I had just come across a review for Georgia's Eastside BBQ, and it caught my eye since a) I'm from Georgia, and b) I love BBQ. A few days later, SN and I coincidentally stumbled upon it when looking for a place for dinner in the Lower East Side. It seemed great...a small hole-in-the-wall with 6 or 7 tables, kitchy Southern decorations and blue-checkered tablecloths, and a friendly Southern waitress. Home sweet home!
Unfortunately, that all came to a screeching hault as soon as the food was served. Knock on wood, it's been very rare that I've had an absolutely horrific meal in NYC. I think I can count the number of times in nearly 6 years on one hand. So, when it does happen, I'm always so upset. I thought to myself, "Can I get a do-over?!"
As I was eating the food, and now as I'm writing this post, I wondered how is a possible for a restaurant to get what could be such straightforward food SO wrong. I ordered the BBQ chicken sandwich, and upgraded to the deluxe with fries and coleslaw instead of chips for $3. The chicken was a mixture of dried out white meat with slimy, questionable dark meat. The fries were good, but that was just about the only redeeming thing of the entire meal. The coleslaw was even off...overly peppered and way too much vinegar.
SN ordered the pulled pork dinner that was described on the menu as "seasoned and slow cooked, our pulled pork shoulder recipe is a Southern classic! Always complemented with cool coleslaw and extra BBQ sauce." Now, I don't eat pork, but I took his word for it...it was dry and flavorless, and dousing it in sauce didn't do any good. The dinners come with the choice of two sides, and he picked two of the specials of the day...the green beans and the potato skins. The green beans were mixed with blue cheese, bacon, and almonds. Not my cup of tea, but could be for some. But, they weren't even cooked thoroughly. All of this was bad enough in my book, but the potato skins raised it to a whole new level. The skins were overcooked, then covered in cheese and a few flecks of bacon. To top it off, they were then microwaved to melt the cheese...leaving them chewy and completely inedible.
We ended up complaining about the skins (which she took off the bill), but didn't have it in us to complain about every other aspect about our dishes except the fries. After such a terrible dining experience, I went back online to read some more reviews to see if I was missing something, and could not comprehend what so many people could possibly be raving about. We may not be in the South here, but there are plenty of great BBQ spots in the city that really get it right. Yes, Georgia's Eastside BBQ may be easy on the wallet, but honestly, you couldn't pay me to go back there. As much as I love the NYC restaurant scene, I guess not every dining experience can peachy.
Georgia's Eastside BBQ
192 Orchard Street
b/t Houston & Stanton Streets
website
Menu Pages listing
Unfortunately, that all came to a screeching hault as soon as the food was served. Knock on wood, it's been very rare that I've had an absolutely horrific meal in NYC. I think I can count the number of times in nearly 6 years on one hand. So, when it does happen, I'm always so upset. I thought to myself, "Can I get a do-over?!"
As I was eating the food, and now as I'm writing this post, I wondered how is a possible for a restaurant to get what could be such straightforward food SO wrong. I ordered the BBQ chicken sandwich, and upgraded to the deluxe with fries and coleslaw instead of chips for $3. The chicken was a mixture of dried out white meat with slimy, questionable dark meat. The fries were good, but that was just about the only redeeming thing of the entire meal. The coleslaw was even off...overly peppered and way too much vinegar.
SN ordered the pulled pork dinner that was described on the menu as "seasoned and slow cooked, our pulled pork shoulder recipe is a Southern classic! Always complemented with cool coleslaw and extra BBQ sauce." Now, I don't eat pork, but I took his word for it...it was dry and flavorless, and dousing it in sauce didn't do any good. The dinners come with the choice of two sides, and he picked two of the specials of the day...the green beans and the potato skins. The green beans were mixed with blue cheese, bacon, and almonds. Not my cup of tea, but could be for some. But, they weren't even cooked thoroughly. All of this was bad enough in my book, but the potato skins raised it to a whole new level. The skins were overcooked, then covered in cheese and a few flecks of bacon. To top it off, they were then microwaved to melt the cheese...leaving them chewy and completely inedible.
We ended up complaining about the skins (which she took off the bill), but didn't have it in us to complain about every other aspect about our dishes except the fries. After such a terrible dining experience, I went back online to read some more reviews to see if I was missing something, and could not comprehend what so many people could possibly be raving about. We may not be in the South here, but there are plenty of great BBQ spots in the city that really get it right. Yes, Georgia's Eastside BBQ may be easy on the wallet, but honestly, you couldn't pay me to go back there. As much as I love the NYC restaurant scene, I guess not every dining experience can peachy.
Georgia's Eastside BBQ
192 Orchard Street
b/t Houston & Stanton Streets
website
Menu Pages listing
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