But overall, a lot of people really like this place...
Not bad at all...compared to other restaurants I have posted
Blue Water Grill
Categories:
Seafood,
Sushi Bars
31 Union Sq W(between S Park Ave & 17th St)
New York, NY 10003
Neighborhoods: Union Square, Flatiron
(212) 675-9500
- Nearest Transit Station:
-
14 St. - Union Sq (N, Q, R)Union Sq - 14 St. (L)14 St. - Union Sq (4, 5, 6, 6X)
- Hours:
- Mon 11:30 am - 10 pmTue-Thu 11:30 am - 11 pmFri-Sat 11:30 am - 12 amSun 10:30 am - 10 pm
- Parking:
- Street
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
- $$$
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Classy
- Has TV:
- No
- Caters:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
843 reviews for Blue Water Grill
Review Highlights What's this?
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"The chilean sea bass melts in your mouth like butter." In 71 reviews
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"We got a great table and enjoyed the great live jazz." In 57 reviews
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"Jill had lobster eggs benedict over brioche that looked heavenly." In 185 reviews
Rating Distribution | Trend
843 reviews in English
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Review from Deanna S.
Manhattan, NYThe food is a little overpriced but its still good. I had the union square roll and the shrimp dumplings and I'm still craving it today (a full day after we went).
The Jazz room downstairs is also really quaint. The music adds a nice touch to the ambiance. -
Review from Dianne W.
Manhattan, NYThere are places in the world that are so perfect they feel specifically designed for you, your penchants, your tastes, your whims, your diversions and delights and individual predilections. For me, the Blue Water Grill felt tailored made for all the things I enjoy, namely fine seafood and great music.
Whether it is Chilean sea bass smothered in ginger to caviar made with only the finest sturgeon, every dish exuded class and quality. Frankly, I just wanted to stare at my plate inordinately as the food was gorgeous to behold. I wish I'd fed Instagram that night.
The jazz dining room was enchanting as well. The venue is large and sprawling, but still made the dining experience feel personal and intimate due to the servers' attentiveness and good spirits. There is a sense of great pride at this establishment. The Blue Water Grill is truly representing this city in the best possible way.
Oh, great sushi as well. I will be back soon. The sea bass and I are having separation anxiety. -
Review from Alex B.
Err myy gawd. Haven't reviewed this yet...well. Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in NYC. I love their sea bass. It is the type that melts in your mouth. I know you know what I am talkin about. And if you don't, well all the more reason to get your ass over here. Other features include the seafood tower with a lovely assortment of fresh raw oysters, clams, etc. I have also enjoyed various sushi dishes here. Not the best I have ever had but still quite delightful.
Love the Union Square area as well. One of my favorite qualities of this restaurant is the outdoor seating where you can get some nice peoplewatching in for those walking to and from Union Square. When I have had trouble getting reso's at other area restaurants, BWG has alway come through for me. And to top it off, the live jazz makes it a great date spot or a place to take the family. Love when you can find a place that is good for any occasion. -
Review from James W.
Manhattan, NYGreat place to get your seafood fix. Every time I come here, I end up eating way too many oysters. They have a great selection and will rotate thru different varieties depending on when you go. For my main, I'll go for shrimp tacos or a nice grilled fish which is always well prepared. Great food combined with the Jazz room downstairs, turns it from a good meal to a great dining experience. -
Review from Tanya G.
Edgewater, NJExcellent food and vibe. Definitely recommend -
Review from Ksa S.
Brooklyn, NYI don't usually post on restaurants I don't like (or shall I say like the least). It was the summer of '07 and some friends and I were looking for a great place to eat to show our gratitude to two friends who helped us move in. We ended up here and waited FOREVER for service... The young lady took nearly 30 minutes to bring us water. Um, yeah!!!
We had brunch and I was feeling ill that day and didn't have much to eat. My friends liked their meal but I kept my eye on the service, which was very poor!
I called my mother at the time because I asked to use her AMEX, yes my mom and she gave me the green light. My friend (and I) who was repaying the other friends for helping us saw the bill and quietly gave me the evil eye. It wasn't quite one of those obnoxious instagram snap-shot receipts, but the bill was high, but I expected that.
What I didn't expect was for the waitress to be slow and un-attentive. "Yes, we would like to eat something, we didn't come here for your fabulous tap water." I was so annoyed, I can't even remember what I ordered, but my friends said the eggs benedict was delich!
