El Cobre

R.I.P.
Closed forever in this iteration, but currently being remodeled into the future «Gin Palace».

This place is pretty fun looking and have decent cocktails but most people come here late night to wait it out for a spot at Cienfuegos upstairs.
We, of course, ended up doing the same. The bar area was adorned with water features and interesting seating arrangements. As we made our way comfortably to an open table, our waitress came by immediately with menus. Unfortunately they had stopped serving food at this point.
The cocktails were reasonably priced, but the whole place was this weird dark and dinginess so I wasn’t quite sure what I felt about it. The seats were not extremely comfortable and we were happy to have been called up to Cienfuegos quickly after our orders.
Overall, I think it’s a cool place to hang out, but it’s definitely unfortunately its below Cienfuegos which is WAY better.

El Cobre is another fabulous bar from the Mayahuel team, which is dominating the bar scene around the East Village. This particular venue focuses on unique rum cocktails — my favorite!
The front lounge area of the space allowed us to comfortably debate over which drinks to order from the lengthy menu. We were then able to sit back and savor each sip. My Demerara Dry Float was composed of El Dorado 5-​year Demerara rum, passion fruit nectar, lime, and maraschino. It was served in a very tall glass full of ice. The cocktail was tasty, but poorly mixed, since the first few sips were tart and delicious, but overwhelming hints of alcohol started to dominate my taste buds as I neared the bottom.
The bar’s sprawling windows overlooked Avenue A, which allowed for prime people-​watching. However, this also negated the intimate environment that I had so grown to love at this group’s other venues. El Cobre provided a nice experience, but I would prefer to grab a drink at Mayahuel or Amor y Amargo.

One of my favorites in the EV. Although a bit pricey, the atmosphere and the talented mixologists have it a great place for a drink for two. Each drink is skillfully prepared and very strong (making your money’s worth I guess). Every time I come in here the food smells heavenly and I keep telling myself to go back for more. I have gotten the croquettes which were very good.
Love coming here for a drink and relaxing on their «cuban steps.» Also, a pretty reasonable happy hour.

In a world where too much power is given to hostesses and door managers, I get hives, potentially. Because someone wielding a wand they feel has bestowed them with an aye or nay to potential patrons, I don’t even consider ever going back. This is what happened at their upstairs bar: Cienfuegos. I don’t really care if it’s full, and our group of five won’t fit. What I care about is how you say it. Option 1: «oh, it’s full, maybe try a bit later or have a drink downstairs.» Option 2: «we’re not letting people in. you can stay down stairs.»
Subtle difference, but it’s there. After I got over the host’s entitlement kick, we settled in the back on the re-​purposed water fountain. I liked our guy, and the fact that he felt like «our guy» meant he took care of us really well, but that might have had something to do with them not being busy (read: everyone’s upstairs).
I’m told they make cocktails, so I ask about the Ramos Gin Fizz, and if egg whites & cream are available here. I gotta give it to ‘em, they went upstairs for the whites & cream allowing me to have the best damn Ramos of my life even though I’m downstairs. If you haven’t had a Ramos, or if you had please indulge: lemon, lime soda, gin (on the juniper end helps), egg whites, cream. This one here… the dense cream stood the straw up on its own. Frothy. Worth it.
I’m down for any establishment that indulges in a dozen ceiling fans all next to one another, then have them run so slow it doesn’t really matter they’re there — I felt like I was in Noriega’s cantina.
If there happened to not be room at the bar or on the water fountain steps, I’d get pretty claustrophobic in those packed chairs & tables.
Despite the unnecessary attitude at the door, it turned out to be a fine night with four friends.

Huh?
How could a place with such a cool name and such encouraging Unilocal reviews be such a completely bad choice for tapas and drinks on a Sunday evening? After losing out to the crowds at Benny’s across the street, our party of ladies ended up in the street seating area of El Cobre looking for some libations and snacks to tide us over before dinner.
Our waitress was clearly flustered when she first appeared. I’m guessing it was more a personal thing rather than work-​related since the restaurant itself had maybe one or two other parties inside.
We received three menus, only one of which we could order from. My friend asked how sweet the punch was. Our waitress’ response, «Punch, by definition, is sweet.» Okay, then. No more questions. We ordered a round of punch and a new pitcher of water (ours was both used and empty) while we made food decisions. Thirty minutes later we hadn’t seen our waitress and received no water or drinks. More waiting, some asking and finally we had ordered food from someone else and our drinks arrived, delivered by this new lifesaving waiter.
The punch was, by definition, not sweet. It was, to be clear: disgusting. We’d been waiting for so long and the price point ($ 5) was so cheap that we just ignored it, got the check…
And I left with a bad taste in my mouth.

