Willow Road

Simply wonderful.
I make it a point to stop by Willow Road several times a week when working at Chelsea Market for Food Network or Cooking Channel. Through the months I’ve experienced several great changes to their menu. Sweet tea fried chicken… Buttermilk pork chops. This place is one of the best.
The bartenders are wonderful. Keep an eye out for Joe or John.

Great and cute place, my friend ordered the burger and I had the willow French toast
:) enjoyed out brunch

Great food… highly recommend the cheese crisps, brussel sprouts, yams, burger and fried chicken. Don’t go on a Sunday though because they’re out of half the items listed on the menu… literally!
The TVs all over the place need to go! If I wanted to go to a sports bar I’d go to one.

I love Willow Road.
Used to live very close by, and it’s an area with abundant choices in fine dining. But Willow has it’s place: it’s much more upscale than a ‘gastro-​pub’ but still feels very casual and comfy.
Been there several times just for cocktails, and always had a blast. Went for dinner the other day and again: nice — decent and yummy. No ‘stars’-quality or such but well enough for a ‘great’ time.

Booked Willow Road due to close proximity to the office — had heard mixed reviews about the food, but as it’s new, trendy, and the meal would be sponsored by work– I thought it would be worth a shot.
Tried a whole bunch of options, so I’ll take it from best to worst:
Orecchiette with mushrooms and arugula — yum — listed as a small plate, but pretty hearty portion and very light for a pasta.
Fried Chicken — a little bit spicy, and a BIG hit around the table.
Meatballs — good for a heavier appetizer.
Bone Marrow — I personally don’t love bone marrow, but the presentation was beautiful and it was served with a thick toast dressed with pork belly, which was pretty tasty.
Potato Crisps /​Handcut Fries — nothing special.
Boiled Peanuts — with spices and ham hock — w. t. f. These were really hard to eat, messy, and unappetizing.
Service was very good, and i tried a variety of cocktails, all of which I enjoyed. When we walked in, the restaurant was practically empty — but it was absolutely poppin’ by the time we left around 9. Décor is very cool & modern — would be good for a date or a business dinner in Chelsea.

I’m marking this purely on décor, ambience, service and drinks as I still haven’t eaten here …
The décor is amazing, I love the ‘Baked By Electricity ’ Neon sign above your head at the bar .
Service was spot on, seated at the bar immediately with great bartenders who had banter .
Music was all old school, I even saw the chefs busting movies to Ice Ice Baby !
Drinks — Sadly the ’ cool cucumber’ cocktail wasn’t that cool. But hey its one drink out of a list of many .
I did see some hand cut fries with aioli pass me and I nearly jumped out of my seat they looked so good… I was about to go to dinner at Toro round the corner so couldn’t risk blowing my appetite… next time for sure .
All in all a very cool bar come gastro pub !

Went here for brunch. thought food was pretty cool, and we got to take a pic with Grayson from top chef! she was so nice and personable.
would I go back? yep!

Willow Road was an unexpected joy. My boyfriend and I randomly found it, thanks to Unilocal,and decided to check it out based on the photos. We immediately loved the décor and atmosphere they have created. (It is on the pricey side but somewhat typical for the area)
The food:
Spiced lamb burger bites– Amazing, definitely try. Lamb was nice and juicy with great flavors, bread was toasted, and brightness from raw onion and cilantro.
Mac N’ Cheese– Not your traditional mac and cheese! The fennel makes this really flavorful (I kept searching for the sausage), there was a light sauce, and some grated cheese. If you’re looking for a different take, this is it.
Arctic Char — Served beautifully. The parchment paper was pulled away at the table side to reveal nicely baked char over rice and peas. The sauce was served on the side.
Brussel sprouts– I have a soft spot for brussel sprouts in general, so you can’t really go wrong unless they are burnt to a crisp. These obviously were not; brown butter added a little sweetness while the lemon kept them fresh.
Deep fried candy bar– Tried this after the Chef’s roommate suggested it. We definitely enjoyed it, but I actually liked the ice cream and chocolate crumbs better. They have a whole list of other desserts, so I think i’ll be inclined to try one of those next time.

