VBar&cafe

Ordered a drink. Sat with friends for 10 mins and were told that everyone had to order to be seated. It was the weirdest experience in the city. Don’t even get few minutes to gather breath! My friends were here on a vacation and were just thinking of ordering but after that statement we just left. Never had this experience in the city but there is always a first time.

Vbar&Café was a stumble upon stop thanks to my agitated and thirsty Mother and Unilocal.She clearly was done with my walking, shopping and talking and, therefore, requested wine. It was more like CARRIE I WANT/​NEED WINE. Without hesitance I whipped out my iphone that has the magical app called – Unilocal.If you don’t have it, get it. If you have it, add me and enjoy my spits of wisdom and rants. I promise you’ll enjoy my excerpts just as much as I adore crafting them. Anyways… Back to this adorable finding of mine. This wine bar that they call Vbar& Café is quite the find. Owned by someone who has a fetish for what looks like voodoo art and/​or African themes. My kind of person – I have an obsession with voodoo and magic yet I have no idea why. When I looked the bar up online they actually mention Karma, however, in a total different context than what I imagined. The bar offers a «Karma Board.» This board allows you to gift someone with store credit/​karma credit which they will find next time they visit the bar, and hopefully they continue the deed. The original board which has become a local’s favorite, was the subject of a research conducted by students at NYU. Super cool, right?! Who doesn’t like doing a good deed especially when it has to do with WINE?!
Wine Talk…
Vbar& Café offers a rotating selection of over thirty wines from around the world, many of them organic and by the glass. My Mom and I purchased a bottle of white wine crafted in New York State – Can’t remember what it was because I FORGOT to take a picture of the label…
If you would like to take a gander at the wine bar, please go to 225 Sullivan Street and tell them I sent you!

Good coffee, horrible service. We were kicked out when we still had coffee in our cups and there were two available seats by the incredibly rude waiter who said «if you aren’t ordering food, please leave.» what a jerk.

Great strong cup of coffee. Awesome spot to do some light work since it is pretty quiet in there. Everyone seems to respect the fact that many are doing work in the café. Chairs are not the best for sitting for long periods of time, but definitely a great spot to chill and enjoy a great drink!

No computers after 6:30 is a dumb rule – apparently it’s highly offensive to the other 10 people who are here having their own conversations? But if you need a rule like that to achieve whatever sort of «atmosphere» this is supposed to be, post it or say something before I order.

The atmosphere looks good, BUT the employees are super unfriendly.
I just wanted to go there with a friend to have a nice chat over a coffee. Guess what happened! My friend does not drink coffee, so only I ordered a drink. The barista said he cannot stay if he does not order anything. WTF. I have to sit there alone to drink my coffee? This is unbelievable. DO NOT GO THERE

No espresso, hardly anything on the menu was available. I came with a friend and got coffee for myself. When it was time for my friend to order everything he asked for they were out of. When he decided he just wanted water the barista said he couldn’t stay unless he ordered something.
Unacceptable service, will not be returning.

Good, cozy meeting place for a drink or coffee in the area. Pretty relaxed atmosphere, limited seating.

The epitome of the «cozy wine bar». Small nook of a place with a long table, a couple more intimate tables, and bar seating. Menu is tiny, but it’s exactly as described — wine/​beer/​coffee with baked goods served.
Happy hour here is pretty sweet — with $ 6 house wine being the best bargain. My most recent trip brought me in for lunch. Got a croissant warmed up ($ 3), a bowl of nuts ($ 5), and a glass of the house red ($ 8). Amazingly chill and comfortable place in the afternoon, as I enjoyed my meal with no disruption.
Solid tunes playing from the corners and attentive service really makes this a go-​to spot. Though can get really crowded, so you might have to find a different bar to go to at night.

Bartender needs a lesson in BASIC etiquette… At the very least, he’s cost Vbar our custom.
Some friends and I popped by the Vbar & Café for a few beers. On arrival, The bartender was not particularly welcoming, he did not smile or attempt to build a rapport with us. Nor was he a particularly great bartender, it took him three attempts to pour a good pint– he probably wasted a pint to pour a pint.
At the time this did not bother me; the bar was comfortable and cosy and the crowed were pleasant and talkative. I was having a pleasant time, and his service had not added or subtracted from that.
I paid the price given and rejoined my friends. I am not from the states so I’m not really on top of the tipping culture, but even if I had known I still would not have tipped– there was nothing special or above avarage about the way my order was executed. Again, not even a smile.
About half an hour later the bar tender came to our table… He asked where I was from and I answered. He then proceeded to tell me how not tipping him was disrespectful and how I better remember to tip my waiter in future, and that I must never give the amount asked for.
Not only was his outburst immature and disrespectful, it was unprofessional. Everyone at the table felt uncomfortable. We had planned to buy at least another two rounds– more than enough time to work on cracking a smile and building a rapport. However, after being chastised by the bar tender we decided to leave.
No matter what the issue, where possible you should find a respectful way to raise it with your customers. Tip: a more appropriate question would have been to ask if I was happy with your service.
Good service = a tip. It is not an entitlement.

