Bowery Road is a stunning space with fantastic food near Union Square (hence not in the Bowery at all). It’s relatively new and very under the radar. It’s the type of restaurant that would normally make every list of places to try, with lines out the door and reservations that need to be made weeks in advance. But it has none of that, and though I don’t know why, I’m really glad. At the moment, reservations aren’t even necessary for dining at prime times (brunch and weekend dinners), though that isn’t to say it’s empty. It’s actually steadily full, with barely an empty table, but you should still be just fine to walk in.
The space is open and large, with unbelievably high ceilings. The entire room is done in shades of dark brown, amber, and gold with unique light fixtures. It’s kind of like a high-end industrial vibe. There’s a downstairs as well that is fully open to the main dining area on the ground floor, which is used for seating if the restaurant is very full, but can also be used as a private party space.
The servers are very nice and accommodating, though not as informed as they should be. Pleasantly, though, this lack of knowledge was made up for by a quick willingness to speak with the kitchen to get all of the requested information, so problem solved.
There were so many amazing options on the menu that we had a difficult time deciding what to get, which is really quite rare. To start, their dips, spreads, and breads are very hard to choose from. There’s a crushed avocado option that comes with tomato chutney and seeded corn crackers. These are not your ordinary crackers. These are hearty, heavy, sustaining crackers that are chalk full of seeds and grains. Then there’s the pinto bean hummus with mole spice and flatbread. The flatbread is whole wheat, which is normally a deterrent because while whole wheat bread is delicious, whole wheat flatbread and pita tends to be dry, flavorless, and completely not worth eating. This flatbread is the polar opposite. It’s soft, thick, homemade, and flavorful as a result of the seeds and spices topping the bread. And for those who want a cheese option, there are two choices – a ricotta toast with orange blossom honey and a burrata with figs, saba, and pistachio. You just can’t go wrong.
The entrees are equally difficult to choose from, but we settled on a market grain bowl and a veggie burger.
The market grain bowl had farro, quinoa, lentils, avocado, broccoli, sunflower, and poached eggs (hard, please). We omitted the mushrooms. Light but substantial at the same time – this dish is really done right. Delicious flavor, especially when each component is blended with the others to create a big jumbled bowl of goodness.
The veggie burger consists of a homemade patty made with beet juice, quinoa, lentils, and several veggies. Unlike most veggie burgers, it is not breaded and fried. This makes it not only healthier, but incredibly soft. It has a texture similar to that of uncooked ground beef. It was great and very substantial despite the lack of breading. But I do think it could’ve benefited from more flavor – not as bold as I would like. Very wholesome. It’s served with an herbed yogurt, avocado, sprouts, tomato, onion, cucumber, pickles, and fries. Though it comes on a normal burger bun, I requested it on toast and it was served on a beautiful, crusty, whole wheat toast, which completely elevated the burger. I would highly recommended swapping the normal burger bun out for the toast (they have country white and whole wheat). The fries were fine – super thin shoe string fries.
Bowery Road is a great new find. The ambiance is wonderful, the servers are pleasant, the food is made from the best quality ingredients, and everything we tried was at worst good and at best amazing. It gives me confidence to try pretty much anything on their menu, so it’s the type of place you can go back to several times, get something new, and not be bored.
The biggest area for improvement is the pace of the service, which is overly slow. A casual experience is great, and you certainly don’t feel rushed, which is nice. But it can be hard to get a hold of servers, even just to ask for the check, and though servers are happy to help and take care of your request, it’s done so slowly. If you’re in a big hurry, you might want to let them know ahead of time. But if you’re in the mood to take it easy and relax, Bowery Road should be high up on your list. Whether for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, this place is a definite go.
