cheese-goodness.
Will I come back here? AbSoFuckiNgLuTeLy
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I still dream of the French toast, and that was months ago that I ate there. Good lord.
And now that I've been back, I can say that those were unbelievable blueberry pancakes and, while I didn't have a cocktail, I could see plainly that Aaron was a knowledgable and attentive bartender. I don't think that a Manhattan would have gone well with the pancakes, but I'll be back soon to see what he can do with one.
He also had a knack for knowing exactly when I was going to want more coffee. I was very impressed.
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Nice ambaince, huge windows, awesome Mac & Cheese
Our 2nd stop of our Mac & Cheese Crawl, having come from a very disappointing Mac & Cheese at Waterfront Ale House, my only re-assurance was that it can't much worse than that (and if it did, I would be heading to my local grocery store to pick up some Kraft's Mac & Cheese and make it myself).
Jack the Horse Tarven has a rustic feel to it. Although the construction and furniture are quite new, I really felt like I wasn't in the city, but in more rural area of the country. The owner was quite warm and welcomed all of us. We put together 2 table of 4s to make 1 table of 8. This setup was actually better because we didn't feel like we had to shout across to talk to each other. It also helped that the place was relatively quiet on a nice Saturday mid-afternoon.
We had a beer and had 4 orders of Mac & cheese. The owner was gracious enough to give us a free one on the house. Boy, did that come in handy. The Mac & Cheese was so delicious. It was one of the best Mac & Cheese I ever had. If we weren't doing the crawl, we would have order more and just stuff our face until we can't eat anymore. It was that good.
I really like Jack the Horse Tavern, I also like their huge windows too. Its so relaxing to look out into their huge window, on to the quiet street, no traffic, and just enjoy their Mac & Cheese. I will definitely be back to try out the other items on their menu.
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The location of the restaurant is a bit weird. It's in a very residential area with lots of brownstones in the area.
My first thought when I went in was "Man, it's bright in here." Granted we were there around 4PM on a sunny spring Saturday, but the bright dining room made it feel very warm and comfortable.
The mac n cheese is awesome. I almost never order mac n cheese at a restaurant because I figure I can make mac n cheese at home, so why should I order it at a restaurant. Well, I might have to change my outlook on ordering mac n cheese.
The portion was a bit small, but it was fantastic. It had a nice crusty layer on top and the cheese was not greasy or runny. Just creamy and cheesy and heavenly.
I'd like to come back here with my GF one of these days and check out the rest of the menu.
Oh yeah - the owner seemed really nice and she was very warm and receptive when we walked in.
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My review is based almost solely on their Mac n Cheese. It was the 2nd stop on the Mac n Cheese crawl today and totally made up for a kinda "eh" mac n cheese at our first stop. The staff were all great, they tolerated that our party had dwindled from the original estimate of c. 20 people to only 8, and didn't seem to mind that all we ordered was 4 servings of mac n cheese and some beers. Our waiter even said he had the mac n cheese a few days ago and could still taste how good it was. The chef came out to meet us since we were the only people in there at 3:30 in the afternoon. If the mac n cheese is a good indicator of how delicious the rest of their menu is, this is without a doubt a place everyone needs to check out. I think some of us will definitely have amazing dreams tonight about this mac n cheese.
Oh and the restaurant itself was beautiful. A great place to take a date, or to sit at the bar, as other reviewers have mentioned. I didn't have any of their cocktails, but they sounded great.
So make your way over to Brooklyn Heights and at the very least have some mac n cheese. It is completely worth it and may even be life-altering.
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Jack the Horse always comes through when we want something nice, good and in Brooklyn Heights, and don't want a crazy wait. Lighter fare than Henry's End, but I think just as good. Great place to take parents in town, friends from other boroughs, etc... and include a walk over to the promenade before or after dinner.
Everything I've had is good, but I still dream about the heirloom tomato summertime salad. . . .
Jack the Horse, why did you get me in such trouble! I didn't need to keep drinking, but you kept making me such expertly made fancy cocktails that I guess I just couldn't stop!
Great place, this. Really cool bartenders who really know their shit. I was immediately impressed to see the bottle of Creme de Violette behind the bar, so obviously I had to let the man make me an aviation, which he did quite expertly. Also tried some kind of bourbon drink on their specialty menu, but I can't recall the name. And, I had a go with a Manhattan, my yardstick for fancy bar acumen.
Wow, those three drinks ended up getting me in a world of trouble; like lose all your stuff and wander around the nabe trying to find a friend to let you sleep on their couch trouble. But boy were they good. Very highly recommended. A real sleeper in the world of cocktail nerdry: who would expect to find such a place nestled away in the sleepy back streets of Bk Heights?? Not I. Get there.
