Bua

Met friends here for Super Bowl Sunday. Don’t care much for sports, do care much for good beer and good service. Will be back for sure.

Tommy, the bartender who made all of our pickle back shots on Saturday night was fantastic. Thanks for being so much fun and showing our birthday girl a good time. You rock!

I’m in love with that Fried Chicken Sandwich !!! And the sweetest hottest bartender has got to be Dael, he knows how to handle a crowd, amongst other things !! ;)

Look no further, folks! A bar in EV with decent food, drinks, great music (old school hip hop)… not packed, good crowd for a Saturday night. My two reservations with this bar are that the entrance is a little oddly placed, and the bartenders this past Saturday night were probably the drunkest people there. Be sure to check out the other room that’s semi-​hidden to the left — grab a seat in there!

Only had drinks there but it was a laid back atmosphere. Liked how they had happy hour deals on Sunday. The pink lemonade was really refreshing and not too sweet. Not sure if it had much alcohol in there though. Decent beer selection and good service.

Incompetent waitress. Don’t bother.
Came here for dinner and drinks on a Friday night and the waitress overcharged my friend and I’s credit cards, then was both rude and unapologetic about it. Also, the food and drinks are not bad but teeny tiny.
Here’s the full story:
My friends and I got dinner and a drink each. One girl did not get a drink, so they wouldn’t take her card, since it’s a 20 dollar minimum. No problem. She paid her part in cash and we asked to split the rest on three cards (should’ve been about 24 each).
The waitress, who was not on her shit the whole night (the tan busboy with close-​shaven black hair and facial hair – shout out to him – saved her ass at least 3 times) came back 10 minutes after taking our cards, stating that one of the cards only ran through for 15 dollars so she then took it upon herself to charge my other friend and I extra (30 bucks!) and decided that was OK. She flippantly stated this all in one breath, blamed us for the card not reaching the oh-​so-​sacred minimum, made no apologies, was absolutely vitriolic in her tone, and ran away before we could ask her to fix it.
Now, having worked in foodservice as a waitress and bartender for years, I can assure you that this is a) not the way to handle this situation, b) something she could have fixed and c) definitely not even legal. The slender brunette waitress whose wardrobe comes from urban outfitters (wish I knew her name) claims she talked to the manager «but he said it was fine» as in, he was OK with the card not meeting the minimum, as if we were the ones who owed her an apology. If this is true and she did talk to the manager, then he absolutely mishandled this situation. They gave us no say in the matter, decided on their own that my friend and I would be OK with being charged extra, gave my friend no chance to give another form of payment, and on top of that did not apologize but instead made it seem like OUR fault.
She is horrible and should be fired.
I would have said this to them had anyone checked in on us, but no, she ran away and was never to be seen again.
The food was fine and the scene was «trendy» or whatever, but given the way they handled this situation I would never ever be back, as long as this horrible waitress still works there.

Why is a non-​drinker reviewing a bar? Because it serves the most delicious, and perhaps the most fattening, fried chicken sandwich I have ever had (fair question, though)! The toast is drenched in butter, the filets of crispy fried chicken breast are heaped in generous quantities, and the crunchy, creamy, spicy slaw adds more flavor and texture to this messy deliciousness.
The fried cheddar cheese curds are pretty good too. Great way to get the fat intake for a whole week in one evening. No regrets. I will do it again and die a happy man with clogged arteries.

The food was exceptionally bad. The fries were overly salty and dry. They only had a pork hamburger and there was barely anything else in the menu as dinner choices. The ambiance was nice, the place was very packed out with people as per a regular NYC bar. Although the waitress herself was sweet, she only came to our table to take our order. We asked to have our soups first and they brought it out all together anyway. Waitress did not come by to bring utensils or to check up. I had to go find her to ask for the check. Overall, the food was lacking in flavor and tasted old. Although it may be a nice hang out spot for some happy hour drinks, I certainly would not recommend it for dinner.

This place was so much funnnnn! They like to mess with you, in the most stoic way possible. The owner/​manager must have a good sense of humor because the staff was pretty funny, starting with the bouncer.
Beware of the corner seat at the left end of the bar… Got sprayed with seltzer water 3x that night. Fix that broken nozzle please.

