Common Ground Bar — Restaurant in New York

I arrived at Common Ground around 6:30pm and just came out of work and wanted a quick bite/drink. I asked the manager if there was a spot for me and was told there was a 1 hour wait time to sit inside or I could be sat outside on the white round tables. I chose to sit outside because I knew I wouldn’t be there very long. I was handed a menu and waited nearly 15 minutes for someone to come and take my order. If I did not wave down the manager, I don’t think anyone would have came over to take my order. I also noticed a few servers on their phones right at the entrance while I was waiting to be helped.

I ordered a glass of wine and that took even longer to get to me. At that point I was preparing to leave when a different server asked me for my drink order when I already placed it. A few moments later I was told by the server that she could sit me inside. When I was seated I noticed it wasn’t busy at all and there were PLENTY of empty tables and was wondering why I was sat outside in the first place.

All I wanted was a quick bite and a drink after a long day at work and I lost my appetite after waiting so long for a simple glass of wine that wasn’t even filled half way. I was at Common Ground a few weeks ago for my friends birthday and had a great time with friends but I’m not sure what happened today. It seemed like the manager did not want to seat me from the moment I arrived. I was treated very poorly and will not...

Took the girlfriend for some lunchtime service today. Place has a cool atmosphere to it and the staff were friendly. That's about where the positives end. Granted, it definitely has a bar/lounge first, restaurant second feel to it, but service was very slow overall. Our server assumed we were only getting drinks at 2pm on a Thursday and tried to take our menus. We would have empty drinks sitting near the edge of the table for nearly 10 minutes before we would receive any attention. Waiting for the check took about 20 minutes. For the beginning half of our visit we were one of only a few customers in the place.

Prices felt average for the city. Ordered a burger and fries, the fries were delicious but the burger reminded me of school cafeteria food. Tasted of very cheap beef. The kitchen forgot to add bacon to the chicken bacon ranch sliders my girlfriend ordered, but that was eventually remedied by our server. She never saw the extra ranch cup she asked for, but she enjoyed the sliders once they had all their ingredients.

Also, warning to anyone who notices the promotion put on by the Whitney museum nearby that advertises a 20% discount to same-day Whitney ticket holders for Common Ground food and drink: the manager on duty refused to honor the discount. Unsure if the Whitney website is outdated or they were taking advantage of a...

Disclaimer: Contrary to a recent TikToker…as a woman of color I have had nothing but an extremely positive experience at common ground. I've been here SEVERAL times. Me and all of my friends are Black/Haitian and we’ve never had ANY issues getting into common ground. The only times we've had issues getting in is when it's too crowded and we are physically unable to, that is just how NYC nightlife is. You have to get there before a certain time or else it is very hard to get in without a reservation, especially on weekends!

And it’s a shame that due to ONE very vague TikTok video, people who haven’t even been to the bar nor had a genuine experience at Common Ground are now leaving negative reviews to try and bring down ratings.

Common Ground is by far my FAVORITE bar in the city. It definitely stands out to me among other bars in the city for a few reasons: Very friendly staff and bouncers, 23+ age group, great music and djs that gives off a fun college bar feel but everybody is in their mid to late 20’s. While it does get crowded on weekends, it’s important to show up before 10:30, as you’ll have an easier time getting in. However, couldn’t recommend this bar enough to people. Don’t know a bar in the city quite like common ground! Big fan over here, and they are VERY...