Downhouse Lounge and Restaurant
“They put a giant tent-like thing in the backyard, and it's so cozy and awesome.”
“Decor is cool – outside in a summer time has to be the best thing ever and I love throwing parties there – always fun.”
Downhouse Lounge and Restaurant
Takes Reservations: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Good For Dancing: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Coat Check: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
4 reviews
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You can't really set the bar high, especially when you're at a Russian lounge in Brooklyn next to McDonald Ave. I came here for a friends bday and we got in w/o paying the $10 cover. We got some seats outside and I spend my night on the dance floor dancing to mediocre clubby music. If you've got Russian friends in Brooklyn, there is a high likelihood that you'll run into them here. Drinks were decent, even though I choose self-service and went up to the bar myself. Wouldn't come here by choice.
While visiting my parents in the old hood, my boyfriend and I decided to meet up with some friends for a drink and settled on Downhouse. Now I'm a Russian lounge pro, I've been to the best and worst of them and this one was actually a pleasant surprise.
The goth style interior was probably my favorite part. We settled in our plush chairs around a small round table and watched the fireplace which may or may not have had a real fire going. The drinks are Manhattan prices, but that is the norm at Russian lounges like this. They also have hookahs available as well as a full menu.
The food is hit or miss. I hated my crepes with red caviar and avocado. Especially since they were served cold and there were chunks of unmelted butter in there. However the chicken someone else had ordered was delicious.
I hear there's a really nice garden area that's open in the summer that I would definitely come back to see. In the winter the area is open for smokers to step outside which kind of sucked since people would keep opening the door and the icy breeze would pass through the place. I sat in my winter jacket the whole time.
Overall, I'd come back only because it's conveniently located next to the train.
I have been here many times, and although the crowd doesn't really suit my taste, I like it! The drinks are pretty good and the food is very good. I also enjoy the backyard where they hold concerts. I am a little irritated with the loud DJ music from inside constantly interrupted concerts that people pay for in the backyard, or vice versa. Other than that, a pretty cool place.
This review is for the nightclub specifically, as I did not try the food, just the drinks. When you first enter there is gorgeous velvet and leather furniture, and dim lighting with candles and fancy hookah pipes and a huge bar, that ambience is night and rather romantic. But we came to party and try to enjoy ourselves, we proceeded to the backyard which was pretty much under a large heated tent. When we arrived after midnight , the DJ was not even at the booth , they were just playing some stuff off an ipod, tacky house music . The waiters there that were able to seat us were probably 17, they were at least hard workers. When we got our table we were greeted by a Russian waiter who hardly speak English, to me this isn't a problem, but to others this may be a big issue as the whole crowd wasn't Russian. The menu consisted of bottle service, which was on average between 130-200 bucks, which is decent compared to other places, shots of vodka or whiskey were 10, and cocktails were about 12 bucks each. I decided to go with a bourbon mojito, thought it would be a cool twist with jack daniels, but wow when I received it , there was too much mint and it was way too strong. I had to ask the waiter to put more lemon soda to water it down, but at least he was a good sport about it . The setup of the place is odd too, in the middle of the whole place was one large banquet table with fancy chairs, and that one single table had couches and furniture to the right , probably seats for bottle service, and to the left of this long table was smaller tables like ours that sit 2-4 people with chairs you would find from a retirement home, super uncomfortable. The crowd itself made me blink a few times, not that I care since I have dated every possible culture imaginable , and Ive gotten to learn about the ways of many cultures, but this crowd consisted of old Russians, young Puerto Ricans , a group of Indians, and Georgians too, and even religious orthodox people were there. In a way I found that cool because it shows how diverse the place is and that they are happy to cater to all people, compared to other places in Brooklyn where they only intend on having specific clientele. however the music doesn't seem to match their incentive, as the DJ booth came at almost 1 am, the only music he was playing was one old Whitney Houston song with a house remix, and the rest was old Russian songs from the early millennium, luckily the people who weren't Russian were so wasted to the point that anything sounded good at the time, but I don't think that is fair, there should be more of a variety.
Speaking of the crowd, my girlfriend and I had an old man sit at our table that we didn't even know, he was desperate and wasted out of his mind, it was so uncomfortable and not polite, and the tables next to us were also loud and rowdy, trying to set their friend up with me, because he was too shy, what are we in high school?
Even worse, one of the people from the groups who wasn't Russian introduced himself, and was friendly, but he reeked of weed, probably smoked several blunts before he arrived, its like this place doesn't even mind allowing drunk or intoxicated people to come in, hence there was so much drama in this place, one girl was wasted and lost her phone and kept checking all tables and tried to fist fight two du dudes herself, the other girl lost her coat so she was checking all tables thinking another patron took it. Speaking of coats, don't even get me started on the dress code in here, it isn't clear, some women came in dresses and heels, others came in jeans, sweaters and sneakers, I guess people just dressed according to the occasion, but on average most lounges do have some sort of dress code like no hats or sneakers.
At least this place doesn't have an entrance fee and some sort of decent security staff to deal with these issues, the manager was very friendly, she checked up on every single table and tried to minimize all the drama , but shes so tiny theres no way she could do It all by herself, shes a tough cookie though.
A funny thing I noticed is that leaving an hour after boredom, majority of the girls from this lounge went over to the same lounge as us after, gee what a surprise.
Until this place gets their image together, and become more organized, and get a new DJ and new clientele, I will not return, it was the weirdest experience thus far.