We often go to this place because of the terrace and the happy hour till 8pm :) I like their cocktails and obviously their draft beers :)

Came here to meet up with my sister. Her and her boyfriend were already on round two when I arrived. The drinks were small and the staff isn’t that attentive.
Good seating by the window or out front, but other than that this bar doesn’t have much to offer.

What a pleasant surprise in the Saint Mark’s neighborhood!
We decided to stop by for their well-​known happy-​hour special: $ 7 drinks until 8p. Showing up a bit earlier made all of the difference with the usual crowds taking over the place, and we managed to snag a seat on the outdoor patio.
The pineapple daiquiri tasted great. Would return!

I love Bua bar. It doesn’t necessarily deserve 5 stars as a bar. But for what it is, it does it perfectly.
When you go to Bua bar, I suggest the following:
— their kale salad (sans blue cheese) amazing
— their more reasonably priced drinks
— the spicy margarita
— the people watching (when sitting outside)
— to wait for your call from PDT
— to meet some interesting randoms when sitting at the bar
Overall, yes the service is slow and yes it’s noisy. But respecting this bar for what it is, it’s a great spot in the east village.
Come between 9 and 10 to get a seat as a group. And sometimes they close the patio seating around midnight. If you’re planning to stay later and want a seat, it’s best to start inside.

Nice laid back place for drinks. The vibe is casual but still a tad upscale with nice finishes.
The pineapple daiquiri (Without added sugar) was the best drink. The pimms cup was also refreshing with nice fresh strawberries and cucumbers.
Good place for a hot summer afternoon drink.

Met up with some friends here last Saturday afternoon for some drinks and food. It’s a very crowded/​busy bar on St Marks, but away from the main hustle and bustle drag of St Marks.
The service here is one of the worst I have ever experienced. We had a waitress and it just seemed like it took forever for us to get our drinks and food each time we ordered. As other Unilocalers have mentioned, there’s no system for getting seats. It’s typically a first come, first serve basis, but sometimes they just give seats to those who just walk in and/​or you’ll see groups of people fight like animals for chairs.
Their drinks aren’t that good, especially the bourbon honey one. It was super lemony and very tangy. My friends said their food is decent, but definitely not worth it to come back here as there are so many other places in the area.

Yikes, I’m not picky about service but I just can’t recommend Bua after going there last night. A friend and I went for happy hour and it was completely packed at about 7:15. We waited for a bit and managed to get two seats outside at a table with two others. This was awesome! The happy hour is a good deal and even though the cocktails aren’t strong, they were pretty good. The cheese curds were the best I’ve had in the city!
However, after maybe our second drink, this homeless man began to cause trouble on the sidewalk right in front of everyone sitting outside. He was brandishing bottles and yelling. We ignored him for the most part but this other table of dummies seemed to be encouraging him. Management didn’t seem to really be paying attention. Finally, he throws a glass bottle onto the ground and it shatters, with pieces of glass getting in my hair and landing on our table. Nice.
Management asks us to move inside, all the tables in my area do, the dummies do not. At this point i think the call the cops but don’t tell us so we’re all wondering if they have even done anything. They don’t tell the busboy, who takes everyone’s full drinks away, assuming that we all just left en masse I guess. The waitress also doesn’t know what’s going on and casually asks us if we want another round as we’re standing awkwardly in the doorway later. We’re never given the all clear but since the guy seems to have left and people are vying for our table, we go back out. The poor waitress is overwhelmed and it takes forever for us to order more food. Anyway, long story short, the guy throws another bottle from across the street, a bouncer finally goes to talk to him unsuccessfully, the policy never come even though lots of people are now calling 911 (not Bua’s fault!)
The main issue is that I was disappointed that I actually had to ask to have the two full drinks we had to reorder taken off of our bill. Management never came outside to ask if we were okay. The busboy took our drinks but the table was never wiped, even though it had glass on it! Frankly, for how scary and unpleasant that experience was, we should have gotten another free round or had part of our bill comped. Having two drinks we didn’t get to drink taken off of our bill should have been the absolute minimum that was done.

