Croxley's Ales

Croxley's AlesCroxley's Ales
Croxley's AlesCroxley's Ales
Bar, Eatery

28 Avenue B
New York, New York, 10009-8417
United States

// CLOSED //
PLACE STATS
Average:
3.68
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
16
pDev:
11.14%
View: Place Reviews
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Ratings by ChowHound:
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Reviewed by ChowHound from New York

3.18/5  rDev -13.6%
vibe: 4.5 | quality: 3 | service: 2.5 | selection: 4 | food: 2
Several friends and I had the opportunity to visit the East Village last night and we stumbled upon this place on Avenue B. The design is quite beautiful. Old Irish style meets modernity here with hard wood floors, a long fiberglass bar, hanging chandeliers and a small restaurant of booths in the back. Quite impressive overall, and when we were lead to their covered garden we were quite blown away by the heating unit which keeps this tarp-covered enclave warm during the cold winter months. Service was remarkably slow and unfriendly overall. Finally, we ordered the beer. The Rogue came to us tepid and flat, so we sent it back. The Paulaner Pilsner wasn't any better. While the selection was big, it wasn't nearly as impressive as a couple of other places I have visited recently, and the quality really was wanting. I suspect their crowd doesn't regularly consume the more interesting brews from what I saw of Amstel and Stella flowing about. We were beginning to be really sorry we chose this place, and then the food arrived. Uninspired, boring and obviously thawed and cooked from frozen, mass-produced origins. One hates to be this negative, but I believe it is my duty to inform the beer loving public that this place needs work.
Feb 12, 2005
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 2.8 by biegaman from Canada (ON)

Apr 12, 2016
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Reviewed by wimteiss from New York

3.3/5  rDev -10.3%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3 | selection: 4 | food: 3.5
Sports bar in the East Village. There's like 45 TV's all over the place, so it's always exciting. The food is surprisingly good, and reasonably priced. The staff is very friendly, but far more service oriented than knowledgable (not that this is at all a bad thing). The beer selection is hard to beat. I think there are about 30 taps, and there has to be around 100 bottles. Good specials. Get the wings. They're really good. This place is huge, and has recently expanded. I've been to the others, and this is my favorite.
Jul 12, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by banger7 from California

May 31, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by vfgccp from New York

Feb 08, 2014
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Reviewed by clayrock81 from Florida

3.88/5  rDev +5.4%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 3.5 | food: 4
More sports/wing bar than necessarily beer bar, they have a large number of bottles but it is nothing that most beer geeks haven't already had. However, it was nice being able to come in and enjoy 20 cent wings and watch a little football on Sunday afternoon. Small space and gets crowded but they turn tables over quickly and must have about 10 fryers as they turn out the massive wing orders extremely quick and while nothing spectacular they are some real good wings. Come in for some wings and sports and even though there's no diamonds in the rough you're sure to find an ale you enjoy from the 100+ bottles they have.
Oct 13, 2009
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Reviewed by Nickls from District of Columbia

3.64/5  rDev -1.1%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4
(From notes)

Stopped in on a Saturday afternoon, and not too many people in the joint. Unfortunately, their beer garden area was not yet operational.

The atmosphere is not all that great, but not bad. Seemed like a sports bar with decent brews. Not terrible or anything, but pretty standard bar feel to the place, and wouldn't stand out in a crowd.

Pretty solid draft list, but by no means extraordinary. Some Smutty, Sierra Nevada, Stone, Sixpoint, DFH 60, and Lagunitas IPA, and Brooklyn Lager to rounds things out. Not a shabby bottle list, but nothing one would consider rare.

Service was just OK, took a minute to get a refill. Thing that bugged me is that we had an overly chatty bartender....usually this isn't a problem but this took away from the experience in this case.

With so many other really great bars in the immediate vicinity, I just wouldn't see myself coming here often. Just OK place, and might be a happy medium for those folks with non-BA friends that want a sports bar type of place to venture toward.
May 12, 2009
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Reviewed by BucBasil from Rwanda

3.58/5  rDev -2.7%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 5
Atmosphere: I'm glad I arrived here earleier than normal, because the place became packed about an hour after I got there. The place is a kind of narrowm trendy sort of place with some small tables and booths, but focusing on their bar, which was packed. Classy-looking place at least...

Quality: Proper glassware was observed. The waitress was great, and recommended a beer to me to go with the 10cent wings I was ordering.

Service: I never had to wait an extended amount of time to order a new beer at my table. The waitress was attentive and knowledgeable.

Selection. About 15 taps to choose from, as well as a cask selection. There was a "beer of the day" that they were pushing. It was pretty good.