Yes, my bill buddy and I got in a fight. Really??!! Food is supposed to bring people together, not fight. I left her to hang out with people I knew but she didn't because I was as sick as a dog and was tired of arguing with her.
The waitress' tip was only $4. I don't usually under-tip but she didn't even deserve that.
MOM ALERT!!!
At the end of the month some how she saw the tip amount separate from the bill on her AMEX statement and shamed me for only tipping a meager $4.
My reply: "Mom, you weren't there, the staff was terrible!" -
Review from Greg T.
West Orange, NJThis place has gone down hill in my opinion.
We used to eat here regularly and it has been a steady decline.
Last time in we had food come out cold. Items forgotten. Bland preparations and shoddy service.
This was backed up by the previous visit where nearly the same things happened.
Get your act together BWG, you used to be much, much better. -
Review from Tristyn O.
New York, NYCame here for a dinner w/my boyfriend...the shrimp tacos are AMAZING! They're spicy though so watch out. Service was IMPECCABLE and the venue is beautfiful -
Review from Nicole R.
Lured in by restaurant week, but decided we'd rather order off of the regular menu and skip dessert (which would be the same price). The restaurant itself is quite large, with seating upstairs, outside, and downstairs. We were upstairs, close to the covered outside section which had a nice open feel. It's really the perfect place for any occasion (parents, clients, friends, date). Definitely more on the upscale side of dining, both in terms of atmosphere and price, but not overly stuffy and a safe bet. The menu is varied with raw bar options, sushi, appetizers, traditional sea food entrees, and sides - something for everyone. The service is friendly and relatively attentive given the size of the restaurant. With a menu so large, there are bound to be some winners and some losers, but we must have ordered right because we really enjoyed everything we had.
Tuna tartare: a glass jar layered with avocado and tuna - great flavor, super fresh - came with 4-5 pretty wonton crackers on the side - loved this dish
Shrimp tacos: 3 large soft tacos, lightly battered shrimp, definitely on the spicy side, interesting flavor with the pineapple
Lobster mashed potatoes: a bowl of creamy mashed potatoes, topped with chunks of lobster. simple but delicious
Seabass: i love Asian fusion flavors, especially when it involves sea food. The seabass was perfectly cooked, and the ginger soy marinade worked really given the mild taste of the fish. Came with Chinese broccoli and rice. Loved this dish - was aweome.
No room for dessert but we did also enjoy a bottle of the Pinot Gris. My only other time here was 4 years ago with my dad. I remember enjoying the food quite a lot but we were downstairs and could barely hear each other over the jazz music, so pick wisely where you want to sit. -
Review from Jane R.
This review is more 3.5 but I would maybe come back again.
We had an 8:15 reservation and they were running late. My boyfriend and I were seated at 8:30. The restaurant week menu also featured a $35 bottle of wine of rose, which we ordered.
What we ordered from the RW menu:
Appetizer:
Baby shrimp salad (me) - there were 3 shrimps on the plate on top of green papaya; it was good but very small
Spicy salmon and maki tuna roll (bf) - Wish I got this since it was a much larger portion. Not as spicy as advertised (saying this as someone who can't handle spice)
Entrée
Chicken (me) - I should have gotten the seafood dish but I was so hungry, I wanted more food and knew whatever seafood dish was going to be much smaller. I ate most of dish (which was large with lots of chicken) but it's nothing I would order again. It kinda reminded me of banquet hall food.
Salmon (bf) - This was delicious with it's lemon dressing. I definitely should have ordered this!
Dessert
Upside down fruit cake (me) - it was alright, I finished the whole thing but it's not something I would order again.
Chocolate cheesecake (bf) - Everything is better with chocolate, again should have ordered this.
Obviously my bf won the "who had a better dish?" contest (which yes we do that).
Service was excellent - our waiter was great. However, not too impressed with the hostess staff. Great decor and high ceilings - a favorite of mine. Also, not loving that they have a bathroom attendant - it's just so awkward and that bathroom is just too small. -
Review from Julia B.
Restaurant Week gave us an excuse to have a ladies night out. Apparently, RW also gives our waitress at this classy place an attitude. Look lady, I know it must be annoying to have us regular folk coming in to try the food on a more wallet-friendly menu but don't judge.
My issue with RW is that the menu never shows off the best items but I understand why at the same time. Nevertheless, the Salmon entree I chose had an awesome crispy skin and it was pretty damn good. My key lime shrimp appetizer was ok but not memorable but the triple chocolate cheesecake dessert was a delight. Dessert was definitely the highlight of my meal at Blue Water Grill.
