Tea and Sympathy

great ambience and location. try the various british beverage (burdock beer!). nice english experience in the village more

great ambience and location. try the various british beverage (burdock beer!). nice english experience in the village more

Good stuff. They really need a bit more table space, I suggest combining the store next door with the restaurant, but I understand their policies of 'no holding a table' and 'sit where you're told'. more

Cor Blimey, Guvnor! Its like a little piece of old England upped sticks and moved to the West Village. Pros: great stodgy food Cons: teeny tiny space, the loo is for stick people! more

The food is mediocre, but that pales in comparison to the hostile, rude service. I have never had a meal so ruined by the staff of a restaurant. The owner, who seemed friendly at first, was ultimately loud and intrusive. First, her staff seated the three of us at a TINY table. When my friend asked if we might move to one of the empty tables in the room, she was brusquely told that those (empty) tables had to be held in case a party of four came in. When my friend dared to question her, the waitress said ""Well if you don't like it you're welcome to leave."" Stunned, my friend started to respond when the waitress cut her off: ""Really, go on and leave. I don't mind."" Moments later, a young man came and sat at another table. The waitress asked him what he'd like and he indicated that a friend was on his way, and that he needed to wait to order. The staff freaked out, yelling that only full parties were to be seated. ""I'm sorry,"" he said. ""I've never been here before, and I'm never coming back."" With that, he put on his coat and stormed out. I wish I had followed him. My salad was uninspired, and the soup was straight out of a can. The biggest irony is that the owner is spearheading an idiotic campaign to designate Greenwich Avenue ""Little Britain"" in order to attract more people-- as though she and her staff know the first thing about hospitality! No manners, and no more business from me. Cons: Witches who run the place. more

I go for the pies. They're fantastic, probably better than they need to be, really, and good and hot. I see other diners have commented on the rudeness of the staff. I've never experienced this, nor have I ever been anything other than happy with my interactions. Perhaps being pleasant-looking and polite helps. Dessert, too, (esp. the bread-and-butter pudding) is essential, if you can fit it. Pros: pies; desserts; possibly the smallest bathroom in the city Cons: sometimes you will have to wait more

Oh dear. I was jonesing for some English grub so thought I would give this place a try. First off: they are rude! Second of all the food is eyewateringly expensive for what it is. Thirdly, the place smells of frying (but its a restaurant I hear you cry). Yes, but this place needs an extractor fan, my wool coat stank of frying for two days after (nojoke). I will only visit again under extreme circumstances, when the need for English food becomes overwhelming! Pros: Authentic English food Cons: Way too expensive, rude staff, lingering smells more

The setting is very quaint which is nice if you want to eat off your neighbor?s platter besides the quaint feeling the food is lacking as well as the tea. And the overall customer service well there is no such thing?No customer service at all?rude is the choice of word as how I would describe the overall feeling of this tea house. Pros: Cute Cons: tea and service more

I visited this place a few times about 4 years ago. I thought the food was good so I took a friend who was visiting from overseas there. We were unaware of the ""rules"", which are apparently posted in the menu for ""people who don't understand""!!!!-whatever that means. So we left our change as a tip. It wasn't double the tax-which is one of the ""rules"", so the waitress, who at first accepted it, placed it back on the table and informed us that we needed to double the tax in order to make the tip acceptable. We were shocked and embarrassed. The place is the size of a matchbox so everyone could hear what she said. And you'd better believe she was serious!!! So, we gave her the tip she requested, in order to keep the peace and we left. Pros: Delicious food Cons: Harassment for high tips, disrespectful service, non existent customer service ,expensive food more

If you want to know how bland English food truly is, go here. The desserts are ok if you don't mind fasting for a week after. The service is truly disgusting. I went with my husband and son on Fri night, they told us we had to wait till my husband came as there were other people waiting. There was no one waiting, 5 tables were empty. After us a man sat down not aware of their policy. His 9 month pregnant wife and her friend came in 15 min later only to be told they couldn't join him! They kicked out a 9 month pregnant woman and her friend. 7 tables were empty. Typical English absurdity, they can't even bend the rules for a pregnant woman when most of the place was empty. Also you come out of there smelling like their kitchen before the smoking ban you came out of there smelling like an ashtray. NEVER AGAIN! Maybe it'll be replaced witha Startbucks soon. more

Not recommended - thought I would gie it a second chance - but waitresses are extremely rude & generally just want you to eat & leave. I cant believe i gave it another chance - absolutley terrible. Cons: SERVICE, SPACE, FOOD, ETTIQUETTE more