I’m going with a 4 for two reasons: The happy hour prices on the cocktails and the yummy fries.
It was not that crazy yet as we were on the earlier side of the after work happy hour, but please get more than one bartender back there! I could tell it was difficult for him to manage everyone at the bar plus people walking up to order. He’s cute and all, buuut…
The Gold Rush was as refreshing as I’d hoped. really nice balance of boozy and sweet without being too sweet. I almost had to have a second one of those but decided to try the Habanero Margarita next. It was definitely tasty and had a nice kick to it, though it was more like tequila mixed with fresh lime juice, agave and a spicy mix added later (rather than the described «house infused tequila.» Just saying). It was still good, and I already know I’ll be back to try more.
The fried chicken sandwich was good but not anything mind-​blowing and was a bit overpriced in my opinion. The fries though… they were really solid pub fries, easily shareable by two people and worth the $ 5 side order price tag.
I say come back for the happy hour drink prices, maybe some food if you get hit a little too hard and fast. The jury is still out on those grilled cheese sandwiches on Pullman Bread. I’m sure I’ll try one next time.

After a decade plus of being in the «East Village local» scene, Bua has finally earned my business and appreciation after so many failed attempts. The initial visits were particularly brutal: cramped seating, really inadequate service, lameduck menu, and a bustling of woof worthy dbaggery that would really sully the joint. Any mention of Bua in my late night rotation of EV hopping and I would consider ending my night early. Yes, it was really that bad.
The years have been kind; the staff makeover makes for particularly pleasant service during all hours, the happy hour specials are still there, the food has actually gotten better (and notably pricer), and even the bathrooms are clean again. For any nightlife haven in any hood as gritty as the EV, the latter is especially wonderful.
It’s also a matter of timing. If time is flexible, make plans for an earlier happy hour before the major crowd rush. Daytime drinking and eating is never a bad thing if the schedule allots for it and one will get to appreciate how much better this seedy yet intimate spot, looks during actual daylight hours. The mood is different, which might offer another perspective of how to really view Bua.
But of course, certain cocktails cannot be ignored. Where the Bee’s Knees was a favorite in the past, the Paloma (tequila, house grapefoot soda, salted grapefruit bits) and the Gold Rush (bourbon, honey, lime juice) are my go-​tos now. They’re both $ 10 a piece, but about $ 6 for happy hour and are the consummate summer adult beverages.
If one is still hungry after all of this, it should be known that Bua’s kitchen stays open till close. Their infamous grilled cheeses served on pullman bread are still in the $ 7 – 8 range and are best accompanied by a cup of tomato soup ($ 3). The burgers are still solid at $ 8 a pop, likely because the meat is LaFrieda and the cook grills it just right almost every time.
When the weather gets good, consider sitting outside. Just hope there were no drunks /​hobos /​misfits liquid marking their territory in the same spot hours earlier. Fingers crossed for better ventilation come the muggy months.

We initially came here to kill time before getting in to PDT (across the street)…so glad we picked it because it is a really cool spot!
at first there was no place to pull up to the bar and no tables… so we found a corner to post up and went to the bar to order drinks.
Service was friendly. prices were better than most of the nearby bars… nothing too exceptional here… the food menu looked yummy but i was holding out for Crif dogs.
we eventually snagged a table (yay)
very casual… was super crowded on a thursday night in the dead of winter (wow in SD people don’t leave the house if it drops below 70 degrees and it was like 20 degrees outside tonight!)
great place to kill some time before heading to your next spot!

Stopped in at Bua Bar last Friday night,
I came in for happy hour but wanted a bite,
The fried chicken sandwich was very good.
but didn’t change my life like reviews said it would,
Though for bar food I was truly impressed,
And six dollar cocktails! These I must stress.
If you want good drinks with food that’s hot,
Give Bua Bar on St. Mark’s a shot.

