Fancy Nancy
“Stop by if you get a chance, they do some wonderfully naughty things with pork belly and the duck wings are outstanding.”
“Ps the herb sauce on the burger is flippin amazing and the tots would make Napoleon Dynamite splooge his pants!”
“I methodically ate the deviled egg first, of course, which had a great little kick.”
Fancy Nancy
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
6 reviews
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There is something you should know about me: I have mild social anxiety that is exponentially multiplied by the prospect of having to eat a full meal by myself in public. In my mind nothing could feel lonelier. Codependency and living with my boyfriend for 6 years has coddled that fear, but a recent week with the boyfriend out-of-town inspired me to face it head-on.
Cue Fancy Nancy: the bar I've been wanting to try since its inception last October. My boyfriend knew how badly I wanted to sink my teeth into their "School Lunch" – the most American looking American cheese burger out there, topped with a deviled egg and served with a side of tots covered in cheese and bacon – and he mocked that desire by ignoring every opportunity to patron the joint. COME ON!
So on a Tuesday (the bar is closed Sunday and Monday, -1 star) I timidly entered with nerves and a full bladder. I bee-lined for the bathroom and was interrupted by a smiley bartender asking if she could help me. What I heard was, "You're not going to use our bathroom and leave, are you?" I responded in an irrationally defensive tone and went about my business, which included having a mini-panic attack in the clean and welcoming restroom.
I emerged thankful for the low light and red glow of the room, which hid my distress nicely, and took my seat at the half-full bar. The adorable bartender, whom I had mentally forgiven for questioning me, promptly brought me water and a menu. As mentioned, I knew exactly what I wanted. I ordered my School Lunch alongside an IPA and was asked if I wanted one, two or three burger patties. What now?? For fear of sensory overload, I went with one.
I browsed Yelp, Instagram and various news sites for what felt like forever but was probably only about 10 minutes, and then my school lunch arrived. Believe me when I say that this is what dreams are made of. The only NYC burger I can compare this to is Shake Shack. There was a perfect proportion of bread to meat to cheese. Nestled in the mix was a homemade pickle that still looked more cucumber than pickle and held the perfect juicy flavor, along with some shredded lettuce and a thin slice of tomato. I methodically ate the deviled egg first, of course, which had a great little kick. It was creamy and delicious. And the tots, you ask? They were crispy with the perfect amount of cheese and bacon topping. I'm not ashamed to admit that I ate every single one.
I finished my IPA while rocking out to a great selection of tunes, mostly alternative. Miike Snow's new song Genghis Khan was in the mix, which made me giddy because that is SO my jam right now. By the time I was finished with my beer I felt confident enough to crack a joke with a neighboring patron about the Powerball drawing and I took my leave.
So there you have it. Fancy Nancy is an A-OK place to go solo, even for the most neurotic of guests, but I can only assume that it's even more fun with friends. I'll be back.
The food, atmosphere, and staff are all seriously extraordinary here. I highly recommend checking it out before the word gets out. We walked in on a Friday night and sat right down at the bar.
Tip: Try the sprouts! They are amaaaaaazing.
I just had dinner here with my boyfriend. I live two blocks away but hadn't gotten around to trying this place since it opened a few months ago! I was looking forward to it since a friend recommended it to me. I'd rather give it 3.5 stars but the burger just wasn't good.
First of all, the service was great. Our waitress was friendly and attentive. The decor was cute as well, if not a bit much. I thought the colors and the patterned wood, as well as the glasses which were the same cups we all used in high school or college cafeterias, all combined to give off the effect of just trying to hard to be hip. It just felt too much like an urban outfitters set. It's also pretty dark in there, and I felt like the brightly colored booths didn't quite match the rest of the restaurant. It looked like half of the place was supposed to be hip and the other part just too childish and playful. It's also a bit loud, but I liked their mix of music-there were some great oldies as well as TLC. I did really like the candles and tiny plants inset into the exposed brick wall though.
