Friedman’s
“Staff was super friendly, they have complimentary sparkling water if you prefer that over still!”
“I'm sure it'll get busier once the semester starts, since this place is just steps from Columbia.”
“Nonetheless, I'm very happy with this addition of new brunch place in Morningside Heights.”
Friedman’s
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Great spot for gluten free, as the vast majority of items can be made GF.
There are lots of good-sounding, unique brunch options. I got the mushroom toast, which had a great hunk of burrata and generous side salad. It was a little difficult to cut, though. The shredded pork benny was unique, but we found the cornbread a but underwhelming.
The service here was ok – sometimes it was hard to flag our waiter – and the coffee was ok. Some of the brunch cocktails look very creative and refreshing!
Over the July 4th weekend, they were really nice about seating part of the party before the rest of us arrived, turning down the a/c when it was blasting, and splitting the bill across multiple credit cards. It's the little things, sometimes!
If it's time for brunch, it's time for Friedman's. We we were in the area and HANGRY. This place was recommended to us by a friend who was so kind to bring us here. We were seated pretty quickly because this place is busy. (Trying to beat the crown is tough because there seems to always be one.)
Complimentary Sparkling water is a huge plus and very rare in NY…I ordered the steak sandwich (daily special). The bread were nice of soft, the steak was made to my liking and delicious and the ingredients fresh (avacado = heaven).
The bathrooms are nice and clean..always a PLUS.
The service here is incomparable. The hostess was definitely the one with the most-ess, the waitress was pleasant and the tables were clean and made for an enjoyable experience.
Great lunch location right around the corner from SIPA at Columbia! I'd easily recommend homemade soups (really homemade: the matzo balls — perfect size and with an added dose of dill made them particularly tasty), or the salads. I had a large grilled chicken salad today and the cut of the chicken was really lean and delicious. I was also surprised by how much salad there was packed into that bowl, and well-tossed with the blue cheese crumbles and balsamic vinagrette.
Only downside: really slow drink service. Not sure if there was a lack of people managing the bar during the lunch hour, but even to get a cappuccino or double espresso, was a ten-minute wait (each). It gets busy, sure, but not so busy that coffee can't be made. But as long as you have plenty of time this is a great option for you in this neighborhood.
Sadly, the service and food went down.
One time I came for brunch, my friend found hair and wire, sth disgusting in the plate. The servers didn't care that much. Because I like the food in general, I came for another time. Last time I came for lunch, I couldn't get anyone to order/pay. I wanted to have coffee, but no one came once. So I asked the guy who delivered food to us. He is like I'm not ordering. So clearly, I didn't get any coffee. In the end, I had to stand up and waved so hard to get attention to get check. The food is also too oily. Ehhhh never came back again.
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Everything here is great! The menu is pretty simple. I came here for breakfast/lunch/dinner so far. Normally no waiting time, but I guess it's different for weekends brunch. First, they offer complimentary sparkling water. Then, the food. The breakfast menu is offered until 11:00. You can't go wrong with anything here. Dinner is even better. My friend and I came recently. I had chicken and she had steak. Both of them are cooked perfect. The chicken is tender with mashed potato and brussels sprouts around, simple and delicious. My friend's steak is great cuz she finished all! The appetizer menu is very limited, nothing special or healthy except salad. So it's kind of boring. Ps, the side dishes are huge. Anyways, it's such a great addition to this neighborhood. I'll def come again.
Came to Friedman's for brunch and was very impressed. The food was extremely fresh and crisp. The brunch menu had a really good selection. So much so that I wasn't sure what to order but I decided to go with the pulled pork Benny. I was very happy with my eggs and the side salad. I was also able to try the chicken and waffles, the chicken was fantastic. The cocktails were good as well. The waitress made me a ginger mimosa which was delicious. Overall the food was great and so was the service. I would highly recommend coming here for brunch or lunch!
Omgosh I LOOOOOVE this restaurant. It's one of my favorite restaurants because the food is so good and the service is great — the servers/hostesses at this location are really friendly. It's tiny compared to their other midtown location but quite intimate and lovely.
I always order the pastrami with gluten free bread and it is probably one of THE best sandwiches I've ever had. The bread is soaked in butter and grilled to a crisp. The slaw and sauce they put on the pastrami is gorgeous — I think it's similar to a thousand island dressing. And the meat! THE MEAT! Chewy and soft and succulently pinkish red.
They also do the fried chicken and waffles GLUTEN FREE. ahhh! Also very very good. Crispy, chewy waffle with an equally crispy (and juicy) fried piece of chicken. I would eat here every day but unfortunately, it's a bit on the pricey side for regular ordering annnnd my cholesterol would not be happy.
DELICIOUS FOOD, VERY NICE SIZE PORTIONS. NICE DECOR. VERY NICE SERVICE. CLEAN REST ROOMS. (2 individual, unisex bathrooms)
Nice food variety on menu, something to please everyone.