Nothing like going food shopping and ending up at a bar.
Last night, my girl and I went out to Key Food after a long day at Coney for a big ol’ bag of cereal and some cold cuts and ended up at El Cobre. Not really sure how that happened seeing that Cobre is two blocks north of Key Food and we live south but, oh man, so happy we did.
First, let me just say that the interior of El Cobre is very homey and peaceful. There is a big water fountain with an imposing statue of the Virgin Mary that is a wee bit intimidating and, at best, just makes me want to constantly go pee but the atmosphere is perfect otherwise. Azure and white tiled floors, twisted iron chairs and big comfy sofas/​lounges make for a chill atmosphere perfect for kicking back and talking for hours. This would be a perfect date location if you actually planned on talking during your outing. And the sofas make a perfect location for some serious deep down and dirty necking. Like serious make-​out spot.
In spite of my accolades on the interior, we chose to sit outside al fresco. Good choice, Comrade. Our lovely waitress Nora is a local girl who grew up around the corner on Avenue B. She made our experience absolutely fantastic. Thank you, Nora. You rock.
Oh, I probably haven’t mentioned that El Cobre is a Cuban joint, hence the reference. But that’s about it. The food and alcohol are anything but proletarian. Che, if he wasn’t actually just a mercenary for hire, would be rolling in his Bolivian grave if he knew the decadence that El Cobre serves up. Hell, Castro would come here. No kidding. The food is that good. We had the carne and castillos, along with the mixed seafood ceviche. Absolutely delicious. Like lick your plate clean kind of good. For dessert we had the tres leches cake. I stabbed my fiancé to get more of it.
The drinks are well thought out and executed. Good rum, good drinks and strong pours. Very creative mixes, seasonal cocktails, and did I mention they specialize in rum? They do. Go have a drink.
Oftentimes, the sign of a fantastic rather than a good restaurant is how they turn a mistake into a success. We had ordered rice with vegetables between the ceviche and meat dishes but it never showed up. No big deal, the plates were substantial enough to sate us. So, we basically ignored the fact that it didn’t show up. Well, lo and behold, we are half-​way done with our tres leches and the rice shows up. Ummmmmm, no thanks. Not in the mood anymore.
The server apologizes and assures us it will come off the bill. The manager comes over and apologizes profusely, assures us it will be taken off the bill and buys us a round of drinks. Major success. This, folks, is how you run a restaurant. Admit your mistakes, rectify them, and treat your customers properly. Hats off to the staff at El Cobre. The front of house made us feel incredibly welcome while the back of house folks made the evening just exactly what we needed. Thank you and kudos all around.

WHAT IS UP. This place makes way too big a deal about itself. I was hesitant because I despise Death&Co., but this place seemed more laid back, inviting even as I walk past most nights of the week.
Well, I was sadly mistaken. Drinks are good but there are so many other good places to get cocktails (Elsa, Louis 649, Bourgeois Pig to name a few in close proximity) that don’t come with a slow and confusing service and a load of pomp and absolute baloney about where to sit. Also I find it amusing that they do not allow standing.
On the brightside, I’m no longer curious as to what this place is like, my suspicions have been all but confirmed.
Alas, I wanted to like you El Cobre, I really did. Call me when you’re done with your tantrums and terrible two’s and grow up.

This is strictly about El Cobre for brunch: terrible, uncoordinated service. Waited way too long just to get a menu. It was never clear who my specific waiter was. Drinks and food took too long to arrive — it seemed like they had forgotten my order. When my order arrived it was overcooked. They were about at half-​capacity and there were at least two tables by me that had the same experience (one table even had to completely reorder).
At this level of service, the food review doesn’t matter — anyone would be too frustrated to enjoy it. The food was good — but I didn’t end up eating until after an hour of being there. They either comped me one cocktail or forget to charge me for it… so that was nice, maybe. This place is probably a better bar, but it’ll be a while before I go back.

very hit n miss menu, we loved the cubanitos and tamales, but the arroz con vegetales tasted like fried rice topped with bell peppers and the ensalada with avocado and red onions was like a chopped avocado mixture with cherry tomatoes and crap load of parsley.
the space itself is made for lounging on sofas, several bar stools in the back and a bleacher like seating area that feels a little odd. Luckily they have a few outdoors tables.
hh till 8pm every day including weekends, everything on the list was $ 5 but it’s the same menu items just half the size for half the price and the ‘happy hour punch’ is like a margarita with a ton of ice. if you want a drink, just order from their regular drink menu

Brunch
Chorizo Hash (slices of chorizo, pulled pork?, chickpeas, two fried eggs)
good flavor, maybe slightly salty but good with the hot sauce (ask for it).
the steak and eggs were also good.
brunch comes with juice or cocktail and coffee or tea. had the juice and coffee (both fresh and good). Have I grown up to not drink during brunch anymore?