For dinner, we ordered the Caesar salad to start and the "school lunch" for each of us, which consisted of a burger, one deviled egg, and lots of tater tots. The salad was really tasty. The entree was a good portion of food, but I found both the burger and the egg to be too salty. My boyfriend agreed. Neither of us could finish our burgers. The tots were good, as was the ketchup. I think it was house made because it had a tang to it.
The presentation of the entree was cute–the burgers came in plastic baskets, like a school lunch! Still, I think this place is overpriced. Our total was $60 for two beers, two burgers, and a Caesar salad. The beer itself was relatively cheap but I think the entrees were overpriced. They also charged $3 extra per patty, which we weren't aware of when our waitress asked how many patties we wanted on our burgers.
Overall, I'd give the food 3 stars and the service 5. Ambience would get 3.5.
(I've heard really good things about their cocktails, so perhaps it's better just for drinks!)
I haven't tasted my cocktail yet, but I'm already not coming back. I arrived at Fancy Nancy to meet my good friend who happens to be white and was already sitting at the bar. The contrast in service between what he received and what I experienced was stark, to say the least.
I had to ask for water. I had to wait for a while before my drink order was taken. After it was taken, my "unfinished" Old Fashion except for an orange peel rub around the rim sat at the bar while she delivered two drinks made after my drink was "started" to a white couple sitting at a table. (Yes, I turned around to look just now).
So now I've tasted my Old Fashion and it's okay. A bit heavy on the bitters. Definitely nothing special and definitely not worth experiencing this lack of welcome.
I asked my friend about his reception and he said the bartender was very warm and friendly. Turns out they where chatting it up before I got there. I've never joined a friend at the bar or had someone join me, without the joining partner being addressed upon or shortly after arrival. The first thing the bartender told me was "we don't have happy hour." This was after I asked my friend if they had one. Again no greeting, no hello either. Just that statement letting me know that she could see me after all, I just wasn't welcomed.
The most attentive the bartender got, while I was present anyway, was when my friend and I started discussing our impending dinner plans with another friend at Black Swan. She wanted to know where we were going. Ha. Money speaks.
There are many establishments in the Stuy. Not only will I not be back here, but I'm sharing my experience with everyone I know. Service, or rather equal service, is everything.
My favorite thing about Fancy Nancy is its name. It's just so great and apparently there is a children's book also named Fancy Nancy, which everyone apparently read as a child but me. Anyways I live a block from it and pass it everyday when walking home from the subway and every time I've passed it I've thought it looked cute and wanted to check it out. So my boyfriend and I finally decided to one day after work. I thought the décor was adorable, some may think it's overdone but I thought it was perfect. I really liked how they had candles in cutouts on the wall, my boyfriend noticed that the cutouts were in fact in the shape or tetris pieces which is pretty clever. I had the school lunch of course and my boyfriend had salmon. I enjoyed my entrée I thought the burger was pretty average but I didn't expect it to be this amazing gourmet burger I expected it to be closer to a fast food burger considering the entrée was called the school lunch. I liked that a deviled egg was on top of it, because deviled eggs are on my favorite foods list and if you don't like deviled eggs you're pretty much not a real person. I thought the tots were super good too, my boyfriend thought they were a bit salty, I like a lot of salt on my tots, fries and etc so that works for me but if you aren't big on salt I'd ask for only a little salt on your tots. My boyfriend thought his salmon was alright, he thought it wasn't much food for the price and he didn't like that he couldn't substitute the veggies for tots. The staff was very friendly and I think the owner came around when we were close to leaving and asked us how everything was, so you can tell that they really want to do a great job. Overall I think this is a cute spot and I think with a little tweaking it could be really great.
In the neighborhood and looking for some swanky cocktails? This is definitely a place for you! I had a couple of their specialty cocktails, they must've done the trick because I can describe what they tasted like/ looked like, but not their names.
Food-off the way. There's no wrong choice on the menu. Just keep in mind that this place is bit pricey.