After speaking w/ others about the situation I will soon mention, we've all concluded that what I experienced two weeks ago is not typical Brit behavior..though Brits are not usually overly-nice, they are at least respectably diplomatic and have tact - the proprieters of T&S are clearly lower class. To make a long story short, we walked in with three people. We are regulars, & they have always been nice. We've talked w/ the owner about the neighborhood, chatted, etc. We order, eat, and leave. We don't linger & always follow the ""rules"". Yet for some reason this particular morning, the waitress, who in turn told the owner - had the absurd idea that we were trying to finagle our seating. When trying to explain what we were doing (which was following the rules), she would't even listen & made a rambling, loud & despicable scene that would redden the face of any hard-nosed /thickskinned new yorker. She RUINED the rest of my day with her yelling-as well as everyone else's who was in the tiny restaurant. It was disgraceful. I happened to be with one of the most influential people in New York City & he was completely in shock and disgust. I love the food here, but I will never ever return. She is callous & simply MEAN. If you want to risk catching her on a bad day, please go and enjoy the delicious food. Otherwise, save your tears for something else worth crying over. As for these blokes, while I think the food brilliant - it certainly makes no difference how good it is if you're too upset to digest it. Cheers! Pros: authentic british fare, great tea Cons: customer abuse, tiny room, poor seating arrangement, more

Been a regular at Tea and sympathy for a while now and really enjoy the food everytime I go. The place is certainly small, thats nos secret , but if you can find one of the better tables two of you can have a great cosy bite to eat. Pros: Great british food Cons: Small, often line to get a table more

This place is TERRIBLE! The food is overpriced, though somewhat authentic, and if you DO overlook the audacious RULES posted at the entrance and unwisely decide to give them your business, you will be served without a smile. When a friend passed by and wanted to join us, the waitress told us he had to leave - no matter how much money he was willing to spend, THE RULES on the door said no one could join a table. I was actually about to order tea and dessert, but they passed up at least $20 of business to kick us out, though the place was EMPTY! This was one of the worst dining experiences of my LIFE! The truly bizarre thing is that people in these sort of establishments in the UK are SO ACCOMMODATING! Not this place. They want your money and they want you OUT. Cons: Worst service EVER! more

Never had English food (and honestly, the reviews I had heard about said food were never all that great). That said, when I ordered the Shepards Pie with Beef, It was really surprising--as in surprisingly good. Peas and carrots on the side were simple and delicious. The service here is not really all that friendly and the Flat Coke she tried to pass off as Diet was awful but the cupcakes were delicious and the atmosphere quaint. I'd definitely go again. Pros: Great Cupcakes, Authentic food Cons: No fish and chips, cranky waitress more

I grew up in the UK and ate this type of food many times. Back home it's hard to find a good scotch egg or a steak and kidney pie, I kid you not. This lovely little spot serves the real deal, the way it was meant to be - honest, hearty and affordable (alas this stuff can never be healthy.) I love the atmosphere and the caring waitresses. Oh, and the tea is great too. Who knew that the perfect English meal would be found in New York. Pros: food, waitresses more

Very disappointing. As an expat I got the craving for some English grub and headed over to T&S. Oh dear. The very WORST of England distilled in to a cramped space. Horrible decor, rude staff and the place REEKS of frying. (Extractor fan?) I have to say I liked the food, but its way overpriced. I think next time I'll stick to their take-out (don't expect a heap of change from $50 though) or buy a tin of beans and heat it up myself. Pros: English Food Cons: Small, Smelly, Rude more

My family has been to England several times, and in the USA we're always craving and looking for authentic English Tea. We have never been able to find anything like T & S. I was a little nervous, when we saw how small it was, that my husband and daughter might find it a bit uncomfortable, but we loved everything about it. Absolutely charming, wonderful food, superb tea (per husband & daughter), and if you are a coffee person-the coffee was fab. The scones were awesome. A bit pricey, but well worth it, if that's what you are looking for. You have to 'get it', not for the typical American, not willing to enjoy something 'not American'. Can't wait to go back! Pros: charming, cozy, delicious, , soo British! Cons: a bit pricey more

Delicious English comfort food. Mac and cheese is highly recommded as is the chicken salad sandwich. Bangers & mash are good -ask for extra onion gravy. Teatime can be VERY crowded but it is tasty. Don't be put off by the reviwers here who complain about the gruff service or the 'rules'-the waitresses are cheeky - not rude. As for the rule 'no partial groups sat', it is a teeny joint and they do not have the luxury for you to sip water while you wait for your friend. It is clearly stated that partial groups are NOT sat until all members are there. This is a common rule in smaller resturaunts and they strictly enforce it. If you are looking for a polite, quiet place to linger and day-dream this ain't it, but if you want lively waitresses to go with tasty comfort food then this is your place. Pros: Lively and fun, Unpretentious, Authentic Cons: Cramped, Rules strictly enforc more

The other day I went there at 5:30pm for quick tea, and the whole time I was there their service people made me feel incredibly uncomfortable, glaring at me, asking if I was finished yet. Then my friend arrived at 6pm to pick me up; neither of us were aware of their policy to refuse to seat any latecomers, which she wasn't. The owner lunged at her and shrieked that she couldn't come in, so loudly that the whole restaurant went quiet and stared at us. It was shocking for my friend who had no idea what was going on, and humiliating for me. They have a right to enforce any policy they want, but HOW they do it is another matter. I will NEVER go back there again and will suggest to my friends far and wide that they don't either. Pros: Great tea, charming Cons: rude service more