Bubby's — Restaurant in New York

Worms in my food!

I had a truly disturbing experience at this restaurant today. While eating, I discovered worms in the strawberry compote that came with my pancakes. At first, I was in shock — I did a double take just to be sure. But yes, they were worms. You could see the small black dot at the tip and the beige body. I immediately felt sick to my stomach.

I flagged down a waiter, who looked at them and quickly brought over my assigned waitress. She saw the worms and said, “Oh my God, I am so sorry,” before taking the plate to show the manager. I was trying not to be sick at the table and rushed to the bathroom, but on my way there, I saw the manager clearly looking at the worms on the plate.

When I returned, the waitress told me one dish would be removed from the bill. That’s it. The manager never came over to check on me, apologize, or even acknowledge what had happened. I had to ask for him to come speak to me.

When he finally did, I asked him directly if he had seen the worms. He avoided answering and seemed hesitant — likely trying not to admit anything. He said, “I believe you, that’s why I took it off the bill,” and added that the compote is cooked at high temperatures, so anything in there would be “completely dead” and wouldn’t cause illness.

That response was deeply disappointing. Rather than taking accountability, he was evasive — trying to downplay the situation despite having seen the worms with his own eyes. It felt like he was more concerned about liability than doing the right thing.

I had also ordered mac and cheese, which I didn’t touch. When he saw that, he said, “I see you didn’t eat that,” and I explained that my appetite was gone. He agreed that the experience would do that and said he would remove that item as well.

Just to be clear: I had ordered the strawberry compote on the side, which is likely why I even noticed the worms. Had it been covered with the cream they usually add, I might have eaten it without knowing. Even more alarming — after this happened, I saw several tables served the same pancakes with that same compote, with no interruption in service or investigation in front of customers.

What should have happened: – The manager should have come over immediately to apologize – He should have acknowledged the seriousness of the food safety issue – Steps should have been taken to stop service of the compote until it could be inspected – I should have been reassured that staff would be informed and measures would be taken

Instead, I was left feeling dismissed and ignored in a situation that was both traumatizing and unsanitary.

I will not be returning, and I strongly urge others to think twice before...

I had high hopes for brunch at Bubby’s, but unfortunately, the experience was quite disappointing from the start. We arrived on time - actually a few minutes early - for our 11 a.m. reservation. When we entered the restaurant to check in, a front-of-house staff member told us we weren’t allowed to stand inside and asked us to wait outside. We explained that we had a reservation and didn’t think we needed to wait with the walk-in line, but instead of assisting us, she pointed us to a random area outside and told us to wait there. She never returned to follow up.

After about 15 minutes of being ignored while she continued to help walk-ins, I went back inside, visibly unimpressed. A different staff member finally acknowledged our reservation and checked us in properly, directing us to wait inside - exactly where we were initially told not to stand. After a few more minutes, someone else finally showed us to our table.

The restaurant was extremely packed so much so that the table needs to be pulled out for you to sit (I don’t know if this is normal in NYC). It was loud and I could barely my friend who was sitting across from me. Our server was polite and took our drink order (we both asked for peach lemonade), but we received pink lemonade instead. Given how busy and loud it was, we let it slide.

For food, we ordered pancakes, a crab sandwich, and crab Benedict. Only the pancakes and one crab sandwich arrived initially. About 20 minutes later, a second crab sandwich showed up, which we never ordered. After speaking with our waiter, the incorrect dish was removed and the Crab Benedict eventually came out approx. 15 minutes later.

Unfortunately, the food was underwhelming. I love crab, but I did NOT enjoy either the sandwich or the eggs Benedict, they had a strange tart after taste. My friend, on the other hand, really enjoyed the pancakes - they were fluffy and well-made.

Overall, this experience left a lot to be desired. While our waiter did make an effort to fix the mistakes, and the staff member who finally seated us was kind, the disorganisation, lack of communication, and poor handling by the front-of-house team really brought down the entire visit. I’m giving two stars only because of those two staff members and the pancakes (you can find better elsewhere) - but otherwise, I wouldn’t recommend it based on...

SKIP this place and go straight to GOLDEN DINER where the food is absolutely delicious, well priced and service is exceptional. Wasted my time at this restaurant to be served, what look like slop. Ordered the Abe Lincoln Breakfast (eggs, home fries, grits, bacon and some piece of sausage.) The home fries included onions, which I did not know as there are no detailed descriptions for any of the meals.on the menu. I do not eat onions so I asked if I could have fries as an alternative. I was told yes, for $7.00. I advised I did not want to pay for an alternative being that the necessary information was not available for the customer to make an informed a decision. The response given was that "everybody likes their home fries." "All home fries come with onions" along with other statements that were completely unprofessional. The waiter requested the "manager" visit the table who was no better and of no assistance. Advised that fries are reserved for lunch and diner time. I advised at that point, I did not want either. Also advised that the pancakes were cooked ahead of time and barely warmed prior to serving. No comparison at all to the HOT, buttery, decadent Golden Diner pancakes. The only edible items on the plate were the eggs and the bacon. My total bill came to $59.89 which covered the Abe Breakfast -$26.00, Tomato soup and grilled cheese (daughter's meal) -$22.00 and OJ- $7.00. Paid the bill and left ZERO tip. Then proceeded straight to GOLDEN DINER, for the second time during my visit to the big city. My party and I were able to get a lovely seat outside right away to indulge in those Golden Pancakes AGAIN!!!! Experience with Bubby's 0 out of 10, would NOT recommend.

Recommendations to the restaurant- -drop the defensive attitudes. -provide TRUE customer service. -don't try to talk about me as a customer after I leave the building to my daughter's. Did you not know they were my children and were NEVER going to side with you or go for you talking about me outside of my presence? -own your mistakes and move forward. That is how professional adults move. -add descriptions to your menu so the customer can be truly informed. -your prices are not worth the quality of food you are serving. -take tips out of Golden...