Friedman’s

I was going to give it 4 stars based on their slightly over-​oily salad bowl from last week but reserved my review for another experience with another dish I far more desired… the lamb burger with sweet potato fries. That burger was exceptional. The bread slightly toasted, a generous amount of jam and spinach and the patty was very well flavored. I had some camomile tea with lemon for dessert but next time, I’m trying one of their juices of the day. Oh and the service was as great as the food, bravo team!

Love this place! Stumbled upon this gem on Unilocal.Made a last min reservation for 10 people on a Sunday for brunch (most of whom were vegan) and they were super accommodating. The hostess on the phone was very nice, had the table ready when we arrived and server took care of us right away. Will definitely be back, for brunch and maybe next time dinner :)

Attended Friedman’s for the first time for a friend’s rehearsal dinner and it was amazing. The bacon on my burger was probably the best bacon I’ve ever had and the sea salt caramel ice cream on my homemade chocolate chip cookie sandwich, was to die for! And yes we had complimentary sparking water:)
It was hard to gauge atmosphere because they closed the restaurant for our event. Based off of the neighborhood and set up, it strikes me a neighborhood top spot. I would definitely come back when I hit the city!

Came to Friedman’s for brunch and was very impressed. The food was extremely fresh and crisp. The brunch menu had a really good selection. So much so that I wasn’t sure what to order but I decided to go with the pulled pork Benny. I was very happy with my eggs and the side salad. I was also able to try the chicken and waffles, the chicken was fantastic. The cocktails were good as well. The waitress made me a ginger mimosa which was delicious. Overall the food was great and so was the service. I would highly recommend coming here for brunch or lunch!

Nice looking café near Columbia with decent but overpriced food. Good if you’re too lazy to walk or need a clean bathroom. Otherwise, save your money and look elsewhere to eat.
Nice of them to have complimentary sparkling water but it’s not too good. Think Perrier or San Pellegrino, very weak stuff.
Chicken matzo ball soup ($ 5 for a cup) — okay, just a typical chicken soup with a single matzo ball that’s slightly on the dense side, not bad.
Nova Special ($ 17) — poached egg w/​smoked salmon & goat cheese on toast. Pretty much the Nova Benny with toast and goat cheese instead of potatoes and hollandaise. Also not bad but just slightly overpriced. Toast might have been a bit too hard.

Personally I am not a very big fan of American food, but went to Friedman to have lunch with my friends. The place is right near Columbia University, always bustling and busy. You will never see Friedman’s without customer. Just like any other Broadway restaurant Friedman’s is also has seating arrangements outside. I had ordered Friedman’s sandwich. Fried chips (freshly made there) was on the side. The food was not bad, though I did not like the sandwich much because the pieces were falling apart. But my friend seemed to like the Friedman’s burger very much. I wish I had tried that.
The waiters are very good, nice and polite. The place is definitely worth a try.

Great server, mediocre food. The mango cucumber margarita was basically mango purée. I had to send mine back because there was a long, gross hair in the first one.
I was excited to try the fish tacos but our server came back and said they were out for the night (it was only 6:30/7pm). Had the spaghetti squash with burrata and tofu on top. It was ok but nothing incredible. Squash was not seasoned. Side of sweet potato fries which were also decent.
Overall it was an average meal, really nice server.

Sadly, the service and food went down.
One time I came for brunch, my friend found hair and wire, sth disgusting in the plate. The servers didn’t care that much. Because I like the food in general, I came for another time. Last time I came for lunch, I couldn’t get anyone to order/​pay. I wanted to have coffee, but no one came once. So I asked the guy who delivered food to us. He is like I’m not ordering. So clearly, I didn’t get any coffee. In the end, I had to stand up and waved so hard to get attention to get check. The food is also too oily. Ehhhh never came back again.
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Everything here is great! The menu is pretty simple. I came here for breakfast/​lunch/​dinner so far. Normally no waiting time, but I guess it’s different for weekends brunch. First, they offer complimentary sparkling water. Then, the food. The breakfast menu is offered until 11:00. You can’t go wrong with anything here. Dinner is even better. My friend and I came recently. I had chicken and she had steak. Both of them are cooked perfect. The chicken is tender with mashed potato and brussels sprouts around, simple and delicious. My friend’s steak is great cuz she finished all! The appetizer menu is very limited, nothing special or healthy except salad. So it’s kind of boring. Ps, the side dishes are huge. Anyways, it’s such a great addition to this neighborhood. I’ll def come again.