What I loved most about this restaurant was the decor itself. I felt like I was back in the 60's, very Mad Men-esque. It's a huge space, with two floors, high ceilings, dimly lit and just oozes class and sexyiness. Deep inside, I hoped Don Draper would walk in, be a cocky douche and take me home after my meal.
Would I come back for a regular priced meal here? Perhaps. Hopefully this time, without an attitude from the waitress. -
Review from Kristy R.
We recently came here for Restaurant Week as an excuse to 1) eat really good seafood and 2) look pretty. We made a reservation for 8:15 and showed up right on time. The hostess was very nice and said we would have to wait a few minutes. Okay, no big deal. We were seated on the second floor, which overlooks the first floor. The ambiance of this place is great.
Our waitress brought over both the regular dinner menu as well as the RW menu. As she handed them to us, she caught herself saying, "I figured you were her for Restaurant Week". Oh okay, let me take off a star for that. Sorry we were dressed pretty but not pretty enough for your standards. The rest of the meal she was very pleasant but that line left a bad taste in our mouth.
The drink menu is pretty solid and they have a decent wine list. For our apps, 3 of us had the shrimp, and 1 of us had the gazpacho. The shrimp was good and the tomatoes were fresh. I heard the gazpacho was very yummy, as well. We all chose the salmon for our entree. The salmon was cooked to perfection and had the most amazing skin on it. The portion was on the small side and left us wanting more but I've come to learn that nicer restaurants go easy on the food. For dessert, 2 of us had the chocolate cheesecake, while the other two had the upside down cake. The upside down cake was okay and had a pretty good homemade ice cream on top. The cheesecake was a bit too chocolate-y for me and took away from the beauty that is cheesecake.
Our waitress did remember us mentioning it had been someone's birthday so that person's dessert came with a candle on top. Overall, this is a very nice and beautiful restaurant, however, I don't think t's worthy of all the stars it has received. Was the food good? Yes, for the most part. The service was friendly and really fast. The bathrooms are clean but there is only one upstairs. I would try this place out again without it being RW simply because I want to see what else they have to offer. I think they chose some of their least popular items for the RW menu, which is fine but come on. For less than what it would usually cost though, I can't complain. -
Review from Steven W.
3.5 Stars...
I ended up at Blue Water Grill for a last minute lunch to meet a "long lost" relative. While the meeting was special on its own; Blue Water didn't hurt the experience with it's nice interior, friendly staff and better than average food!
It was my first experience at a BR Guest restaurant and I have to say; if the rest are anything like this one, they have a winning formula. The menu is vast and there is something on there for anyone. I also thought the prices were pretty reasonable for the quality of the food and the experience.
The best thing we had was the "Seafood Cobb Salad" I ordered. This was the best Cobb salad I've ever eaten. Take your traditional Cobb, with mixed lettuce, tomato, avocado, bacon and chopped hard boiled eggs and instead of chicken, sub in shrimp, crab meat and scallops! It is a magical blend of ingredients!
The seafood was appropriately cold and had been prepared perfectly. Each item was so fresh on it's own. I couldn't believe how good a fresh scallop is when dropped into a salad like this.
Blue Water is a perfect place to take a large group or friends and family who are picky eaters and just looking for solid, typical food done very well! -
Review from Liza M.
Manhattan, NYwent here for fam anniversary and the food was mediocre nothing special. lobster was over cooked and the crabcake was mediocre and chocolate dessert suck. it's ok for a casual date night -
Review from Camy C.
Shared the chopped salad and had chilean sea bass $38 (yes, it was as amazing as everyone said) as entree.
Chopped salad was blah... it had celery, chick peas, blue cheese, and some other veggies.
The seabass really melted in my mouth. I wasn't a fan of the vinegar sticky rice (like sushi rice) but the sauce by the fish was really tasty. perfect balance of salty/tartness. It's like a decomposed sushi with the pickled ginger on the side and no seaweed.
For dessert. we got the fondue (came with pineapple, apples, and two pieces of brownies and two jello pieces). The chocolate was really good... not too sweet and really rich/smooth. We also got the banana tower. it was only okay for me. It had a crunchy caramel shell with ice cream and banana slices inside.
Because it was my friend's birthday, the waiter was super nice and brought us 2 of the Restaurant Week menu desserts - chocolate cheesecake and upside down pineapple cake. YUMMO!