Did Brunch here on a Saturday, and the food did not disappoint, My Spanish is not good enough to name all that we had but I will give the highlights:
EL Chirizo Benedicto: What had to be the most flavorful deep fried sausage with a perfectly poached egg and some type of hybrid spicy/​hollandaise sauce that knocked my socks off.
The simple yet super delish tomato avocado salad was amazing!!!
I could have eaten just that and been wow“d.
I also cant remember for the life of me what the names of the drinks we had but I can describe (and critique) them.
First one was their version of a Bloody Mary but with Cucumber instead of Tomato juice which since I dont like either version sucked to me.
Then I tried a Berry instead of OJ based Mimosa which was pretty addicting. So that one did it for me.
The Atmosphere was pretty chic, lotsa «beautiful people» here, nice steps opposite the bar which totally gave you that new bohemian feel (I really don’t know if I’m being sarcastic here) and the server was nice, the bartender could use a little more time leaning whats in his drinks though as he had trouble describing them when we asked.

The second best hot buttered rum in the city! The first, I’m keeping a secret :) We happened in on this place after finding out that the wait for seats upstairs at Cienfuegos was going to be an hour plus on a Friday night. I like the set up of this bar. The front looks and feels like a cluttered living room full of comfy chairs (minus the omnipresent virgin Mary). The back is rowdy and better suited for groups or chatting with strangers on the bleachers. I didn’t appreciate how loud the music was up front. I wish they would install high tech speakers that are louder in back, quieter in front.
Unfortunately, you can’t get punch bowls down here. But all of their rum-​based drinks were stellar, and I rarely order rum unless I’m sitting on a warm sunny beach.

Passing thru the East Village on a Friday night, I wanted a place where my friend and I could go that wouldn’t be a sauna and we could actually talk. I’m always wary of blinding selecting anything without consulting Unilocal first but this place checked out!
My favorite thing is the wall of steps across from the bar, alternative seating that gives you this nice empowered feeling of being several feet off the ground. The furniture up front is nice too, old school classy daybeds and ornate chairs. Friendly staff and barkeeps who from what I saw were hitting it just as hard as some of the patrons.
The drinks aren’t the cheapest and it’s almost all cocktail oriented. But if you’re a cocktail fan its probably paradise as the drink menu is no-​joke 5 pages long; so long it actually is a bit hard to navigate. But it’s nice for that classy or start-​the-​night drink.

After a failed attempt at two other brunch sites in the East Village, we truly just stumbled upon El Cobre, and Hail Mary, we were saved. It’s very possible that we could have aimlessly walked around the East village looking for brunch for hours, and somehow we were called in to this Cuban church with Mother Mary dominating the entry way.
If not for the 20 degree weather and the sky scrapers littering the skyline, you could truly believe you’re in a Cuban paradise in this cool little restaurant. We had a cocktail on the church steps while we waited on a Victorian couch with two marbled side tables for brunch.
The food was delicious — I recommend the Huevos Benedicto — -and with a house mixologist, the drinks are unparalleled.
You should definitely try the blackberry-​rum «Mamosa” — ironically it’s a bit diabolical and addictive.

Coming here for the Billyons birthday bash was an amazing choice. All credit to my bday counterpart for choosing and confirming with the location.
Everyone from top to bottom was completely stand up and professional. I even recognized Darrell from Ideya, who has the pleasure of working at two great restaurants.
For serious rum drinkers, this is the place to go. They will not have budweiser or crap to drink.
My personal favorites, and you have to start slow and warm up, were:
1. The Cloak and Dagger
2. Captain’s Blood
3. The Billyons — A creation named after me with anejo and some other great stuff that I can’t recall.
The food was amazing too and you can eat upstairs or at the nice tables in front. You literally feel like you stepped into Cuba when you walk through the doors.