Food: I came for the 10cent wings, and they were some of the best wings I've ever had. You need to come here when they have this deal. It's a can't miss. Amazing food all around...
Apr 05, 2008
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.28/5  rDev -10.9%
vibe: 3 | quality: 3.5 | service: 3 | selection: 3.5 | food: 3
Croxley Ales Manhattan is basically a meathead frat bar unless you go on a weeknight. Do NOT go on a weekend unless you want to have beer spilled on you, or possibly have some drunk A-hole spew vomit in your direction. Crowded beyond belief. In fact, I should call the fire marshall right now because I can almost guarantee you that they're over limit on any given Saturday.

That said, pretty decent tap selection - which is great for many reasons, but mostly because it's getting the younger chicks and meatballs to drink good stuff.

As far as a visit goes, I'd put this at the bottom of your list. There are just so many other good places around that it's not worth it. It's not pretty; the beer selection is just on par with other places within Manhattan walking distance; and the food is average at best.
Jan 15, 2008
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Reviewed by rousee from Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +8.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Checked this place out a few weeks ago when I was in Manhattan. This neighborhood is definitely a lot nicer than it used to be around here. I guess I hadn't been over to this area in a good 10 years.

You walk in are greeted by lots of dark black and brown wood tones. Lots of fresh looking finish to everything and seeming pretty clean and new. I was actually carded coming in here and this was the day after my 40th birthday which seemed like sort of a rarity in NYC. I thought I was back home again for a minute.

The 15 or so seat bar is off to the right when you walk in. More dark woods decor-wise . The beer selection was decent but nothing that would blow you away. They had some Southampton and Six Point as well as Victory and I think a Lagunitas on tap. The bottle selection was pretty good too and I believe the prices were fairly standard at around 5 bucks a pint.

The service was friendly and quick and it does seem like a pretty friendly place. I would recommend it --especially if in the neighborhood.
Mar 25, 2007
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Reviewed by Billolick from New York

3.66/5  rDev -0.5%
vibe: 3.5 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 3.5
Far east village, NYC location, pretty crowded with tame couples and after work looking guys,when I visited late nite thursday, nice enuf room with the bar to the right as you enter, and tables up front and a bunch of tables for eating in the rear. Dark wood (black?) all over, nicely done. In my opinion, the beer here is pretty dull and middle of the road in nature. You'll find pleanty of worthy suds, but don't go for anything out of the ordinary chioices you'll be able to find in a zillion beer places in the area. Blue Point, Bklyn, SNPA were the highlights when I visited, then you can move onto to the Guiness, Stella, and friends. For a more interesting beer experience, the obvious neighborhood choice is DBA.
Jul 03, 2006
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Reviewed by twilight from Germany

3.78/5  rDev +2.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 3.5 | selection: 4 | food: 3
We rounded out our night at Croxley's so my dear departing friend could get some Hoegaarden in her system. [Rant about 250mL Hoegaarden glasses deleted]

The interior of the bar was nice, dark and with three bathrooms, which I visited often during the night. There's a nice detail on the benches where they have small crosses cut out of the backs, so it kind of reminds me of pews. There is a huge selection of beers, both in draft, which were merely average on the beer geek scale, and bottles, which were more impressive. I had a Lagunitas Censored (great), Ommegang Abbey Ale (great) and a La Chouffe (Mysterious and Delish).

The service was pretty good, at first we were told tables were food only, but then they let us sit at them anyways. The waitress was nice, but after ordering a La Chouffe she brought me an Anchor Liberty, and I recognized the bottle. What's that? I asked. She looked at it and said, "Oh." I said "I ordered a La Chouffe," and she said the bartender must have made an error.

The bottle selection is pretty good, but why they have it arranged under "Pale, Amber, Dark" is beyond me. A country grouping is far preferrable.

We ordered a plate of Nachos, which had nacho cheese instead of regular cheese, but it is barf ood, so I let it slide. It was good, but not great. Unfortunately, they couldn't tell us if their canned beans had lard, so we had to brave it and try not to think about it.

Still, a nice place if you're that far out. Recommended if in the area. Just be prepared to order bottles or limit your draft choices.

Kudos for bringing a Chimay glass for the Ommegang and a Duvel one for the La Chouffe. Nice to see them care a little about glassware.
Jun 10, 2005
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Reviewed by Quaffer from Missouri

3.33/5  rDev -9.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4.5 | service: 1.5 | selection: 3 | food: 4.5
This is the second Croxley Ales location that I have been to.

While I spent most of my time outside on thier large patio, the inside of Croxley's seemed very warm and inviting. The patio is set up nicely and it was great to be able to eat outside in comfort.

