Beetle House NYC
“My wife and I shared the "Edward Burger Hands", which had I not filled up on the wings I would have finished off my half of the burger…and hers!”
“The place is amazing, the drinks are delicious, oyou need to order the beetlejuice asap, and the host is none other than beetlejuice itself.”
“I appreciate the bar being Tim Burton themed/inspired in a way that was not overkill.”
Beetle House NYC
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Beetle House is fun. That's the easiest way to describe it, but for the sake of a full review, I'll go into details. As you've read in other reviews, the place is cozy. It's in the E.Vill though, so you should be expecting that before you even get off the subway. They did a great job decorating and using the space wisely, with Tim Burton-themed art on the walls (but not to a tacky level), purple lighting, and the waitresses and servers in simple costumes to add to it. Again, not over the top – it's a delicate balance between a themed bar/restaurant and a tacky tourist trap, and they ride it well. We had dinner reservations, and were sat immediately upon arrival (actually got an automated text notification on our walk over that our table was ready), and had no problems with the service at all. The pace was relaxed, which was nice to not be shoved out the door.
The drinks are strong, worth the cost, and will last you your whole time there if you aren't looking to get smashed. The food was OK, I ordered the Mac N Cheese, which was not bad except that it had no cheese in it – was more of a cream sauce. I would have hoped for more for $20. I tried some of the girl's pulled pork, and it was excellent. The dessert, a lemon cheesecake, was also delicious.
All in all I'd return, the Betelgeuse character they had there was SPOT ON with the character… definitely added more fun to the evening!
Jeebus people, just have fun!
The negative reviews for this place are pretty hilarious, when you walk go into a Tim Burton themed bar you should expect things to be a little, "off". I mean there's a grown man dressed, as a movie character running around claiming his drinks will get you pregnant.
I didn't eat here, I just hung at the bar and enjoyed my time sipping drinks, chatting with Tim Burton lovers, and watching Beetle Juice creep on every lady who walked into the place, it was awesome. The Beetle House is very small and long so try and get here early in order to get a spot at the bar otherwise you'll been waiting a while for a seat. If want to eat you have to make a reservation, no reservation, no eat.
I went with "Edward's Lemonade" which is basically Old Fashioned with orange bitters. A solid drink that wasn't as sweet as a normal old fashioned, they use Bulleit Rye, which is a pretty standard whiskey base these days. My Beetle House partner in crime went with the, "Beetles Juice", Muddled blackberry and limes, Tequila, Blackberry schnapps, Angostura bitters and cranberry. This was very good and super refreshing and from what Beetle Juice told us may cause pregnancy.
– A fun night out. Check
– Decent drinks. Check
– Random pictures of your favorite Tim Burton scenes. Double Check.
To quote a great man, "Never trust the living" – Beetle Juice.
Had to check out this place when I heard about it – theme bars are great! Like most places in the East Village, the space is VERY small and cramped which can get annoying when it's crowded. However, the drinks and the experience made up for that. I shared the Big Fish Bowl with a friend and it packed a decent punch for both of us, which is good considering it's pretty expensive. Beetle Juice himself roaming around the bar kept everyone entertained 🙂 I like the place overall and it was a fun experience, but it's probably only worth a visit once considering how pricey the drinks are.
It's really hard for me to write a bad review for something I had so much anticipation for. I am so biased towards liking anything Tim Burton related, but this place was sort of a disappointment. By disappointment, I don't mean that I expected Tim Burton himself to pop out of the wall and Johnny Depp to be swinging from the lights but… it's just another bar with some décor resembling the phenomenon.
Before you even go to the restaurant, you look at the website – which is poorly designed. You get excited for the options they say they offer, your mouth is drooling as you're walking around the city in the rain, anticipating this amazing, spooky meal…
I got reservations for an 11 AM table for two. We were the first party there for at least thirty five minutes, so the idea of them being booked for months kind of made me curious. The place is SMALL, but look around, this is New York City. It's a restaurant that isn't affiliated with Tim Burton at all. *Disclaimer – this is by no means part of my complaint, just an observation.* It's just rare to find a place that is all that large..
