Bon Vivant Diner

Competant diner. I’ve been here several times for the ironic name alone. Nothing really stood out though. Not too expensive.
Bottom Line: Not bad if you need to eat while strolling Broadway, but by no means a destination spot.

All I remember about this place is the cockroach that scurried behind me while I was waiting for my food.

Their chili Con Carne with Rice is *enter high pitched girly scream of pleasure here*
I’ve had their burgers, their wings and a lot of their other food but the one thing I keep going back to is their Chili. It’s creamy, meaty (that’s what she said) and full of flavor. I wish it had a bit more heat but that’s okay… my heat needs are met at home.
Try it! Try the Chili!

Cute, clean, simple place. Basic diner fare, nothing too fancy, relatively cheap for burgers or breakfast food. I had a beefburger, my companion had the Monte Christo with fries, and we both cleaned our plates.
If you want lettuce, onion and tomato with your burger you have to order the deluxe for $ 2 more (comes with fries), otherwise you just get slaw and a pickle. This seems to be a pretty standard deal at most burger/​diner places, but I was momentarily taken aback by the starkness of just the burger with no toppings at all. No problem, though, it was good enough with only ketchup and mustard, not greasy and a nice thickness and beefy flavor. Solid choice for only $ 5.50.
I’ll probably stop in again when I’m out and about and need some basic American eats in the area.

My friends and I left our hotel room and went to Union Square without having had breakfast, so by the time we decided to get food, we were REALLY hungry. Bön Vivant was the first place we saw.
The name sounded kind of fancy, but we were happy that this was just a diner. We ordered cups of soup and sandwiches, which were simple but really good. I loved my cream of turkey soup, and I think we all had turkey sandwiches. The sandwiches were huge piles of meat with no dressing, but we asked for mayo and mustard and put it on ourselves; this was actually great because gloopy sandwiches are gross.
All in all, under $ 15 for soup and a sandwich was a-​ok and a tasty way to start the day.

Somehow diner food hits the spot when you are hungover. It is hard to rate diners because they don’t vary all that much in terms of quality. 3 stars cause I’ve had better (ironically).

No good.
Recently went here for lunch and would not reccomend it. It looked so cute but we were disappointed.
I ordered a veggie burger, which it stated would arrive in a pita; different but okay, sure. What I received was pretty much spinach pie in a pita; whatever it was, it was NOT a veggie burger. The fries were alright but not great. i got mayo on the side which arrived in a large jar, which i am sure that they will reuse.
My friend ordered a chicken melt with bacon, which came with no cheese or bacon, though she was charged with both.
And this place isn’t even cheap! My «burger» was maybe 11!

Came here for a quick breakfast in between errands. Overall, not bad. Liked the french toast (but how hard is french toast?)… fair prices, decent selection, pretty much your typical diner food… nothing to complain about but nothing to write home about either.

I SO wish Bön Vivant were a really quality, tasty, choice diner that would satisfy my late night cravings. I live so close that this would make me so happy. Unfortunately, Bön Vivant is none of these things. To be honest, I would advise anyone who steps in there to avoid ordering anything other than breakfast food, which is pretty decent. Anything else, be that a burger, greek food, pasta dish, chicken, and you are eating at your own peril. I’ve even tried their chocolate milkshakes, runny and bland. Now how do you mess up a chocolate milkshake? Take my advice, BREAKFAST ONLY.

I would love to love Bön Vivant, if for nothing else than its unintentionally ironic name. However, I can not.
I was hoping that for $ 12 my lunch would be tasty, at least tasty in a greasy diner-​y way, but instead, my omelet was overcooked and fries strangely dry. So that was kind of sad and unenjoyable, though I admittedly chose as my lunchtime reading material the Village Voice article about the goings-​on at foie gras duck farms, which could have potentially compounded the unenjoyable-​ness of my meal.
The best part of my lunch was the cup of chicken soup that came with my omelet. It was chicken soup with rice, which immediately put the song based on the Maurice Sendak book of the same name into my head, where it continues to play on repeat. Since it’s February, I’ll sing you the February verse:
In February it will be
My snowman’s anniversary
With cake for him and soup for me!
Happy once–
Happy twice–
Happy chicken soup with rice!
And no, I did not have to google the lyrics.

6 bucks for grilled swiss w/​tomato and a pickle? Maybe I expect to much, but I won’t be going back.

I have to be fair and give this place a slightly better review. I’ve since been back because I was either stupid or hungry. (maybe both) My experience has since been a bit better.
I came in after midnight on a Friday night and the place was quiet with a few tables full. My burger was well cooked (actually Medium Well! a shock for a diner, and worthy of both stars on its own!) The waiter was friendly if inattentive. For example, our soda and teas did not come out until we asked for them after our dinner came. The fries still tasted like they were fried in dirty oil.
But anyway, I might have been unfair — as last time was really bad. This time it was just «not too great, but tolerable.»