Came here on Sunday night anticipating having a banana pudding, but the waiter said that they can’t do it because it’s only for take-​out… Difficult to imagine why you wouldn’t bring the dessert that the client wanted… We decided to leave and they didn’t even try to fix the problem somehow

The V-​Bar is a great value. It is warm and cozy and quiet.
The staff are welcoming, respect your space and desire for solitude,
and prepare your coffee and «bite to eat» with care and ingredients that make everything well worth the reasonable price charged. Love this place.

So in reading the other reviews apparently I’m not the only one that was at the mercy of the horrible bartender, and I’m here to echo all those before me: STAY AWAY.
Walking by looking for a place to have a drink ($ 4 happy hour drafts), and this place looked cute and cozy. There were 3 of us and we took a high table by the window. Nice ambiance, and we enjoyed ourselves until one of us had to leave. Within minutes the bartender came up to us and asked us if we were waiting for someone else and how long they were going to take because that table was reserved for 3 or more. There were tons of open tables around us and it was completely unnecessary to come over like that. If it got crowded, of course we would have moved to a smaller table or the bar.
Then he asked my friend if he could get him something, since he had just finished his drink, heavily implying that he better damn well order something else. My friend ordered a beer and went up to the bar after a bit to get it. He accidentally left his wallet on the table and only had enough for the drink. He came back to get money for the tip and said that the bartender refused to give him his drink without tipping. (He planned to come back and tip him anyway, but that is completely out of line to refuse.) The bartender also kept berating him saying, «I don’t know where you’re from, but we tip in this country.» My friend is from Brooklyn and has lived in NY his entire life (with the accent to prove it, so clearly the joke was on the bartender if he couldn’t figure that out).
We downed our beers and left immediately, even though we were planning on having another friend meet us later. A clear example of how a total a$$hole bartender made VBar miss out on customers ready to drink the night away. I hope they fire this guy, but it doesn’t seem likely if the owner is also a jerk.

Great beer selection. Greater vibes.

Fascinating spread of reviews. I’ve been going here since 2011 or so and love the space.
In the day, it’s quiet with coffee and drinks and lots of people on laptops.
In the night, its dark and intimate just with drinks.
The low reviewers on this seem to have had issues with the staff. I’m not a «regular» or particularly close to any, but they’ve always treated me well.

Unfortunately, there is no coffee here from 6pm on.
Literally, the sole worker there sited that «it doesn’t make us any money» as I was literally begging to over pay for a late night cup. He uncorks bottles of wine, and pulls beer tap to make a contribution to nyc.
You should be warned, the man working tonight, ⁹⁄₁₉ Saturday night, is the worst.
Zero respect for women or people, I’m just not sure if it’s one or the other because I happen to be both.
Everything I never need all in 30 square feet of mismatched rustic wholesale décor.

I purchased a drink from this establishment. A bug flew into it before I was halfway done. And the bartender/​manager, Azizu (sp), refused to offer a refill and in fact told me that I was not «entitled» to one. When I simply brought the drink to let him know what had happened and see if it was possible to receive a refill. Very rude and unnecessary.

I went in to work here and got an orange juice ($ 5 yikes) and when I finished my glass, the woman behind the counter came up to me and said, «If you’re not going to order anything more, I’m going to ask you to leave because you’re taking up a seat.» Double yikes! Other seats around me were open! That’s never happened to me at another coffee shop. I recently moved in across the street and plan to never visit this place again — thanks VBar, you just lost out on a potential loyal customer.

Love the relaxed ambience. Good selection of wines and beer. Great place to hang out and catch up with a friend. Music is nice and at appropriate volume to allow for conversations.

I have only come here during the day, but it is a great spot to study or do a bit of reading. The chai lattes are delicious and not too crowded during the day. It gives off a cozy vibe.

The boyfriend and I stopped by here after walking around Washington Square park and I’m so glad we did! We were looking for a coffee shop to sit and relax in, and we ran into Vbar (thanks Unilocal!). The sign in the front of the shop said productivity in the morning, promiscuity in the evening. Clearly intrigued, we walked in, and discovered it was both a coffee shop, with tons of pastries and caffeinated drinks, along with a bar, with beers on tap and a large selection of wines — talk about heaven?
We ordered two glasses of wine — Sauvignon Blanc & Riesling — and were pleased with both of them (reasonable prices too, ~$ 11 per glass). It was a small, cozy ambiance, with a mixture of individuals either working, eating, or chatting like we were. It was a perfect stop in the middle of our day to wind down before dinner.
Definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area!