We had a surprise menu for brunch, which is no where to be found on their website, and it features NOTHING on their website, nor do the items for brunch have festive names like the meals on the website… ok, enough about the website.
There was this amazing sweet caramel banana crème French toast.
I loved that they played songs from the movies' soundtracks. That was what made the experience anything good.
The one waitress on was definitely in character from her personality to her outfit. Very cool outfit, but not the coolest attitude towards serving people. The brunch menu consisted of "six courses, three of which you have some choices, the rest just come out." Sounded all good to me until they didn't have mac and cheese as an option. I'll make an already long story short – one of the dishes was eggs [Florentine, benedict, veggie or cheese omelet]. My friend doesn't like eggs and didn't want to waste them, but the waitress basically told her that she's getting eggs because that's what the prix-fixe menu comes with. She also doesn't eat cheese – at. all. Her burger came with cheese, when she asked for it to be fixed, the waitress said "oh! you didn't specify…" They just scrapped the cheese off, probably spit in it and put it back together.
For decoration on my plate, they put an orange slice that still had the sticker on it.
They ran out of orange juice after making two mimosas [the two we had].
They charge per drink instead of the usual brunch bottomless drinks, but our waitress made it clear that she didn't charge for our second drink because of all the things that went wrong throughout the meal. She also mentioned that this was the second ever brunch to take place and that we had bragging rights…
The prix-fixe was only $25 which isn't bad at all. There are definitely some tweaks to be made. I'd like to try it out again, but during dinner time when this is a more established place. Looking forward to "Edward Burger Hands."
There are a lot of bad reviews here…I don't give out 5's left and right…but I don't think this place gets a 1 or a 2 from me…me…me.
~ Setup:
Friend and I made reservations about a month ago for a Tuesday at 7:30 PM.
~ Cons:
– The place is VERY tight. No emphasis on the "very".
– Prices could be better…even if this is NYC.
Those don't even feel like major cons…if you're claustrophobic, go to MSG. If you're tight on cash, go to 2 Bros for a slice.
~ Pros:
– Staff. They knew what they were doing, but they were so laid back and chill, that it looked like they were presenting at a Science Fair and all they had hidden under their tarp was a Popsicle. There was this aloof vibe, but they were so nice, it voided it out.
– Food. I got the:
EDWARD BURGER HANDS.
1/2 pound all beef burger,
smoked bacon, pepper jack,
cheese, whole egg,avocado
roasted pepper,tomato,topped
with sriracha cream and served
on a toasted bun brushed with
honey butter and garlic.
It was good. I don't eat bacon, or things medium well (you can order it however you want, I don't know why I didn't say well done) but it was good. It fell a part on me, but I usually prefer eating my burgers like a burger bowl…is that a thing? Like, imagine a burrito bowl, but with a burger. Knife and fork…Team Edward Clean Hands.
My lovely friend got the:
MAD SHRIMP.
sautéed shrimp with chorizo
on a bed of sweet plantain
mofongo
The plate came on fire…it's doused in 151 and then lit…on fire.
That flame was massive. Huge I tell ya, huge.
She seemed to like her meal.
~ Kinda Pro:
-Drinks
I ordered Sparky's Minty Margarita – Muddled limes, simple syrup and mint leaves. Patron blanco, Grand marnier, and a splash sour mix for $14. At that price it should have came in a pitcher…but it was refreshing while it lasted. My friend got "This is Halloween!" – fireball, Pumpkin Liqueur, sour apple pucker, apple cider. Garnished with a lime for $12. It tasted just like Halloween…just look at those ingredients…only thing missing was a dead leaf garnish.