Great place for brunch in Morningside Heights and a nice alternative to the bigger Broadway hits (Community, Le Monde, etc.). My friend and I went to Friedman’s around 1:30 on Sunday and it was busy but we were seated within 5 minutes. It was nice to see the outdoor seating option, too. Everything on the menu looked great but we both ended up getting the pulled pork benny and it was delicious. Luckily, I live a few blocks away and I will definitely be back.

DELICIOUS FOOD, VERY NICE SIZE PORTIONS. NICE DECOR. VERY NICE SERVICE. CLEAN REST ROOMS. (2 individual, unisex bathrooms)
Nice food variety on menu, something to please everyone.
On a Sunday evening, I had the fried chicken & cheddar waffle, which has a side of a honey-​Tabasco syrup, which I enjoyed on the chicken & waffle. 3 pieces of the freshest, plump & juicy fried chicken. The fried chicken had the most wonderful crunch & crispness to it. The chicken must have just come out of the fryer because it was very hot thru n thru, which highlighted the freshness & juiciness of the 3 chicken pieces.
Now, tonight, I could feel the effects of warm/​hot weather allergy season upon us, & I’m mentioning this because that can definitely affect my tastebuds. For my likes – I would have liked the batter for the fried chicken to have more seasoning, such has some black pepper. But out of a 10-​rating system, I still would give that fried chicken an absolute 10, because the crisp & crunch was OUTSTANDING PERFECTION! And the fresh, plump, juicy chicken was delicious/​fabulous!
I have never had a cheddar waffle so Friedman’s was my first. See my photos to see the cheddar in the waffle, & the yummy fried chicken.
I did not taste the cheddar cheese in the waffle. I would consider using a sharpe or extra sharpe cheddar for inside the waffle, but, my not tasting the cheddar could have been due to my allergy season taste buds. I still give this Fried Chicken & Cheddar Cheese Waffle dish a 10!
My friend enjoyed her beautiful COBB SALAD. She did ask that the hard boiled egg & the bacon be left off of her salad. (Two of my fav food items… lol) Kudos to the server, Kari, and the kitchen for excellent follow-​thru on that! Perfection!
The very nice staff – How nice, how pleasant, & what a GREAT FIRST IMPRESSION (our first visit) that upon entry to the restaurant, the first staff person who happen to be walking by us, smiled & told us «someone will be with you in a moment». PERFECT! This is what we should expect from a quality restaurant, but often never experience. Once again, KUDOS/​COMPLIMENTS to Friedman’s!!! A well-​trained staff! Yeah!!!
Our server– Kari was great. She was friendly, professional, helpful, checked in with us multiple times to see how everything was, & to ask if we needed anything. I appreciated that Friedman’s leaves a lovely, tall, glass, water bottle on the table. Smart!
Price-​wise – Cobb salad, $ 14. The fried chicken with cheddar cheese waffle was $ 21; would be nice if that could be $ 18 or $ 19; I thought $ 21 was a tiny bit high, but, there is no doubt these are high quality ingredients, fresh, & prepared & presented/​plated beautifully, so maybe that is why it’s $ 21. Good ingredients cost money.
I was also impressed with the man who cleared our table – smart business attire: black long sleeve, button down shirt & black slacks, who took the time to ask how everything was. AGAIN, PERFECTION! He didn’t rush to get away from us, but actually paused after he asked how everything was – he wanted to hear our response.
Every staff member we dealt with was a pleasure! Kudos to Friedman’s for hiring nice people, who together, make a great staff team & training them well.
OVERALL: Greatness on a plate! Go! Enjoy!
GETTING THERE: The #11 bus stops right in front!
Or, You could take the Broadway bus & walk thru the Columbia University Campus to get to Amsterdam Ave & West 118^th/Friedman’s. Or the subway.
LOL – the Amsterdam Ave #7 bus DOES NOT go near this place, as my friend & I discovered. We walked thru Morningside Park, up lots of steps! My friend said we were walking off our dinner before we ate it.
NICE TO TELL YOU THAT – in our travels, after exiting the #7 bus, I asked two different groups of
people about getting to our destination & as soon as I mentioned FRIEDMAN’S, they knew exactly where my friend and I were going! There’s a lot of love for Friedman’s! ENJOY!

