Upholstery Store: Food and Wine

Well, let’s just say that The Upholstery Store should stop serving food, and maybe actually sell upholstery instead. I REALLY wanted to like this place, and I’m actually not that picky, but my gf & I were very disappointed with our meal.
I’m giving it 2 stars because the place has great ambiance, a nice selection of music playing, and the noise level was minimal (I hate when a restaurant is so loud that I can’t hear the person sitting next to me). Additionally, the waitstaff was very informative, attentive, & friendly (we tipped well because they of course bore no responsibility for the lackluster quality of the food).
Now to the food…
We started with the octopus & a radicchio salad. The octopus itself was the most flavorful part of the meal & the portion size was quite good; however, the accompanying elements (endive & grapefruit) seemed haphazard, and disparate providing no cohesion to the dish. The endive salad had potential, but severely lacking in blue cheese (literally, I think I got 3 small pieces of blue cheese). Now I don’t expect, nor want my salad drenched in blue cheese; however, if the dish is described as having blue cheese, then I do expect more than a tiny smattering of the cheese. As for presentation ~ there was none. Basically it was chopped radicchio, with a few walnuts thrown in a bowl.
For our entrees…
My gf tried the shrimp with spinach & mushroom dish. Again, no presentation. The ingredients were simply thrown in a bowl. The dish was quite bland. How hard is it to infuse some flavor into shrimp? My gf seems to be able to accomplish this whenever she makes us a shrimp dish at home (and she is far from a trained chef).
I had the Arctic char. I LOVE Arctic char, but I truly couldn’t love (nor even like) this dish. I’m not even entirely convinced that the piece of fish served to me was actually Arctic char. The fish was served atop a strange puddle of cream sauce that was wholly unpalatable. Thrown under the fish were a few soggy pieces of cauliflower. Sitting on top of the fish was an odd, puffed rice thing that was too salty to consume. Needless to say, neither my gf nor myself finished our dishes. Just SO disappointing, & SO expensive. Certainly I wouldn’t have minded the expense had the food been enjoyable. This place had quite a few good reviews which, in hindsight, I now find baffling.

Excellent food and excellent service. Cocktails were also a knock out. I had the Bees Knees but they all looked amazing. Butternut squash soup to start with was first class. I had linguine for main which was perfect. Friends had the hangar steak which was rare but delicious. Desserts to die for particularly the chocolate pot de crème.

Upholstery Store is the living room that I don’t get in my itty bitty West Village apartment. It’s my go-​to place to meet friends after work, and we are always welcomed warmly. They have a great wine list, and the deviled eggs are addictive. All of the small plates are tasty — it’s the type of place you can hang out at for a while.

The upholstery store is an amazing location! The ambience and crowd is very cool and sufisticated. Definitely my style! Even better was the food and the drinks! Let me start with the drinks… Be adventurous and order the owners manual! I had 2 of those and one was better than the other. Amazing mixologist that can «mix» out of the box!
The food is just like the entire style. Sufisticated pallet!

Last night was my second time dining at Upholstery Store. My first visit I knew it would be where I want to celebrate my birthday. I scheduled out the event for 13 people well in advance. The restaurant was extremely friendly and accommodating. The food was prepared perfectly and each dish very interesting too! I must recommend the lobster deviled eggs and avocado deviled eggs. MMMMMM Particularly my favorite thing were the drinks! You can pick off a very cool and vast list of custom cocktails or let the bar tender provide the chefs choice — be adventurous. The ambiance is also something everyone in my party could not stop talking about. With separate areas you really felt like you were in your own private room, but still out on the town. Additionally the noise level was just right, not too loud and you can hear everyone across the table. Music choices were all fun. I highly recommend.

excellent venue and outstanding menu
everything we ordered was great and Cody and staff were very attentive to all our needs.
out of the way perfection!

I went to the Upholstery Store last night for dinner with a party of 4. I was looking for a restaurant that was reasonably priced (comparatively speaking for NYC), quaint atmosphere with great food. Without a doubt the boxes were all checked for this place. My wife and I arrived early and had a drink at the bar. It was fun to watch the bartender create a truly unique cocktail and they were delicious as well.
Once we sat down we were seated in the main dining area which is cozy but you don’t feel cramped at all. The place wasn’t overly crowded or loud. The restaurant has an open kitchen which depending on your preference might be a positive or negative. I wasn’t a huge fan due to it smelling very strong of cooking food (it is a restaurant after all so not surprising) but I could see the appeal to some.
To summarize, the food here is incredibly delicious and utilizes what appears to be high quality ingredients. That said, the portions are fairly small so you might want to order possibly 1 appetizer per person. We ordered the cheese plate which had some amazing cheeses in it and came with honey and tart blueberries. For my main course I had the squid ink pasta with calamari. I was really blown away by how good it was. The pasta was broad noodle and was perfectly cooked with it being right on the cusp of al dente. The calamari was delicious and the whole dish was tossed in a very light cream sauce. I’m not a huge fan of cream sauces but this was so delicately sauced that it complimented the dish without overshadowing it.
All in all the ambiance, food, drinks and price were great and I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a nice and relaxing night out.

This place has the best lobster roll I’ve ever tried! I used to love the ones at Chelsea Market until I discovered the Upholstery Store. We also had the beets and the octopus and nothing disappointed.
The service was great too! My cocktails were beautifully presented with heart-​shaped decorations (sounds cheesy, but it was adorable!) and they were cool twists on more traditional drinks.
I’ll definitely be coming here again with friends for a fun evening in the West Village!

