Southwest Porch
“The seats around the fire pit were hot commodities so we sat in Adirondack chairs under a heat lamp.”
“The drinks are a little on the dinky side – served in little plastic cups – but with plenty of booze and small touches to make up for it.”
“This is a really nice place to chill on a summer evening (they have heaters though so I guess it's good in winter too!).”
Southwest Porch
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Happy Hour: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Cool place to hangout. Cocktails are expensive for what they are… not very tasty, small, and in plastic cups. Probably would have given one more star if it was possible to get the porch swing seats!!! Heating lamps save the day for this place.
Ehh the food is whatever. But I guess it's cheaper than other NYC prices so it's okay.
I had a white sangria which was not bad. But it was $14-15 and not worth it. You're really paying for the ambience and outdoor seating.
Sunday 8-9pm service wasn't great.. They had two waitresses and it was hard to order food/drinks and to ask for small things. I had to ask twice for a cup of water. Unless you want to absolutely grab a drink in the park, I would go somewhere else.
Situated next to the fountain in Bryant Park, Southwest Porch is usually brimming with people grabbing drinks and socializing after work — in other words: extremely uninviting. I did, however, randomly have lunch here on a weekday earlier this year, and this place surprisingly had plenty of seating during that time. I guess most tourists steer clear, [correctly] assuming it'd be overpriced.
The drinks were blah and overpriced as expected, but what I did NOT expect, is finding the best turkey burger in the city here of all places. The meat was perfectly seasoned with a concoction of herbs – amazingly flavorful. Color me shocked. I'd come back just for that again.
I absolutely love Bryant Park. I was excited to see this bar here. As crowded as it was on a Friday evening, I was surprised to be seated right away. First we were seated at a table but then we spotted a cute swing that became available. So we ran over before someone else took it. The waitress was very pleasant. I was disappointed to learn that there were no happy hour specials. We ordered the huckleberry lemonade. It was yummy and sweet but a little light on the liquor.
The atmosphere was cool and laid back. There was some music playing- the noise level was average. This is a outdoor bar with no bathroom. You would have to walk quite a distance to get to a restroom OR run across the street and use the bathroom at Pret a Manger. This was suggested by one of the waiters lol. Overall cool spot!
Good bar for open air drinks after work. Nice ambiance and good people watching. Would not eat there, unless you just want a snack.
Came here last night with my boss and a coworker who were in town from Chicago. It's been a few years since I've worked around Bryant Park, but when the weather is nice it's really a gorgeous park to spend some time in. Great for relaxing, people watching and feeling as if you're in a movie.
We originally were thinking of going to Bryant Park Grill for lunch but it was super crowded so I suggested Southwest Porch instead. I had good memories here of tossing back a few cocktails/beers years ago when in the fall they've got firepits and warm, cozy seating…considering they're outdoors.
Gone is the mostly wood furniture from years ago and now tables and seats are colorful metal – primary colors errwhere. I dig it, gives the space a fun and modern feel. I've never actually eaten lunch at Southwest Porch so I was excited.
Their menu isn't a long or complicated one – but this is to be understood. It's a small kitchen – duh. My boss ordered their Blackened Chicken Sandwich which came with citrus marinated lettuce tomato, aioili mayonnaise on a "sweet torpedo" roll. My coworker ordered their Southwestern Grilled Hearts of Romain salad – it came with toasted croutons, Parmesan Reggiano cheese, spicy roasted garlic anchovy dressing and she ordered some grilled chicken to be added (it was an additional $7). I ordered their freshly ground 8oz turkey burger with Vermont cheddar (GO BERNE!! Lol…I had to…#FeelTheBern), arugula and instead of chipotle mayo I requested their olive & mayo tapenade. We also all shared an order of fries served with ketchup.
My companions seamed pleased with their food, but I really can't speak to it. My turkey burger was actually pretty damn glorious. The meat was really juicy, well seasoned and pressed with with tons of fresh herbs and amazing flavors. Flavors like sea salt, freshly ground pepper and garlic jumped at me intensely – this was a really well made turkey burger. No dryness here AT ALL. It was really fantastic.
I was a tad nervous about the olive & mayo tapenade – but this was really delicious and had some interesting almost-citrus like Mediterranean flavors. Really good stuff on both my burger and with the french fries which were perfectly crisped to a nice golden color and didn't fee greasy which is always a plus.
Yeah. Food here is a little pricey for everyday lunches – but maybe once a month while it's nice outside? Hell yah. Do it. Beers here are def overpriced and their selection is nothing to write home about, but for midtown? it's all gravy…they also have swing seats! Who doesn't like a good swing seat?! Lol. 4 Yelpy yelp stars overall.
This outdoor bar is an oasis with cocktails. The ambiance and setting trumps the drinks. With a nice view of the park in the middle of the city, SW Porch just provides a decent place to relax. The bar is on a wooden patio decorated with lights (at night), a fire pit, some heating laps, and somewhat of a coveted porch swing.
Their cocktails are poured rather sparingly in plastic cups. Still they're pretty pricey at about $16. Oh they serve food too.
Food was decent if not a little overpriced, but then again you're smack dab in Bryant park, so really you shouldn't be complaining.
I ordered the burger which was about $14. This was worth it if you add all available extra toppings as the extra toppings are no charge! Fries are good.
Service is great. There didn't seem to be much of a lunch rush as it's getting colder and no one seems to be wanting to eat outside. We got our food within 20 minutes and our waitress was very sweet and efficient.
Overall a decent place to stop by for lunch if you have an hour long lunch break, like burgers and don't mind people watching as you eat.