Ignore all the bad reviews if you're a Tim Burton fan or love Halloween…or gimmicks. I mean, it's kind of dark in there, but hey…Tim Burton. The negative stuff seems kind of isolated, and as time goes on…they'll get better (the printer broke when we went)…so make reservations for Halloween 4 months from now or something and maybe they'll be that 5 Star status you're looking for.
All I'm saying really is this…check this place out at least once…
…or twice…
Or 3 times.
Beetle House.
Beetle House.
Beetle House.
If I were you, I'd take the earlier, close-to-opening-date reviews with a grain of salt.
Thursday nights in NYC – as you may or may not know – tend to be just as nutso as Fridays and Saturdays. From the bar to the service, you never know if something will fall short.
I'm a Tim Burton fanatic. I'm also into 80s goth rock, new wave, current indie, etc. I also despise touristy, themed restaurants.
Imagine my delight when I entered and saw that this place was an intimate bar and dining space, with a gothy feel and Tim Burton inspired artwork. The hostess, server, and busboys? Not over the top, at all. Super relaxed and chill, which was a nice surprise. The resident Betelgeuse? Spot on and super fun. The music selection was everything I could have hoped for: a mix of goth/80s/indie rock peppered with soundtracks to the Burton films. The overall experience definitely warrants return trips. I could see myself popping in just to sit at the bar.
So how were our cocktails? Both the Sparky's Minty Margarita and the Glen or Glenda were strong (yay!), but I have to say that the Glen or Glenda reigned superior. It was delicious, spicy, and expertly mixed.
Though the shrimp dish served engulfed in flames looked pretty bad a**, I had to go with the highly recommended Victor Van Pork. SO GOOD. The honey garlic butter bun didn't really translate but certainly didn't detract from the delicious flavors of the dish. The Corn Bucket was a tasty side that used just the kernels and not the whole cob. The Cheshire Mac didn't quite live up to expectations: the sweet stewed tomato sauce was interesting, but the dish could have greatly benefited from more of an actual cheesy sauce.
One of their dessert offerings for the night was a lemon "tart" – this was a New York style lemon cheesecake with a layer of meringue on top. Definitely enough for two people to share and sinfully delicious.
So there you have it. I believe it's been exactly two months since Beetle House opened, and I am so happy to see that they've settled into their groove. If you haven't gone yet, do so..but relax, and remember that it's inspired..not a gimmicky tourist trap.
I would not be surprised if this bar ends up on bar rescue.
The bar tender/owner was discouraging my friend from selecting certain drinks (no she was not too drunk, she was completely sober). Criticizing their choices to the point that we had to move away from the bar and to a table because my friends did not want to be around her anymore.
The drinks were strong, very strong, and although more alcohol is always good, not when you can't drink your drink!
My fiends and I tried 7 drinks, all unbearable.
Most employees were drinking on the job, including the owner while she was also on the phone. Negative multitasking at its finest.
The entertainment and idea of this bar are good, that's why it pains me to write a negative review; but I have never been to a bar where a group of 6 of my friends and I all had something negative to say.
Tip: cash only! There's an atm on the corner of the block.
If you move form the bar to a table, the bartender won't forget, but will start screaming at you to pay as soon as you get up.
I Booked this place to celebrate my husband's birthday. Glad I did because it turned out to be an exceptional night! Our server was a very nice lady I think her name was Leslie possibly. She was super patient with our large group of 9 especially when it came time to pay our bill 6 different ways. She remembered all of our orders and took her time with us.
I ordered the steak taquitos which were very delicious, I added guacamole on top and this added to the taste ! My husband ordered the shrimp quesadilla which was slightly small but he liked it.
A few members of our party ordered burgers and wings which they said were tasty. And the best part of the night was the mad shrimp which comes out on a flaming dish !
I do want to come back on a night when Beetlejuice or Edward Scissorhands is there. Beetlejuice comes Friday and Saturday and Scissorhands comes on Thursdays and another day I can't remember.
I definitely recommend trying this place even just once for the ambience and the wonderful staff.