Couldn’t have loved it more. Great ambiance, great food (and drinks), friendly staff… perfect choice. I had the octopus, it was delicious. If you’re drinking ask for the «Bartender’s choice» from the drink menu. Try it!

Ambience is really nice
Service is nice
But food is way too salty for me
Wine selection is broad but not my cup of «wine»
Ordered oysters– pretty good, not the best
Octopus– I don’t like mushy cooked octopus and it’s very salty
Squid ink pasta– again very salty and I don’t like the coconut milk flavour
If you want something different can check this place out

The salads and vegetables are amazing… I loved the beet and carrot salad. The steak was made perfectly also.
The service is attentive and patient.
Wine selection is above average and the cocktails are inventive but I really didn’t like «the yenta» … Creamy whisky is just not tasty to me. which is why I didn’t give this place 5stars. The cocktails are pricey.

Good food. Friendly staff. The bartender pushed me to try the Octopus, saying if I didn’t like, he’d take care of it. But it was super delicious, so I paid for it. But worth it.

To summarize all my previous visits in one word: AWESOME.
The drinks are outstanding, Martin on the bar is doing an outstanding job. Ask him to craft something for you — it will blow you off your feet. The wine selection is pretty fine, too.
Ask Tia in the kitchen for her octopus, cooked or marinated for several hours, it was the best octopus I ever had.
Emanuel meanwhile takes good care of you while being the guest.

I was looking for a quiet spot to have a few drinks with friends on a Friday night. I found Upholstery Store and OMG… I am in love.
The space is small, dim lighting but not too dim, and it’s quiet!
The staff is super friendly, does not disturb — 2 different people took our orders instead of one — and I have tried 5 out of their 7 drinks on that list (not all by myself, fyi). What do I recommend? ALL of them! So you really can’t go wrong :-P
Food wise — I had the squid ink pasta — delish — and my friends enjoyed deviled eggs.
I love this spot and cannot wait to go back. I just hope it remains quiet.

My Boy is the bartender. DJ CodE! So the place is great!

Cute place, just not enough food for the money, sorry. A $ 19 lobster roll that’s 2.5 bites at best? A salad that’s more like a garnish? A $ 10 dessert the waiter described with his hands as being the size of a postage stamp? I worked in food — the material cost of a few extra bites is not a deal breaker. This is the West Village, America, not Austria (or wherever this place hails from) — give people a little more than they expect, charge a little more (which you are already doing so forget that), and they will come back again and again (and again).
It’s tomorrow’s sale that pays the rent.

I love this place, I stumbled upon this place on a west village exploration day and have been coming back since.
I’ve yet to eat here but that is next on my list. This place is unpretentious and fun.
They have a rose cider beer that was amazing. I don’t typically enjoy rose but this was a little bit of a mix. My friend had a glass of prosecco. She seemed to enjoy her bubbles as well.
I think this would be a totally awesome intimate date place. The servers and bartender were awesome and accommodating, location is great and it’s pretty affordable for the West Village. You are a block off of the west side highway, so you can walk along the water when you are finished having a couple drinks for a date night make out ;) or with your girlfriends to take some candids!

Wonderful, wonderful place. Really cozy, romantic, great atmosphere. Has a private table in the back with a great garden view and couch sitting with an open kitchen. The food is so delicate and just lovely. The owner has a Michelin star, so he knows what he’s doing.
Now let me tell about the bar. They just got this wonderful bartender there, Cody. I had the privilege to have his drinks at his previous spot, but damn his new cocktail list here puts to shame any of my past experiences. He is so friendly and nice and you can just tell him what you like and he’ll make something on the spot just for you, too.
So, if you’re up for a special dinner, a nice cozy date or just a dinner for one at the bar and a great drink, go visit these guys.

PRO: Romantic ambiance, intimate vibe, sexy décor, fantastic music playlist.
CON: Not exactly the cheapest place in town.
This is one of my fave new places in Manhattan. I’m all about the ambiance, and this place is hard to beat for cozy and intimate. But it’s not the quiet, maybe-​someone-​will-​propose-​here-​tonight vibe, it’s more upbeat and sexy. Best for dates (save the drinks w/​your buddy for somewhere else). And the chef, Matthew, is truly one to watch. We had the tuna ceviche app, Squid Ink Pasta, Venison dish and side of brussels sprouts (plus some Chocolate Pot de la Crème dessert dish that slayed us) and all his plates were works of art. Plus: venison accompanied by pickled blackberries? You’d never imagine them going together, but it was heavenly. And Andrew the bartender took fantastic care of us. My only dig on the place was that I didn’t love the wines by the glass, but wine is a pretty subjective matter, and their tastes are simply more dry & acidic than mine.
In short: don’t miss this one.

I ventured into Upholstery Store on a whim last Saturday night, and what a great decision it was. The ambiance of the space was what I would call «rustic trendy» — very charming, intimate, romantic, and well spaced out given the unique, funky, fun layout. The attention to detail was apparent, and was a theme carried out throughout the evening.
The cocktails are speakeasy style, and by that I mean well thought out and fun to watch take shape behind the bar. They are delicious, unique, and well worth the $ 12-​$ 14 price tag. The bartender, Nikolai (possibly my new best friend), was surgeon-​like in his precision. He clearly takes an immense amount of pride in his craft, and the product delivered to customers.
The food is Austrian and Dutch inspired, very tasty, and attractively presented. I ordered a few small bites and everything was delightful. My mouth is already watering imaging tasting the bites I missed out on.
I was able to speak to two of the owners, who both valued my opinion of the space, cocktails, and food. They went out of their way to make sure my experience was favorable, and were invested in the outcome.
I will certainly be going back in the very near future.