Vander Bar

Not a fan for a variety of reasons: last call is at 10pm which is beyond odd (i believe this is a NYC establishment?), the bartenders are not super pleasant, it’s way too dark. There are many other great spots in the area in which you can grab a drink and actually want to be there with friends.

Grabbed lunch here today. A little pricey, but good portions. I didn’t get the French onion soup, my friends did– they said it was amazing, so highly recommend. Got Caesar salad– for those of you who like the thicker dressing, it’s the lighter version– still good tho! Recommend fries too. Waitress was very attentive, never have been for lunch more for happy hour– always packed and right near grand central so ‘must be a good place for drinks!

I curse myself for not having been inhere in the past 2 years that I have been working across the street from Vander Bar.
The happy hours are from 3 – 6 and with $ 4 for Draft beer and $ 7 for 6 wings its a Perfect ending to a work week or day, I wont judge you, for under $ 20 PERFECTO.
Its a simple bar with friendly bar tenders, Now that I have had my first trip I see myself becoming a regular on Fridays and they are just across the street I mean I can see em from my desk

Came in just before happy hour on a Wednesday and was pleased with the level of service from the bartenders, even as it got busier. The happy hour specially-​priced beers were very reasonable for midtown. I wasn’t very hungry but ended up getting an order of their wings (only chipotle available). The wings were decent, nothing that would make me come back for or order again. I heard other patrons talking about other spots close by which they prefer going to or were on their way too. Especially with the weather still being somewhat nice, there are a few establishments nearby that have a vast amount of outdoor seating and exposure. Overall the experience was average, but settled on two stars based on the comparisons being drawn to other places nearby.

the bartender had the worst attitude i have ever seen in my life. ignored me for service for a good 10 minutes, then the person I was with grabbed a seat behind me which apparently had a reserved sign on it (no table, just one seat with a sign that said reserved on the other side). the bartender comes over to us finally… for service? no, she came over to yell at us to leave the seat the way it was and that it wasn’t ours. i told her the seat was arranged that way so she stormed off. she then LEFT the bar and arranged the seat to face the window, and then went back to the bar. 5 minutes later she asked the person i was with if we wanted drinks. at that point, we left.
never again.

I went there last friday with my girl. The waiter came and gave us the menu as usual and he disappeared. People around us on other tables were waiting for their food and drinks too. We were talking and didn’t realize how time went by and ended up waiting half an hour. After half an hour some other guy came in like a hurricane and took an order from table and left. I tried to stop him but he said he is busy and left. I went to the bar tender and asked for a waiter, she said she’ll send some one but nobody came.
In another 15 mins the guy came back when we were about to leave and we ended up ordering two drinks. I paid by credit card $ 34.
Today I am checking my statement and I see $ 41 charge from them. I am furious. I can accept poor service but I can not stand dis-​honesty. Its not about that extra $ 7, its about the policy. Of course I am filing complain with my credit card company and also I’ll write this review everywhere.
PS: I have been there before several times but not in last 6~8 months. Its not a great place for friday night but its always less crowded, that’s why we used to go there all the time. But not anymore!

Met with friends for drinks. The location is convenient, but this place doens’t bring anything to the table. The ambiance is weak compared to neighboring locations and most importantly the cocktails are just plain bad.
My martini was the worst martini I’ve ever had. My friends drink was off as well. If I end up here again I’ll stick to beer.

I stopped by this place for a few drinks & I must say the drinks were great. They seem to have a happy hour but doesn’t last very long.
Nice place not to big, good service, very loud & good drinks but kinda pricey. we enjoyed ourselves if in the area i wouldn’t mind stopping by.

From suits looking to blow some after work steam to tourists stuck in Midtown, it seems the only reason they hit up Vander Bar anymore is sheer convenience. Venturing to other more lively cocktail bars or nearby fooderies seems easier since it’s so close to Grand Central and crowds never seem to be an issue.
Like all things in Midtown, the drinks are going to inevitably be pricey but not
necessarily better than what’s close by. The bartenders are nice, but it seems the pour isn’t as heavy handed as one would ask for a $ 15 cocktail. Happy hour is the name of the game nonetheless and indulgence isn’t recommended, but it’s sure to happen (I’m looking at you suits!).
The surprise for me was on the food front. Vander refuses to settle for traditional bar food, so the menu consists of interesting items like fish tacos ($ 13), aracini rice ball ($ 13), or even a brazini sandwich ($ 24). I instead went for their midweek deal of a flight of 4 different beers and an order of sliders for $ 20. While the beers were interesting, the sliders were a bit disappointing and dry. Not sure if it’s worth a repeat.
Lastly, anyone coming for the ambiance is sure to be disappointed. Most of the patrons are folks coming in from work or visitors to the city who don’t know any where else to go. At least the facilities are clean but it should be noted that they’re not open late. The place empties out as early as 8pm.