I don’t have high expectations for diners, but my experience left me with angry feeling in my stomach instead of a full one.
It took 20 minutes for a waiter to even come over to our table. Sure, one waitress dropped off a bottle of ketchup, but that’s all we had. You can’t drink ketchup when you’re thirsty. I try to be understanding and all, but this place wasn’t even close to half full.
When we finally got our orders placed, it was another long wait for everything. Drinks trickled out two and one and one at a time. When dinner finally came, one order was wrong but the food was hot and all served at the same time.
The food was ok, not great. According to one other person at the table, the hash browns were «the worst ever.» I’m no hash brown connoisseur, but I didn’t think they were supposed to taste like cold ham and grease. Everything else tasted as it should, but in the most mediocre manner possible.
The only thing the waiter was quick about was tossing us our check. Up until this point, I was thinking «Eh, 3 stars.» But then a mysterious «Service» charge was on the check. We were a party of 4, not huge. I doubled checked the menu and it said nothing about an included gratuity on the bill. Now, I’m not opposed to tipping nor did I think the amount billed was outrageous, but I was incredibly insulted that they would just toss that on there like that.
One member of the group said this was kind of common in the NYU area because of the students. I don’t think that’s any excuse. Unless they state in advance, they shouldn’t just toss a tip on the bill and not say anything. If we hadn’t looked carefully, we would have left two tips. That’s low; especially after waiting 20 minutes to even get noticed.
The food wasn’t horrible, but the service was abominable and I would never go back because of it.

When I am not traipsing around the globe indulging in the world’s must sumptuous foods and wines, I turn to the Bön Vivant Diner — the diner that caters to the discriminating turkey club sandwich seeker.
Nicely browned white toast. Check. Tasty bacon. Check. Cut into equal-​sized wedges held together by slivers of wood. Check. Includes crispy fries. Check. A price that lets me save my money for my globetrotting ($ 10.25). Half check.
So if you want a diner experience that is more authentic than Silver Spurs or Cozy, this is your spot in Union Square.

it’s a diner.
what else were you expectin’, son?!
there’s no sushi or bbq brisket!
stop looking for something that DOESN’T normally exist in a diner.
just because it’s in Union Square… doesn’t make it any special.
honestly, if you’re desperate… i’m talkin’: Big Daddy’s, Silver Spurs or the City Gourmet is too far for you.
the appetizer sampler was like $ 12. what the?!
i had a 3^rd degree burn on my tongue from the jalepeno popper w/​cream cheese. it was like molted lava!!!
service is spotty… but the food isn’t horrible. me likey.

It’s a diner. I have happy memories here in my NYU post filming days. (A good alternative to Silver Spurs) Tonight it saved the day — we were going to go see the 6:10 showing of «There will be Blood» — but it was sold out — on a Monday night — go figure (friggin’ writer’s strike) So, what to do — I said Dinner, Diner.
So we walked down the street to Bön Vivant. I really do think that that this was my first non-​late night pumped from student film making meal at this diner. (I haven’t been here in years and as I remember it is open really late)
I had the spinach pie appetizer and a Lemonade. C. had a patty melt deluxe. The fries looked amazing — as did the onions on the burger. My mouth watered — but I remembered that I have blood work this week so I plugged away at my spinach pie.
Good food, empty restaurant (best for conversation) nice waitress. I’d go there again for a burger or egg dish. Skip the ethnic greek– not really worth the price.
They have wine & beer too.
2 people $ 21.50 + tip

I stop here for coffee or a bite to eat when I go to the movies in Union Square. I usually order a burger or souvlaki, and it’s always good and satisfying. The service is pretty quick, and I like the no frills diner atmosphere. Just a really chill place that’s convenient to the theater and Strand.

Probably the fastest diner delivery in all of Manhattan — and I’ll vouch for those crispy french fries. The prices are a little steep, but the quality of the food doesn’t make you feel too guilty about shelling out the extra moola.

Ordered a veggie pizza burger in a pita for delivery just now, and the thing was a sufficiently edible gooey mess of cheese and vegetable patty. Coleslaw not so bad, fries passable; not gross, but hardly haute cuisine.
Had asked for ketchup and mustard, though, and a million ketchup packets were included in a separate bag — sans mustard. How hard is it to provide mustard? Seriously. You’re a damn diner. Don’t tell me you don’t have mustard.
Prices for the level of eats: only OK. Would order again, maybe, if they were the only thing open at the time.

Perfectly adequate diner, nothing remarkable really. It’s around the corner and we really only use them in a pinch. Service is good, but prices seem a little high compared to other diners in the area.