On a Sunday evening, I had the fried chicken & cheddar waffle, which has a side of a honey-Tabasco syrup, which I enjoyed on the chicken & waffle. 3 pieces of the freshest, plump & juicy fried chicken. The fried chicken had the most wonderful crunch & crispness to it. The chicken must have just come out of the fryer because it was very hot thru n thru, which highlighted the freshness & juiciness of the 3 chicken pieces.
Now, tonight, I could feel the effects of warm/hot weather allergy season upon us, & I'm mentioning this because that can definitely affect my tastebuds. For my likes–I would have liked the batter for the fried chicken to have more seasoning, such has some black pepper. But out of a 10-rating system, I still would give that fried chicken an absolute 10, because the crisp & crunch was OUTSTANDING PERFECTION! And the fresh, plump, juicy chicken was delicious/fabulous!
I have never had a cheddar waffle so Friedman's was my first. See my photos to see the cheddar in the waffle, & the yummy fried chicken.
I did not taste the cheddar cheese in the waffle. I would consider using a sharpe or extra sharpe cheddar for inside the waffle, but, my not tasting the cheddar could have been due to my allergy season taste buds. I still give this Fried Chicken & Cheddar Cheese Waffle dish a 10!
My friend enjoyed her beautiful COBB SALAD. She did ask that the hard boiled egg & the bacon be left off of her salad. (Two of my fav food items…lol) Kudos to the server, Kari, and the kitchen for excellent follow-thru on that! Perfection!
The very nice staff–How nice, how pleasant, & what a GREAT FIRST IMPRESSION ( our first visit) that upon entry to the restaurant, the first staff person who happen to be walking by us, smiled & told us "someone will be with you in a moment". PERFECT!! This is what we should expect from a quality restaurant, but often never experience. Once again, KUDOS/COMPLIMENTS to Friedman's!!! A well-trained staff!! Yeah!!!!
Our server- Kari was great. She was friendly, professional, helpful, checked in with us multiple times to see how everything was, & to ask if we needed anything. I appreciated that Friedman's leaves a lovely, tall, glass, water bottle on the table. Smart!
Price-wise–Cobb salad, $14. The fried chicken with cheddar cheese waffle was $21; would be nice if that could be $18 or $19; I thought $21 was a tiny bit high, but, there is no doubt these are high quality ingredients, fresh, & prepared & presented/plated beautifully, so maybe that is why it's $21. Good ingredients cost money.
I was also impressed with the man who cleared our table–smart business attire: black long sleeve, button down shirt & black slacks, who took the time to ask how everything was. AGAIN, PERFECTION!! He didn't rush to get away from us, but actually paused after he asked how everything was–he wanted to hear our response.
Every staff member we dealt with was a pleasure! Kudos to Friedman's for hiring nice people, who together, make a great staff team & training them well.
OVERALL: Greatness on a plate! Go! Enjoy!
GETTING THERE: The #11 bus stops right in front!
Or, You could take the Broadway bus & walk thru the Columbia University Campus to get to Amsterdam Ave & West 118th/Friedman's. Or the subway.
LOL–the Amsterdam Ave #7 bus DOES NOT go near this place, as my friend & I discovered. We walked thru Morningside Park, up lots of steps!! My friend said we were walking off our dinner before we ate it.
NICE TO TELL YOU THAT–in our travels, after exiting the #7 bus, I asked two different groups of
people about getting to our destination & as soon as I mentioned FRIEDMAN'S, they knew exactly where my friend and I were going! There's a lot of love for Friedman's! ENJOY!!
Friedman's is the best gluten-free accommodating restaurant I have ever been to. Ever. Almost everything on their menu can be prepared gluten-free. Even waffles. I know, waffles.
I've been here multiple times before but am uploading this review now after tonight's delicious chicken pot pie dinner. I strayed from my usual Fish Tacos order (also delicious) to try the chicken pot pie because I was curious to see how it would be prepared gluten-free style.
Instead of in a bread-bowl, the pot pie came in a soup bowl with a gluten free waffle on top. There was a cute little sign stuck to the waffle that read "gluten free," and all the gluten free dishes are specifically square instead of round. A+++ for effort, design and making allergy-sensitive like me actually feel welcome and not like a health-freak of a nuisance!!!
The chicken pot pie itself was also quite good and filled to the brim with chicken, carrots, potatoes and other veggies. The side of greens was perfect in the sense that the greens weren't drowned in dressing- you could hardly taste the dressing, which is just the way I like it! Seasoning at Friedman's is always very light (and thus healthy-feeling) (and except for on the herb fries), so just keep that in mind if you like everything on the heavy.
Service has consistently been top notch at Friedman's. It can get quite busy here during rush hours, so consider making reservations!