Great lunch location right around the corner from SIPA at Columbia! I’d easily recommend homemade soups (really homemade: the matzo balls — perfect size and with an added dose of dill made them particularly tasty), or the salads. I had a large grilled chicken salad today and the cut of the chicken was really lean and delicious. I was also surprised by how much salad there was packed into that bowl, and well-​tossed with the blue cheese crumbles and balsamic vinagrette.
Only downside: really slow drink service. Not sure if there was a lack of people managing the bar during the lunch hour, but even to get a cappuccino or double espresso, was a ten-​minute wait (each). It gets busy, sure, but not so busy that coffee can’t be made. But as long as you have plenty of time this is a great option for you in this neighborhood.

If it’s time for brunch, it’s time for Friedman’s. We we were in the area and HANGRY. This place was recommended to us by a friend who was so kind to bring us here. We were seated pretty quickly because this place is busy. (Trying to beat the crown is tough because there seems to always be one.)
Complimentary Sparkling water is a huge plus and very rare in NY… I ordered the steak sandwich (daily special). The bread were nice of soft, the steak was made to my liking and delicious and the ingredients fresh (avacado = heaven).
The bathrooms are nice and clean. always a PLUS.
The service here is incomparable. The hostess was definitely the one with the most-​ess, the waitress was pleasant and the tables were clean and made for an enjoyable experience.

Friedman’s is a great place to go if you’re near Columbia/​Morningside Heights for delicious eats.
We started off with the tandoori wings. Crispy, flavorful, and the yogurt sauce is a definite must. It’s a mix of wings and drums, so there’s something for everyone.
Two of my friends had their burgers. One of them was the lamb burger (medium), and the Friedman’s burger (medium-​rare). They both enjoyed them thoroughly, and their herb fries are amazing. Just the right amount of crisp and flavor.
I got the fish tacos, which were good as well. The fish was blackened just the right amount, and the lime juice and other sauces went very well with the fish.
My only complaint is that they didn’t serve the tacos in a taco tray/​divider, so the three tacos were kind of overlapped on top of each other. This made the soft taco shells mushy as the sauces /​tomato juice dampened the tortillas and thus made the dish a bit difficult to eat. I managed with a fork and knife, but tacos aren’t supposed to be eaten that way.
The staff was super friendly, despite the busy dinner scene, so that’s always a plus.
Definitely will return again soon.

Friedman’s is the best gluten-​free accommodating restaurant I have ever been to. Ever. Almost everything on their menu can be prepared gluten-​free. Even waffles. I know, waffles.
I’ve been here multiple times before but am uploading this review now after tonight’s delicious chicken pot pie dinner. I strayed from my usual Fish Tacos order (also delicious) to try the chicken pot pie because I was curious to see how it would be prepared gluten-​free style.
Instead of in a bread-​bowl, the pot pie came in a soup bowl with a gluten free waffle on top. There was a cute little sign stuck to the waffle that read «gluten free,» and all the gluten free dishes are specifically square instead of round. A+++ for effort, design and making allergy-​sensitive like me actually feel welcome and not like a health-​freak of a nuisance!!!
The chicken pot pie itself was also quite good and filled to the brim with chicken, carrots, potatoes and other veggies. The side of greens was perfect in the sense that the greens weren’t drowned in dressing– you could hardly taste the dressing, which is just the way I like it! Seasoning at Friedman’s is always very light (and thus healthy-​feeling) (and except for on the herb fries), so just keep that in mind if you like everything on the heavy.
Service has consistently been top notch at Friedman’s. It can get quite busy here during rush hours, so consider making reservations!

