Last week, I posted my 2015 NYC Eating Hit List (aka my I’m leaving NYC in 60 days, must eat ALL THE THINGS list). First on my target: The Breslin Bar & Dining Room. The Breslin is a gastropub located inside the ever so cool ACE Hotel that holds a 1 Michelin Star rating. Yes, a gastropub with 1 Mich Star = likely to have great food.
I came here because I’ve heard great things about their lamb burger, but after this meal, the one thing I will continue to rave about is this Scotch Egg. I mean just look at it! For those unfamiliar with this popular appetizer from the UK, a Scotch Egg is a boiled egg, wrapped with sausage meat and then deep fried with breadcrumbs for a super crispy exterior. A hearty breakfast invention dating back to the 1700s.
The Breslin’s Bar version of this classic is truly show-stopper. I swear to you the people sitting at the table next to us couldn’t stop staring at this dish. Then when I slowly cut my egg in half for some egg yolk porn? They almost snatched the dish from me! And I wouldn’t blame them – this really tasted as good as it looked.
Now more about this famous Char-grilled Lamb Burger, named one of the best burgers in the city. When you use the best ingredients in the world, your food will naturally taste great. In this case, the lamb patty is made with American lamb which makes this burger mild and sweet, not gamey at all like Australian lamb often is. Then to make it even better, it’s sourced locally from Pat LaFrieda, one of the most well known meat suppliers in the city, known for making custom blends of burgers for the best restaurants in NYC.
To really let the patty shine, this burger is simply topped with some feta cheese and sits on a fresh ciabatta bun that ends up soaking up all the juices from the lamb. It comes with thrice-fried fries which are truly out of this world crunchy which I just love.
The group of 5 of us didn’t get here till 9pm for dinner, and had to wait about 45 minutes without a reservation (can’t make a same day ressie past 4pm). So we got a bit aggressive and ordered a tadddd too many small plates to share at the bar:
Small Plates
Caramel Popcorn – made in house – $5
Chicken Liver Parfait – supppper delicious on toast, a touch of sweetness – $9 – recommended* 
Beef and Stilton Pie – a true English classic – $10 each 
Scotch Egg – DEFFFFINITELY recommend per above review – $9 each 
Main Course
Chargrilled Lamb Burger – feta, cumin mayo & thrice cooked chips – $22
Smoked Lamb Ribs – cucumber, yogurt, roasted tomato vinaigrette – $18 – preferred this over burger
Rib Beef on Toast – beef fat fried filone with horseradish cream & arugula – $18 
Seafood Sausage – beurre blanc & chives – $19 – not worth the price tag
Sugar Snap Peas – lime yogurt & benne seed – $9 – to say we ate some vegetables ๐ 
Milk Braised Berkshire Shoulder – milk curds, kale & crispy sage – $32 
The Breslin has a huge bar area in the front where you can grab quick drinks and a bite with friends (they serve the whole menu at the bar), or you can go back to their dining area. The atmosphere is kind of a luxe and kitchy, decorated with pig and cow figurines, hanging animal heads and leather booths. Overall it’s a great space to meet up with some friends, order a crap ton of food and share. My personal faves here were all the small plates we shared. By the time we got to our mains, I was stuffed and could barely take bites of the food.
If you couldn’t already tell from all the dishes we ordered, The Breslin has a heavy focus on meats – they even serve several different large format meal meant for huge groups. The most interesting of them all is their whole suckling pig meal. If you’re interested, you can grab 8-14 of your closest buds and order it for $90 per person. Do it 7 days ahead – details here.
The Breslin Bar
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– Great noms, don’t miss out!
Good for: Large groups, Drinks, Meat lovers
Come here for: Gastropub with guaranteed good eats & drinks
Order: Scotch Egg, Lamb Burger, Chicken Liver Parfait
Neighborhood/Cuisine: Flatiron / Gastropub / Fancy English Pub Food