Great for after work drinks and happy hour. The bartenders are awesome and provide GREAT service. Ask for Sal.
I only sat at the bar, so I cannot speak for the waitstaff.
Drinks are nice and strong. I’d definitely go back for what I hope is a longer happy hour next time.

Entire review based on service!
Service was the worst we have ever experienced. Waitress was rude from beginning to the end. She had the worst attitude ever! Just all-​around bad.
I asked for menus and the waitress points to the little triangle happy hour special table menu (has like 6 items on it). When there was nothing we wanted, she then gets annoyed and says” let me get you the regular menu” (we were looking for burgers and beer. simple enough?). I had to ask twice for a glass of water. The waitress never came back to our table after dropping off our food. She even took a 2^nd drink order but never came back with it. We gave up on trying to get another round of beer. We waited 30 mins for our check and after waiting 20 minutes for the waitress to pick it up, we walked over to the bar to pay, then we were informed we had to wait for our waitress to pay. All very bizarre.
I will never recommend this place — personally or professionally (and i work around the corner) — all because of the staff. I really dont know how they will stay in business. No one I know goes back a 2^nd time.

They close at 10pm :(

This isn’t a late crowd kind of place. on a Friday last call was at 10pm…
Customer base is pretty much of people who work in one of the large finance companies in the area with a sprinkling of guests from the attached hotel. Plenty of seating available as well as standing room too.
Drinks were not bad, pricing was OK and the food was actually pretty good.

Fine for a hotel bar. Comfy seating, usual hum of a bustling hotel lobby.

Endroit vraiment sympa pour l’apero!
Cocktails délicieux, service sympathique et pleins de choses à grignoter vraiment délicieuses!
Chipotle chicken wings = 5 $
Calamares = 13 $
Trio de mini burgers au boursin = 14 $
Coca cola = 2 $

Decent place to grab happy hour although it ends at 6pm. It’s crowded, bad service, and not very clean.

If I commuted via Grand Central, I’d be here every other day. I met a friend for happy hour here and it was crowded, but not obnoxiously so. The bartender knew my friend as a regular and knew his drink without having to be asked, which is something I feel like you don’t see much anymore. They are not shy about the size of their drinks… Their speciality drinks are served in pint glasses.
And oh yeah, their bar snacks are homemade kettle cooked potato chips. Awesome.

This place is near my office and I was very excited when it opened. They have large windows that are opened during the summer which make for great people watching. I keep trying to give this place a chance and have been a handful of times but the service is always really slow. I’ve been in during lunch and for happy hour. The times during lunch are frustrating since I am on a time constraint. It would be nice if the wait staff could act as if they had a tiny bit of an idea that most people only had an hour for lunch.
I would not recommend going to this place unless you have time to kill and nowhere to be for a few hours. It’ll take that long for them to serve your meal.

Hmmmm, I’m catching up on my Unilocal reviews and don’t even remember this place. I guess THAT says a lot!!! LOL?

I’m revising it down to one star. On my last visit… and I do mean LAST, I ordered two beers. It was during Happy Hour. When I finally found my waitron again, she presented me with a bill for $ 14. «The Samuel Adams is not on the Happy Hour Menu,» she told me. «I didn’t know that,» I said. «Well, you should have asked.»
Thanks. I’ll ask for another bar next time.

I stopped by with friends after work just shy of the happy hour ending which meant of course full price for drinks & as far as the prices go, ouch be prepared to spend some money this place is pricey Cocktails run at about $ 14.
They have «specials» in place for happy hour but who can be here between 5 – 6 pm? I am sure some just not the majority of us !! Tuesdays is probably the best day for the Ladies since they offer happy hour specials all day.
Oh well what ended up saving this place for me is the fact that they do make good drinks !!
The blackberry cocktail was delicious, really good taste & strong !! The jack & coke good as well .
The place gets pretty crowded by the bar area. the bartenders are decent most of the time u r sitting there as far as getting u a drink quickly enough.
While drinking if u r not sitting down to eat, u can munch on the chips they give u at the bar, good chips keep u nice & even depending of course on how much u r drinking, hahahha.
Nice place, they play some good music & it has a decent crowd I’d say they need to offer better happy hours special or if anything at least it should last longer.
I will probably stop by again since this happens to be one of the few places that makes a decent cocktail.