Draft Barn
“A well-honed beer belly's best friend is a nice, crisp, salty, rye-y basket of croutons.”
“They have a huge selection of international premium beers and the bartender is super knowledgeable.”
“Love to euro-videos on the tv and the back outdoor area is a complete surprise, definitely the place to be when the summer is here and people dress a bit less!”
Draft Barn
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
5 reviews
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oh, Draft Barn. I had such high hopes for you. your beer hall atmosphere inside, beer garden atmosphere outside, epic beer list, appealing menu of German and Eastern European food. all these sound like the perfect elements of a good night…
…BUT…
after it took a while for my first beer to arrive, well, as Han Solo said, "I've got a bad feeling about this."
one bartender, and one cook? come on! there were about 20 or so of us in our party, plus maybe about 15 other random patrons.
it took 45 minutes for them to tell me that they did not have any of what I ordered (pork and rice) left. so I ordered schnitzel, and got it about 45 minutes after that. a friend of mine ordered a burger and got it about 2 hours later.
the food was decent, and the beer list was great (and about on par with what you should expect from micros/imports), but the management really needs to hire more workers for efficiency.
if they fix these staffing issues, I would definitely come back. maybe it was a slow/bad night (leave it to my friends to organize something big on a Thursday).
also, it's right by the F train (about 3 blocks walk).
This place is great to watch the game. The selection of beer in endless and the food is definitely a step up from your traditional bar food.
Skip Applebees or Fridays and come here. Try the cheese sausage!
Draft Barn is the only decent bar in this neighborhood. The first time I walked in here years ago, I thought I discovered a beer hall that just opened because I was the only patron there. I didn't. That's just how it usually is. Mostly empty with occasional groups of 4+ people showing up.
Don't be deceived by appearances. It looks closed from the outside, with pulled shades, in the middle of a block with shops that closed up for the night hours earlier. It might even look like a storefront for the Russian mob, maybe it is who knows, but the beer here is GOOD.
They have a huge selection of international premium beers and the bartender is super knowledgeable. Just tell him what you're in the mood for (i.e. wheat beer, German, light) and he'll come up with a couple of suggestions. Try them all. Just don't get drunk enough to order the $200+ bottle of beer. They have a few of those on the menu.
There's a food menu too. Sausages, burgers, fries and other heavy foods.
The bar is good for groups. The bartender doesn't care if you sit there for hours, but he'll probably want your opinion on the beer.
Oh and my favorite thing: the European music channel. A lot of times the TV is tuned to this ETV channel which plays risque music videos to all the techno hits you didn't know had music videos. It's awesome.
Draft Barn is a regular happy hour spot for my coworkers and myself. We are teachers and, because we get out of work at 3pm, I can't really comment on this place's night atmosphere. We usually use it as a starting point; we head over right after the final bell and leave by 7 or 8 at night (either to go home or to go somewhere else).
Draft Barn is a great place to catch up with friends because it isn't super busy or obnoxiously loud. The bartenders remember you and your drink of choice, which I really like. It makes me feel very at home. They are also very attentive without being overbearing; they aren't completely up your ass and have perfect timing with drink refills. There are two inside seating areas; one directly next to the bar and one right next door. My favorite area is the outside section. It is the perfect place to unwind when the weather is nice. Lots of tables of various sizes and a wooden overhead so you aren't subject to the blazing sun.
Once, I left my keys at Draft Barn. I didn't realize it until the next morning (I slept at a friend's house and therefore didn't need them to get into my apartment) and I looked up their phone number online. Just note that the number that shows up isn't for this location, but for the one in Bay Ridge. The guy who picked up the phone said they won't pick up the phone at Ave X (not sure why, exactly), so I went there when they opened. They had my keys! I was so happy, I almost jumped over the bar to hug the bartender (and immediately after, I went to the hardware store to have an extra set made… lesson learned about procrastination… sort of).
Finally (I know I'm rambling, but I feel like it's really important to stress how great the bartenders are), I really like that they let me keep my bike in the back. I have a lock and can easily keep it on the sidewalk, but I still get anxiety if I go too long with my bike out of sight. They even let me keep it there when I left to go eat dinner down the street. They do have food, and I occasionally eat an appetizer (mozzarella sticks, etc.) but the entrees are just a little too ethnic for me.
It's not every day that you get out to Coney Island and for me it probably happens once a year. Last October I happened to be in the neighborhood visiting a friend of mine, and we stopped into this spot for a brew.
It seemed to be full of a lot of russians, and a friendly bunch they were. The beer selection was great, and the snacks were the usual bar fair.
I give them four stars for the off-the-beaten-track factor, as this really felt like I was in a foreign land. Also they were quite friendly.
The service though was a bit slow and haphazard, but we weren't in a hurry.