The beer selection was good, but not anywhere near great. It was easy to find something that I like, but there was nothing on the menu that begged to be ordered.

As far as food goes, the bangers and mash that I had was wonderful and I would highly recommend it to anyone.

My biggest complaint, next to the beer selection, was the service. Inefficient, unhelpful, and hard-to-find are the first adjectives that pop into my head. This alone will probably prevent me from ever visiting this particular Croxley's again.

With d.b.a. and Zum Schneider so close, I doubt that I will ever cross the threshold of this Croxley's again. Poor service and a lackluster beer menu.
Oct 27, 2004
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Reviewed by Hibernator from Massachusetts

4.14/5  rDev +12.5%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4.5
I visited Croxley Ales in the NYC yesterday. My friend and I arrived early on a Sunday to watch some NFL football games. They had all of the games on throughout the bar.

The overall atmosphere is warm and inviting. Wooden booths surround the bar area. Decor focus was primarily gothic with dim lighting. There is also an awesome outside patio that has a huge screen TV.

Service was good. We stayed for a long time throughout the course of the afternoon and had various waitresses. All were friendly and talkative. My friend inquired about a certain beer and she offered a sample for us to try. I always like to see this kind of service.

Beer selection is really good. There was a beer menu on each table. Prices were about $5 - $6 a pint. Major bonus points for all the beers we had being served in proper glassware and all tasting fresh. Two great qualities in any beer bar.

During my stay at Croxley's I had a Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Anchor Porter, DeKonick, and a Victory Golden Monkey on draught. I also had a few Samuel Smith Imperial Stouts from the bottle as well. I think there was about 30 or so beers on tap and a much larger bottle selection. Draught selection was solid and included your typical Euro options and some local favorites from Brooklyn Brewery and Blue Point.

I didn't try any food while I was there, but everything I saw people ordering looked really good. Wings were the choice on this football Sunday afternoon. They have a 20 cent wing special every Sunday (minimum of 20).

Overall, a really good beer bar and an enjoyable experience. Check this place out if you are in the lower East Village. I will certainly be back again.
Oct 11, 2004
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Reviewed by PopeJonPaul from Oregon

4/5  rDev +8.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Joined Mr. Slander and Mr. Rapopoda on a birthday crawl, on my second trip to Croxley's (trip one was on Slander's "fact finding mission."

A nice place, with jet-black walls and cool gold and red stained-glass lighting style that's 70's pizza parlor-meets-cathedral. Booths in back for dinner (didn't try the food, unless you can call mooching a handful of fries from Felonius Phil a meal.) Not too crowded, has a hostess and table service if you want dinner, so I imagine they're somewhat serious about it. Funny lilliputian stools and benches up front, short enough that you can possibly save the beer in your hand when you fall off the stool. Actually, re-enacting the bar scene from "Hooper,The Greatest Stuntman Alive" with midgets using this furniture would be fun . . . but I digress:

Bartenders were great, taking your order before you reached the bar. Only had time for a DeKoninck and a Sinebrychoff Porter before we were outta there but I will definitely go back. Patio looks like it'll be nice in the summer.

If you're interested, they update their beer menu here:

http://www.croxley.com/villagebeermenu.htm
Feb 24, 2004
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Reviewed by slander from New York

4/5  rDev +8.7%
vibe: 4 | quality: 4 | service: 4 | selection: 4
Croxley's Croxley's everywhere!!! I generally don't get over this far east but I was on a... you guessed it... fact finding mission.
30 taps, which is just slightly more than half of what the 2 locations on (dirty) Long Island carry and about 50 bottles. Some nice tap selections from imports (Kostrizter Schwarzbier, Leffe blonde, Dekonick, Hacker Pschorr Dunkel, Spaten, Belhaven, Youngs Oatmeal Stout) to regional and not so regional micros (Rogue Dead Guy, 3 Brooklyns, Anchor Porter, Harpoon IPA, Magic Hat #9). And yes, they're pouring Bud Stout.
There's a nice selection of bottles, notably Belgians, English and Germans, and they've got the standard Croxley's drink specials. The bottled menu is broken out first by categories (pale, amber, dark) and then by country within those categories. It's a pain in the ass trying to read through this beer menu. Just group them by country and nobody has to get hurt.
Good service and decent decor, low lights, dark wood, a black tin ceiling and a dozen or so tables to the rear. Nicely English pubbish. While there's no English style red phonebooth, they do have an outside area that's walled in "tentlike". I'm leary of calling it a beergarden as it's entirely enclosed, but it is a nice little outdoor patio.
Oct 29, 2003
Croxley's Ales in New York, NY
Place rating: 3.68 out of 5 with 16 ratings