I visited this place twice, once for drinks as we waited for a seat in The Bourgeois Pig, and once for drinks and dinner at the bar with Kristin.
First, in keeping with their theme of wonderful décor and thoughtful attention to detail, the team behind Cienfuegos and Mayahuel have done a fantastic job. The bar is in the area behind the tables, which are blessed by a copper Virgin Mary at the entrance.
The menu is not lacking in rum based cocktails and the way in which they are separated is both whimsical and useful to the discerning drinker as well. We opted for two different cocktails and ordered some food to share. The Croquettas De Cangrejo Con Guava were delicious and the burger was also very well-​cooked. The dessert, however, stole the show, for the Turon de Coco was intense and decadent, and we could not stop until it was all gone. We stuck around for a while, ordering more drinks, but at around 10:30 PM we decided to head out as it was getting very crowded.
That said, I totally recommend this place for a few drinks and food, especially on a weeknight.

The entrance to El Cobre can be somewhat difficult to figure out, but don’t let that deter you. Inside is a treasure trove of cocktail deliciousness the likes of which you will only find at a small handful of the best bars in NYC (think Mayahuel, Death & Co., Dram).
El Cobre’s cocktails are rum (but not necessarily tiki) focused, and run the gamut in style from daiquiris to swizzles to rocks drinks and a selection of hot drinks. As a cocktail geek, rum happens to be the weak point in my spirits knowledge and the spirit I drink least frequently, which is a real shame. But the bartenders at El Cobre are masters with the stuff, and each time I go I learn more about the various flavors and styles of rum and all the possibilities they hold for creating beautiful cocktails. There are a ton of different rums (and rhums) behind the bar and on the menu, and each drink I’ve tried showcases the flavors of its particular rum beautifully. I especially like the way the menu is separated by styles of cocktail — it makes it much easier to choose something that will match my mood even when I’m not quite sure what the cocktail will end up tasting like.
The Pan-​American Trilogy is a must-​have for anyone who likes stirred, spiced, slightly sweet drinks; the Hot or Not is complex and brooding; and the Dominicana is like (caffeinated) dessert in a glass.
I haven’t tried much of the food at dinnertime, but between my orders and friends’ orders I’ve tried almost everything on the brunch menu, and it’s all terrific. I’m a huge fan of the chorizo benedicto which combines my love of Mexican breakfast with my love of eggs benedict, but the french toast ensures that I still have to contend with my eternal sweet/​savory brunch predicament. I like the spicy (!) bloody mary that you get free (!) with brunch, but the Minnesota Breakfast is a must-​have on a cold winter weekend.

2.5 Stars
This is another sister joint for the people behind Death & Co., Mayahuel and Cienfuegos. I came here last Friday with Brian M. and I was so disappointed in the service and drinks here.
Initially, the first thing that intrigued me whenever I walked by was the giant Virgin Mary/​Guadalupe. I mean, you can’t miss the damn thing. I’m sure Señorita Guadalupe had quite a few drinks back in the day, what with the whole having to carry baby Jesus situation and all. Sorry, I digress. Back to the poor service. The two people a couple tables over from ours kept getting the shaft! They kept getting food orders that weren’t theirs and ultimately up walking out. The communication amongst the staff was non existent and the tension was HIGH in the room. Bri and I were bored, not drunk, and hungry. Three not so good things to be experiencing when out. When we finally got our food, it was good, but nothing out of this world. I’d give it a solid three stars. Give the croquettas a try!
The rum cocktails we got were so-​so. I asked the waitress for a suggestion and she had me try El Cobre’s version of a mojito. It was presented in a really pretty manner, but the drink was completely watered down and didn’t pack the amount of punch that I usually get from a drink at Mayahuel, Death & Co., or Cienfuegos. The space is kind of awkward and much too small for the amount of people they let in at 8:30 PM on a Friday night.
I’d tell Dave & Ravi (the founders), that sometimes expanding is a bad thing.

El Cobre just opened a few days ago by the same people who own Death and Company. Some friends and I came here for drinks last night, and it was really nice! The place is unmarked at a street corner, and the windows are white-​tinted with images of cobras.
The service was really friendly. Our server gave us really thorough explanations of some of the drinks (all mixed drinks are rum-​based. I’m not sure if this is temporary or will be the ongoing theme) and gave recommendations based on things we said we liked.
I had the Peninsula Sour, which was really good. All the drinks were tasty, strong, without being too overpowering with the rum taste. Will definitely be back.