Betel Bar & Kitchen is an adorable spot.  It is on Grove Street near my office and Whittemore House, my hair salon.  I’ve been passing it forever and put it on the long list of places to check out.  My bad.

Despite its gorgeous brick exposed walls, long bar, center island complete with giant vases of flowers, huge windows and fantastic light, Betel falls short on the food and service.  Unfortunately it is among the thousands and thousands of mediocre restaurants in NYC.

The concept is good – Southeast Asian fusion, crafted cocktails and shared plates.  One would think this would be a big win.  Am I being unfair?  All it takes is one bad visit anywhere.  Even a place with great food and bad service is a questionable return with so many choices.  We waited forever for drinks, food AND the check.  And not one thing was good.  So here it is…

ONE BITERS

Hama Hama Oyster with Red Nahm Jim Coriander  $4 each

I ordered 3, just for myself.  Steve wasn’t interested in having any oysters.  They kindly brought 6 at no extra cost, thinking I under ordered and that they were small.  I expected Hama Hamas to be small since they are Washington State.  But OK, thanks, that was nice.  Too bad they weren’t fresh.  Even with the chili sauce, I had a hard time getting them all down.  Yuk.  Maybe they knew they only had one day to get them all out of the kitchen.

SALADS & SIDES

Poached Chicken and Crab Salad with Green Nahm Jim Dressing  $12

Looks lovely, doesn’t it?  All of the greens were mint, basil and parsley.  After a few bites it became difficult to eat a mouthful of mint.  Or basil for that matter.  I wound up picking out the veggies and chicken.  The crab content was minimal and a bit fishy, not unlike the oysters.  I truly wanted it to be good.

BRUNCH

Betel Benedict  Pork Belly Hash with Two Medium Poached Eggs & a Tarragon Hollandaise Sauce  $14

Again, looks damn lovely.  Nice plate.  The toast was really thick, which might have been nice but it was just overkill with the blah of everything else.  This Benedict was nothing special.  The pork belly hash should have been a great.  Bummer.

So maybe hanging out at the bar would be cool?  It sure is a pretty spot.  Maybe I could give that a try after work sometime.  Although its hard to give a second chance after such a bad experience.  Perhaps had we been drinking we might have enjoyed it?  They have unlimited brunch cocktails.  It seemed more like young kids who couldn’t afford a good meal and wanted to take advantage of the bottomless bloodies and mimosas.

http://betelnyc.com
51 Grove Street – West Village