Service was good - water was constantly filled. They took our pictures when requested. Restaurant was more on the 'romantic' side with it being so dark, but we were loud at times but didn't seem to stand out. -
Review from KB C.
Jersey City, NJThe bisque soup is pretty good and had a quick order of tacos- all good.
The ambiance is nice as well- and of course there's a park right down the street for an after meal walk. -
Review from Lisa M.
Manhattan, NYHad dinner here last night, seafood tower, filet and sea bass, everything was amaaaaazing! -
Review from Alyssa P.
When I heard we were going to the Blue Water Grill I was not excited. See, I'm not a fish person. I can name about 3 or 4 water animals that I actually enjoy. Not to worry though, many seafood stops offer up chicken dishes, and that's exactly what I got.
You may ask- who goes to lunch at a seafood/sushi place an orders a chicken salad? This gal does. And I'm glad I did- because today's lunch was delish.
The Grilled Chicken Cobb, while a bit small for $16, was really tasty. Crisp Romain, little bites of chicken and bacon, an entire boiled egg, and about half of an avocado. I opted to try their champagne vinaigrette instead of the recommended sherry. Champagne vinaigrette = tangy and sweet and so good. Separately the ingredients just made up a typical salad- but toss it in that vinaigrette and it totally transforms.
And this will sound a little funny- but indulge in a roll from the basket they leave on the table. Baked soft and topped with a sprinkle of sea salt- they were awesome. And perfect with a little whipped butter or to soak up a little bit of lobster bisque.
For dessert I had a beautiful bowl of sorbets. The order comes with one scoop of each of the following: white peach, pineapple and lychee ($6). Pineapple and peach were the winners for me. Lychee is (in my opinion) and acquired taste. I'm not there yet.
Also got to try the chocolate chip cookies ($6 for 4). Good cookie to chocolate ratio but the cookies were a bit crumbly. Bummer.
The restaurant is beautiful & has a cool old club type of vibe. Service was great, our waitress was engaging and fun and was awesome with refills and such. Overall great visit to the Blue Water. -
Review from Shannon N.
Manhattan, NYThis place is a little dear to my heart. Blue Water Grill was one of my first New York City experiences. When I was 17, before having moved to the city, my aunt took my friend and I to this restaurant and I, being a simple farm girl from a small town, DIED. Simply died. The staff made me feel like royalty...or at least someone very important. My friend leaned over to me and said, "You know these guys are professionals. They take their job seriously." The staff was indeed, impeccable and very attentive.
The food, although pricey, was mouth-watering. It was also my first experience tasting sushi, and now of course, I am a sushi fanatic. Excellent seafood all around.
I remember being quite full by the end of the evening and I sat there taking in the ambiance. The room was a perfect temperature for a muggy August day, everything was clean, and it had just the right amount of people in it. There was soft jazz playing in the background. It certainly was not my last time dining there.
I suggest coming here to impress and out of town guests or for a date. It is also fairly easy to make reservations, even if it is last minute. -
Review from Sophie P.
Boston, MAA friend and I ate at Blue Water Grill for the first time for NYC Restaurant Week. We booked the Jazz Room, a separate dining area in the basement with a live jazz band and romantic ambiance.
The menu was a standard seafood menu. I ordered:
Yellowtail tuna roll
Salmon
Triple Chocolate Cheesecake
The tuna roll was okay - nothing special. The fish was good, but the ratio of rice to fish was 3-1 so I couldn't taste the tuna that much.
Salmon - I asked for medium, but it came medium-well. I still enjoyed it though, and the presentation was beautiful.
I was going to order the upside down cake with berry ice cream, but instead went with the triple chocolate cheesecake. My friend ordered the upside down cake and I definitely recommend that. It was crunchy, light, and the berry ice cream added a perfect ending to the meal.
The triple chocolate cheesecake was obviously chocolate-y, but it didn't really taste like cheesecake. It's definitely for chocolate lovers - it was rich in flavor and the texture was so smooth. But after eating 2 courses I definitely wanted a light dessert so I liked the upside down cake better. The presentation of both the desserts was amazing and beautiful.
The main aspect of the restaurant that would bring me back is the Jazz Room. If you can book a reservation there, definitely do so! We sat right in front of the jazz band, which included a piano, trumpet, cello, and drums. The pianist sang with the band on some songs, and her voice was amazing and made me fall in love with jazz music.
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