BOOYAH!!!
been to Bua several times and i’m sure i will be back since folks i know end up coming back here.
just here «about a week ago… week ago»…they typically have a bouncer at the door carding. place does have «A» grade from the city health inspectors. nice.
beer garden-​y feel
inside. you walk into the right side of bua. bar is right in front of you. chalkboard menu at the end of the bar. sliding-​doored bathrooms beyond that. bar, itself, is pretty big and probably fits around 12 – 16 bar stools around it with a fair amount of standing room beyond the bar. bar set up is nice with a small range of taps, shelved booze, and uncluttered appearance. the barroom itself it lots of medium woods, exposed bricks, and clean sight lines. darkly lit with candle light and such.
the next room has seating options: a long picnic-​like table (middle of room) with bench seating for large groups or a communal experience – seats 8 – 10 people easy AND a few tables (2– and 4– tops with some booth and chairs). i think there’s a couple of small tables in the back of the room. this room has good amount of standing room… the problem is people tend to camp between both rooms which can make taking drinks from the bar to the tabled area an adventure.
rolled in here with a couple of Unilocalers to further our post event drinking/​laughter escapades. even on a Thursday, bartenders were slammed. patient i be. we got our drinks accordingly and had several rounds here. i’d say the drinks are adequately made. none of us got bua’s signature cocktails.
drinks feel a bit pricy here. pour over cocktails are like $ 10±-the same price as Bua’s signature cocktails. thinking about it now, i had several vodka sodas and didn’t even think about whether i was being charged $ 10-​$ 11 for house/​well vodka. a friend of mine had a couple of black russians. same price. another Unilocalser tried ordering a long island iced tea (i know i should demote this person for wanting said drink), but the bartender said they don’t serve (or make them). very strange. for manhattan is $ 10 steep for a cocktail? no. on St. Marks place though? yes especially on 2 – 3 ingredient cocktails that don’t have real prep other than pour over into ice into a rocks glass. my guess is that cocktails are priced to maximize dollars pour costs, especially since they don’t highlight whether top-​shelf liquors are used in any of the classic cocktails or signature cocktails. so value on the cocktails seems like big THUMBS-​DOWN.
however they have a fair amount of beers on tap. didn’t try any that night, but almost assume that their beer prices top out at the top.
i’d say bua works for birthdays and going-​aways (as i believe you can reserve tables etc.) as the staff informed us they had our table reserved after midnight or something. and when it’s less crowded, it’s probably a good first date sorta place. it also makes for a good place to wait to kill time if you have reservations at «Please Don’t Tell» across the street.
they have bar-​esque food. didn’t have any, but the menu looked good.
as closed up my tab. i realized i didn’t even get a buyback on 6 drinks (cocktails). $ 60+ dollars. 25% gratuity on top of that. meh. smh. i feel buybacks are becoming an urban legend like Bigfoot. sad days we live in…
i’m sure i’ll be at Bua again for someone’s birthday, work celebration, etc. but coming here as a first choice… prolly not going to happen.
bua means «victory” – a rare occurrence on St. Marks. not sure if it applies here anymore. the value just is not here even with the nice décor. and the crowd is just OK.
dropz mic bc this place needs it more than i do!
i out!

Unfortunately, I have to downgrade my review of Bua to reflect the horrible service we received on Friday night. I dragged a group of 10 or so coworkers downtown with the promise of enjoying «one of the best bars in my neighborhood.»
While we all had a great time, and everyone drooled over the famous chicken sandwich, the bartender that was there from our entrance around 7 until when we left at 11 was a real See You Next Tuesday. Honestly, I hope the management sees this review and gives her a lesson in how you treat costumers. I think its important to add, this is not just coming from me and my group of friends. Another girl waiting by me at the bar also commented on how rude she had been. Every time you asked this girl for a drink, you were met with a scowl. I’ve worked in food and bev, and honestly, how fucking hard is it to crack a smile? We were all using our please and thank yous, and this girl just returned them with the death stare.
Was so appalled by her behavior that I almost went down to two stars, but really didn’t think her attitude is representative of Bua and the rest of the staff. Aside from her, I still love this place and will continue to come. Hopefully, next time, she remembers to take her happy pills.