Okay — truly the horrible bartender at this Vbar has inspired me to FINALLY create a Unilocal account and give a review.
Let me first say that I adore Vbar on 1^st Ave and St. Marks. My favorite waitress in the whole world is there — the woman with the long dark braid who knows everything and remembers my group of friends every time we walk in. She’s brutally honest and incredible at her job.
Tonight I went to the Vbar on Sullivan street for the first time, as a pre-​birthday get together with my friends. The space is adorable, I love the communal bar-​table and the ambiance.
The bartender who was working (late 20s? Shot dark hair, wearing a light blue t-​shirt with a UK flag on it, pretentious brooklyn hipster entitled guy vibe) was immediately rude. I waited for my friend, who arrived about 5 minutes after I got there. He stood behind the bar and yelled, «Hey — you gonna order anything?» I smiled, apologized, and told him we were waiting for one more, and he rolled his eyes.
I’m a young woman, and he treated me like a child when I went up to order the Lagunitas IPA. He said they were out and that they had Goose Island, followed with, «Do you even know what an IPA is?» Yes, thanks, I ordered an IPA, I know what I like, I know what an IPA is.
Our friend who arrived late went to the bar to order, and came back shaken. The bartender gave her a cider (after belittling her for asking if they had a draught version) and she paid in exact change, $ 6, because that’s what was in her pocket. As she was digging through her purse to find an extra dollar to tip, he snapped at her, «You know bartenders don’t make an hourly wage, right?»
I’ve worked in the service industry for six years now, and am absolutely appalled that anyone would think it was appropriate to snap at a customer for not tipping. Especially when she was still standing at the bar, with her drink, clearly looking for something in her purse.
He continued to be horrible for the remainder of the evening. He was clearly in a bad mood, did not want to deal with customers, and was resentful of every person in the bar. He took our glasses when they weren’t empty and rolled his eyes when I asked for the check.
Please don’t employ bartenders who snap at customers and act entitled and rude. I’m not coming back to Vbar on Sullivan, even though I loved the vibe and the menu, because of this particularly terrible bartender. I’m sorry I tipped at all.
2 stars only because I like the place, but wow the service killed it. I’ve never felt less welcome in a bar.

Decent food, had the steak and arugula sandwich which was not bad and tried the burger which was a little too tangy for my taste. Overall it was a decent place but nothing too great.

Pretty good bar with good selection of wines.

It is TINY. Seriously. Not a bad place for a conversation but it’s miniscule so if it’s crowded, you may not get a place to sit.

WORST experience ever in a bar in New York City (and that’s saying a lot — I’m a native New Yorker).
I went with a friend who actually tried the place and texted me to come by (said it was cute and friendly).
Well, all was well for a while. We sat in the corner of the bar and enjoyed drinks and a cheese plate (it’s a small but cozy place).
Suddenly, a man squeezes in behind me and shoves our coats to one side of the window (where they were resting) — basically, he pushed himself into our space and handled our belongings VERY disrespectfully. We were shocked and annoyed but laughed it off to each other. The man actually then tried to ask what we were laughing about defensively and demanded to know my name. WHAT??? I told him to NOT mess with me and to just continue socializing with his friend (who was with him) because I was not interested in having words with someone over something so silly (or period). Plus, he was a man and I’m a woman. I found it very uncomfortable. But he kept demanding to know my name (as if).
Turns out it was THE OWNER OF THE BAR. He was HORRIBLE to us and the bartender (who was quite lovely and friendly before this) suddenly became very UNfriendly and said, «He’s the owner. Don’t you know who he is. You’re out of line.»
They were both disgustingly rude and obnoxious. It was almost comical. Why would you disrespect people who are paying for a service in your bar and who had been there for almost two hours having a lovely time?
I heard from two other friends that they would never go there again because they had bad experiences. Wish I had heard about this before going.
My friend and I left and went to another bar (there are hundreds of them in the Village!) and had a great time (and I didn’t have to worry about being attacked by the owner of the other bar).
STAY AWAY or take your chances. But you’ve been warned.

This little bar is adorable. It looks like it is owned by someone who loves voodoo art and wine. The wine selection is great and the prices are totally reasonable. They have no kitchen, however, make paninis, salads and small plates such as pastries and desserts. My mother and I needed some liquid courage to shop so we bought a bottle of wine and a bagel. Our bill came to $ 40.00. The surrounding customers were college students all studying and talking quietly. The bar is known for being a quiet atmosphere and serving Brooklyn beer. If this was near the college I went to in the city (FIT) then I would have had wine every night while studying!