For some woman, diamonds are better than an apology. Dessert suffices for me… and Willow Road will have even covered some owed in the future by whomever (yeah, it was that good!).
My co-​worker made reservations here for me and another one of our co-​workers. It was on Eater’s top 10 so we had to try it, according to him. We occupied one end of a community table, one that was a long, ski-​lodge style table that had high bar-​style chairs. The décor of the restaurant was pretty much that, wood and glass treatments such as mason jars for vases filled with tulips, and glass brick on the floor with illuminated Ws.
We started with the Duck Fat Crisps and the Twenty Greens Salad made with herbs like dill & mint, pistachios, & aged pecorino. We also split the Lamb Burger Bites which were basically sliders and there 3 of them, one for each of us. They had a curry-​ish flavor and were served on a soft, slightly sweet bun.
For my main course I ordered the Australian Lamb Chops served over roasted melon farro with mint & Tuscan kale. One of my co-​workers ordered the Buttermilk Fried Chicken with jerk spices & orange blossom honey. The other ordered the Skate Roulade with broccoli pesto, charred spring onion, and grilled garlic relish.
We played ring around the rosey with each other’s plates and got to sample everything! It was a good thing, too, because not only was my lamb grilled exactly the way I prepare it for myself (medium rare), but the chicken was juicy and spicy, and the skate roulade was moist with one of the most interesting relishes I’ve had in a long time.
For sides we ordered the fingerling potatoes and brussel sprouts tossed in brown butter and lemon.
For my beverage of choice, I most definitely had the Jurancon. I am not a white wine drinker, but 5 years ago, I had it for the first time at Providence (Los Angeles) and I was in love. It has such a clean and pretty flavor to it, the perfect place between Chardonnay and Viognier or something.
Now, when we were served the entrees, our server had informed my one co-​worker who had ordered the chicken, that the kitchen had to make a whole new batch of chicken and this his entrée would not be coming out for another 7 minutes. Even after what we thought was an acceptable explanation, which prompted the two of us that had our meals to share with the one who hadn’t, that delay in the one entrée was rectified in a way that we didn’t expect.
For dessert, which we did not order, we got a salted caramel tiramisu type cake-​thang with ceme fraiche. We got this baked Snicker Bar that seemed like it was covered in Toll House Cookie mix. AND we got a slice of some peanut butter chocolate cheesecake. On top of that, we were served a round of champagne with some kind of peach reduction.
Our waiter was so sweet. He just wanted to make sure that we enjoyed our meal and were going to leave happy. I think at that point, he practically made friends for life.
But honestly, prior to the dessert and booze on the house, we were more than happy and had a great time partaking in amazing food.
5 stars? Easy as…

I LOVED THIS PLACE! The decoration is awesome, I liked the lights on the ceilings and the big mirrors that apparently are tvs. Came here on a monday night and it was pretty quiet. Sat at the bar and the bartender was very nice and tentative.
We ordered the fried chicken. AMAZING! This is by far the best fried chicken I have ever tasted. It was fried perfectly with honey sauce on the outside and sooo crispy but the inside was very soft, tender and juicy!!! This is a must item, and I would love to come back to eat it again. Also hd the lamb sliders small but very tasty! Each bite was full of flavor of the lamb.

Like ex-​lovers sometimes you forgive and forget and strike up a new dalliance. Came back to Willow Road last night for a 2^nd try and am decidedly glad that I did.
You heard it here first, Willow’s mac n cheese is my newly anointed fave in NYC. Light, lemony, crisp sausage, and fennel pollen? Outrageously good. Everything we ate last night was spot on though and the service was great.
+Crispy skate wing roulade w spring peas!
+Charred bean salad — the bf and I fought over the last bean
+Artichoke fregula sarda — order 2 if you’re smart, thank me later
+Whole red snapper roasted with thyme, orange peel, and bay leaves — genius (and boneless)
+Good brussel sprouts. Crunchy cauliflower pickles for fun.
The panna cotta dessert was the only slight (and I mean slight) miss: over firm but had nice sweetness. But in its defense — the bf who hates panna cotta, took 75% of it down and then scraped the jar longingly in under 2 min. And let’s be honest, like all rekindled loves, there’s always a flaw: sometimes they snore but you overlook it because the rest is pretty damn good.