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I am pretty much agreeing with everything everyone has written here, you should definitely get the mac and cheese and one of their delicious cocktails. The Behind the Knees cocktail was very good. I also had the cabbage, bacon, blue cheese and apple salad (an attempt to counterbalance the richness of the macaroni) which was great. My friends were very pleased with their hamburger, hangar steak and short ribs orders as well. Great date spot, family friendly and good for a group of friends. It's a lot nicer than the name would indicate. It's far from a dark pub. The servers were very friendly.
If there are two things I love in this world, it's macaroni & cheese (as in the dish, not 1. macaroni and 2. cheese) and classic cocktails. I seek both out with the fervor of a bloodhound on the trail of a criminal--a new old-timey speakeasy opens up? I'm there the first week (see: Hotel Delmano). I catch wind of some phenomenal mac & cheese at the latest comfort food destination? MUST. HAVE.
Mind-blowingly, JTH has both, and is a 3-minute walk from my apartment. How is it that a year has gone by, and I haven't been? Mostly because my friends are lame and will make up any excuse not to go to Brooklyn. But I finally made plans with a friend whose bf lives up the street, and we arrived at JTH, our goals twofold:
1. Eat mac & cheese.
2. Shmooze up the bartender and try as many cocktails as possible.
Mission, my friends, accomplished. The mac & cheese was perfect (though TINY!!! I could have eaten probably 2 more orders)--sharp cheese, perfectly buttery and crispy on top. I also had the spinach salad, which was fantastic--baby spinach with goat cheese, dried cranberries and apricots, fresh cranberries and pecans. Best salad I've had in recent memory.
And now...the drinks. How much space do I have here? Aaron the bartender knows his shit. Over the course of the night we talked all kinds of cocktail nerd talk--LeNell's, PDT, M&H, Pegu etc. So fun. They have a seasonal menu, so most drinks were in the dark-liquor family--bourbon, scotch, rum--but a couple of gin drinks to round things out. We started with a Man of Leisure, a bourbon-based drink where the garnish is a flaming orange peel, and a Robbie Robbie, a variation on a Rob Roy.
Next, I wanted something made with Aperol, so Aaron made me an Aperol Royale (not on the menu), which has Aperol, gin, lemon and champagne--very tasty and refreshing. My friend's next drink was the Widow's Kiss, which was apple-y and very sweet, my least favorite of the night, but the bar was set so high!
Hmm...I feel like I should wrap things up here. Had 3 more drinks, including an Aaron original, the Stylish Cocktail. Everything was so good!
It could be a very dangerous thing that JTH is within stumbling distance.
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jack the horse is a quiet and serene space tucked away on a beautiful little street in brooklyn heights (well, arent they all actually?). its a very comfortable place with an incredibly friendly and professional staff. their food is very very good....the first time i was there i had the lamb and i really dont usually dig on lamb. it was one of the best things ive ever eaten in brooklyn. recently i had a summer soup of peas and mint and i wish i could invent pellets of the stuff to pop in my mouth all day long, it tasted that good. there are some really great wines, including a fantastic malbec (only 30 bucks a bottle) and their cocktail menu is intimidating in a 'how am i gonna try to drink all these tonight' kinda way. go now.
This is certainly a gem to find almost at the end of a small, almost non-descript road in the Heights. I came across this place by accident while waking down this street to just get off the main drag. The decor is very intimate and warm. Their wine selection is out of sight and the bar is nice to sit with a friend and trade stories as the sun dips into the river. The food is really good, reminiscent of German fare (I think), but what has really made this place a favorite of mine is their mozzarella and tomato appetizer, served seasonally. They have four maybe five colors of tomato (mmmm) for this plate and it is the best I have ever had, hands down. I like this place for wither having dinner with an old friend or a date. Definitely find this little tucked away place.
I wish I could come often enough to reflect how much I like it!
What's working against me:
-It's in a very quiet neighborhood, so I'm never just passing by.
-It's a little too pricey to pop in "just because".
This is sad, because the food is truly excellent, as is the [short] wine list. This summer: white gazpacho and a memorable gurwetztraminer for $9. On a Friday night last fall, everyone at the bar buzzed with conversation with each other and the bartender, yet it was never crowded or noisy. Seems like a nice place to come by with a book on weeknights, too.
Half-grastropub, half-restaurant, it's great for preplanned nice dinners, or for grabbing a drink with anyone in the neighborhood while actually being able to hold a conversation.
