On Greene Street, between Prince and Spring St., is a pretty popular restaurant known as SoHo Kitchen & Bar (SKB). Upon entering, you will immediately be impressed by their enormous bar, which lies in the middle of this expansive restaurant. This oaken bar is impressively equipped with an estimated 100 beer taps, though they may not all have been tapped. The rest of the room is also oaken, somewhat dimly lit, and suggests a yuppie, but unpretentious restaurant, very similar to popular family restaurants such as Bennigan's or TGI Friday.

On any weekday, a party of any size can be seated immediately (we had 7 people). On a weekend, larger parties wait about 30 to 40 minutes, while smaller parties would be seated within 20 minutes. When you sit down, you will be presented with a very impressive drink list. You will be presented with over 100 beers: domestic, imported, and other specialty beers. Each pint or bottle costs around $5. The wine list is almost as impressive, each categorized by region. Glasses range from $5 to $11. Given the number of choices, you are best to yield to your waitperson to recommend a beverage. Most are very knowledgeable and should enlighten you.

However, the food portion of the menu is not nearly as impressive as the beverage list. The menu offers a limited supply of Americana fare: burgers and pasta. Each of these entrees run about $10, and taste about as good as you would expect food to taste at a 3-star restaurant. Dessert is rather uninventive as well: apple pie, chocolate cake, or ice cream. I ordered the apple pie, which tasted fine, but its taste is not anything I would consider truly memorable. Overall, I would apply this description to all of the dishes at SKB. Nothing they make is pitiful, but none of it will make a lasting impression on you either.

In terms of service, I was quite pleased. In addition to my waitress' knowledge of beers I was very impressed by her prompt and courteous service. While inexplicable with exact numbers, something about the timing in which she brought on beverages, entrees, desserts, and the bill just seemed to be in sync with our party's timing. While I don't expect this to happen on the busiest of nights, this made the environment seem all the friendlier to us. In addition, because of the overall modesty of the oaken decor, the waitress exuded genuine interest in our well-being with no sign of ingenuousness or pretentiousness.

Overall, this restaurant is best suited for 20-somethings to gather and have a relaxing meal. Each person will probably pay between $20 to $30. While the quality of the meal may not justify this price, you'll find that the ambience is very relaxing, and doesn't require you to put up the typical "New York facade" common among the more upscale restaurants.



Recommended: Yes