Solid spot for breakfast. Love that they open fairly early (9am). They have a small but substantial menu. Some items that seem to be pretty healthy, and some indulgent items of course. My eggs with avocado toast & side salad made a great lite breakfast. Of course I had to steal a bite of my boyfriends chicken and waffles which was delicious — loved the spicy syrup. The chicken sausage I tried was also very yummy. Love the fact that they have big bottle of sriacha too! Coffee was strong & service was friendly. I would come back :)

This was a nice find! Hubby and I have been trying out brunch spots in the area since we’ve been going to Columbia every Saturday for the past couple weeks. We Unilocaled the area as per usual, and I came across Friedman’s and seeing the food pics was the deciding factor.
We walked in and were seated immediately. Our server, Tom (I think), came over and introduced himself, listed the specials and offered us some complimentary still or sparkling water (yes, complimentary sparkling water). It’s pretty cozy with the seating. The tables are close together but I like the set up. Minimalist and trendy without trying.
We perused the menu and I went with the Mushroom Toast served with sautéed mushrooms, burrata and a sunnyside-​up egg on a slice of Amy’s bread. There was a small salad on the side and I also opted for a side of the Chicken Sausages. I was also offered a bottle of sriracha for the table. I have to say, when a restaurant has sriracha on hand, they score big in my book. Hubby went with one of the specials, the Apple Cinnamon Pancakes with maple syrup and warm cinnamon apples on top.
I wanted a drink with a kick so I asked about the Mashed Pumpkin. I also wanted something warm because, well, ‘TIS the season but was told it was served cold. I was about to go with the warm apple cider instead but Tom said he’d see what he could do and he came through. I got my Mashed Pumpkin served warm and it was great! I loved it and had two
Our entrées were really good. I ate all of my food which is crazy because I usually take half of everything home but not today. I even took a few bites of hubby’s pancakes. They were great. Hubbs said the topping was a bit too sweet but I liked it.
My one and only issue with this place was with the bathroom area. Only one was working and it seemed as though everyone who came to the restaurant had tummy problems. They might do well to have air fresheners installed in the lavatories. The food was good, though. Go for the food!

This is just okay for me.
I think they’ve been working out some kinks in the front of the house — maybe they are training new people but orders were getting lost all over the place (for example, getting our lattes after we ate our entire meal). There was some sort of mistake and the bartender made wayyyyy too many mimosas for another party, and the super great server gave us the extras, which was nice.
Luckily there was one guy who seemed to be holding it together for everyone. However, the food was not spectacular, and this certainly isn’t destination brunching. It will do though.
+1 for patio dining
+1 for cheesey grits!
+1 for the server who knew what he was doing
–1 for semi-​mediocre pancakes
–1 for all over the place service

I came here after touring nearby Columbia at around 2:30pm. I had a look at the menu and peeked inside and decided to give it a go. The staff were friendly and welcoming and I was seated immediately.
I ordered the veggie rice bowl with chicken and brown rice. The food came out extremely promptly, I didn’t even have time to look at my phone! My first impressions were; not the best presentation and it appeared a small portion. However once I started eating it, the portion was anything but small! It was delicious and very filling and I felt it was a great choice. I was really happy with my find!
I was too full for dessert but inquired about what dessert they did offer — they only had 1 option? Which I thought was a bit strange. Not hugely important, but something to note if you plan on visiting for dessert!
I would visit again if I am ever in the area again.

Came here on a Saturday morning with a party of 5. A few of us were running late, so we arrived at three different times (I was the last one to arrive, oops), but my friends were seated right away even though the whole party was not present yet, which is always a nice plus.
We also ordered our main dishes at three different times, but to our surprise, all our dishes arrived at the same time. I would highly recommend the wild mushroom toast, which was delicious with every bite and well-​portioned. We also shared a side of chicken sausage, bacon, and french fries. I wasn’t a big fan of the french fries because they were too herb-​y for me (but they are labeled as ‘herb fries’), but my friends seemed to enjoy them enough.
All of us also enjoyed some brunch cocktails. I personally got the bellini, which was delicious and had a sip of my friends’ Friedman’s 75 and some rendition of a piña colada (?) — both very yummy.
Service was superb from beginning to end, and we did not feel rushed out at all. If I lived in the area, I could definitely see myself as a frequent patron of this awesome restaurant.

Finally a restaurant with nice ambiance near Columbia! And it’s family owned! They have multiple downtown locations, including one in Chelsea market. This is the first time they expand to uptown.
Construction was going on for months so I have been anticipating its opening for awhile now each time I walk by. They finally opened recently. I stopped by for a quick lunch. And they have complimentary sparkling water! Sold!
I had a Cobb salad and it was great. One of the better Cobb salad that I have had so far. Service was great. Got to chat with its chef and manager Sophia and learned more about its restaurant. Not 5 stars just yet because I want to come back and try more food items and decide from there.