We had dinner here on July 3rd. The food and the wait staff were phenomenal. My husband and I shared the mac & cheese dish; it was outstanding! For our entrees, I ordered duck and my husband ordered hanger steak. Since I order duck quite often when we eat out, I can confidentially state this was hands down the best duck entrée I've probably eaten. I prefer my duck medium rare, the dish was prepared exactly the way I wanted it and the portion was just right. Interesting side note, my husband requested his steak be cooked medium and apparently the chef had overcooked the steak; as our waiter came out to apologize for our wait and indicated that our entrees would a few minutes longer. Honestly, we hadn't noticed our wait to be very long for the entrees, but appreciated the updated and shared a good chuckle with the waiter about the situation. The décor is warm and inviting and we felt very comfortable just sitting and relaxing.
On an unassuming corner in historic Brooklyn Heights fruit stand streets is a corner door. Enter and you'll find a warm, cheerful bar and comfortable dining room with pillows strewn along the large banquet. As casual as Jack the Horse feels, the servers try hard to maintain the dignity of the menu.
My friend was more than pleased with his grilled diver sea scallops over pureed cauliflower ($19). I had the briased short ribs over mashed potatoes and grilled brussel sprouts ($18) and cleaned my plate. The food tasted fresh and cooked perfectly and the prices were impressive for such delightful dishes. The wine connoisseur was happy with the wine list and selected a bottle of 2005 Mendoza, Argentinean red which was gorgeous paired with my beef.
The over all ambiance of Jack the horse was a comfortable yet sophisticated. If only I lived on Pineapple or Orange....
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Jack the Horse Tavern has been nothing but spectacular for us. We are always treated well, the food is delicious and Tim the Owner/Chef always comes out and talks with his customers. The wait staff is great - very attentive. It's definitely not a stuffy place as one reviewer has remarked. With its wonderful decor like the tin ceilings, fluffy pillows and brick walls, Jack the Horse Tavern has definitely kept the charm of the neighborhood. As with any restaurant in the beginning kinks have to be worked out. They take criticism well and are genuinely concerned about their customers' experience.
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It's always lovely to find something unexpected. Jack the Horse is a British gastropub on an old street...with great food.
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UPDATED
I went back here, and they have really gotten it together. They are now changing the menu regularly, and the bartender Damon is quite the mixologist - fans of little branch, etc will enjoy drinking here. It's much calmer than Henry St. Ale House, which is nice - I had a delicious hangar steak (though a tad undercooked), and the chicken liver schmeer w/ cranberry compote. Yum! They have excellent steak, chicken, burgers, and many other good dishes, red snapper, lamb loin. I crave the steak though.The service is warm and personable, and the manager once bought us drinks because we sat at the bar and chatted about sports, which we'd all enjoyed.
Date Visited: April 18th
People: Megan
My tab: ~$45.
Another of my neighborhood faves. It seems like every time I walk in this place, there's always the perfect number of people seated at tables and at the bar. The side door to the restaurant was opened to one of the most quintessential brooklyn street corners on a near perfect spring night. I was taking it easy that night and unfortunately skipped a cocktail at the bar, which is always prepared to perfection, in such a precise and professional way, the bartender makes me think maybe i should be more exacting at my job (and I'm an anesthesiologist). Anyway, I had a sixpoints brownstone ale and ordered a warm savoy cabbage salad with blue cheese, apples, bacon, and what tasted like pure bacon juice as a dressing. awesome. I then had the monkfish, with some sort of mussels sauce and potatoes, while megan had the Pork Loin. Both were great. Once again we skipped dessert and headed to blue pig a block away, finally they cake batter ice cream is back for summer!
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I'm hesitant to write this review because somehow, this remarkable little restaurant on the corner of Hicks and Cranberry flies under the radar. It's right down the street from me, so my husband and I have eaten her innumerable times for dinner and for brunch. We have been really blown away by the quality of food that's served here. The dishes are complex, but not pretentious, and the quality is consistently high. On a recent autumn night, I had amazing meal of braised short ribs with brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes that was just superb. For an appetizer, we split the cabbage salad, which was terrific. I have to admit that It's taken this place a while to hit its stride service-wise, but the last few times I've been there, they've knocked it out of the park. Also, the brunch is fantastic. I always have trouble deciding between the oysters benedict, the pancakes and the smoked trout salad, but smoked trout usually wins out. It's such as unique and wonderful dish, a real treat that I never see on menus elsewhere. The bloody marys are excellent here too. Like everyone else, I give high marks to the bartender. The cocktail selection is really original, and very much reminiscent of Little Branch. We've thought about coming here for cocktails to close out the night - wish they stayed open later! 5 stars.
truly my favorite place in the 'hood. best bartender for miles and absolutely amazing food. love it.
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