damnlines.comdamnlines.comThe 1908 cash-only "Sturgeon King" — the Upper West Side's Jewish appetizing institution, famous for smoked sturgeon, nova, and eggs.
The line at Barney Greengrass is the weekend-brunch walk-up line. The Infatuation reports that at brunch on a weekend "there'll be a line of eager Upper West Siders waiting to be seated" at the cash-only spot, and the Me Like Eat blog puts it flatly: "chances are excellent you will also have to wait on some kind of line." The dining room behind that line is "elbow-to-elbow, the tables practically on top of one another," per The Infatuation.
How long depends on when you show up. On a Yelp forum thread about a Sunday around 9:30am, regulars reported 15 to 30 minutes for a table — one said "only about 20 minutes." The room is small and fills fast, which is why the queue builds; Me Like Eat calls it "even more cramped and tightly packed" than the neighborhood's other brunch rooms.
Regulars beat the wait two ways. Me Like Eat says the secret "is to arrive before 11:00 a.m.," and recommends going on a weekday, when it's "much less crowded." Turnover helps too: The Infatuation warns your meal "might end with a server bluntly letting you know that they need your table back" — lingering, it notes, "doesn't really fly."
No camera here yet — but these lines are on camera right now:
The Halal Guys · 38 min walkclosedCaffè Panna · 74 min walkclosedBánh Anh Em · 80 min walkclosedWe don't have a camera here, so there's no live number. On a Yelp forum thread about a Sunday around 9:30am, regulars reported 15 to 30 minutes for a table, with one saying "only about 20 minutes." The Infatuation describes a weekend line but says the wait "is never too long."
The Me Like Eat blog says the secret "is to arrive before 11:00 a.m.," and recommends a weekday over a weekend, when the room is "much less crowded."
It's a small, cash-only room that packs out at brunch. The Infatuation calls the dining room "elbow-to-elbow, the tables practically on top of one another," and Me Like Eat calls it "even more cramped and tightly packed" than other Upper West Side brunch spots, so weekend walk-ups queue for a table.
Yes. The Infatuation refers to it as "the cash-only spot," so bring cash for both the sit-down restaurant and the appetizing counter.
Per the shop's own site, the restaurant serves Tuesday–Friday 8:30am–4pm and Saturday–Sunday 8:30am–5pm, and the appetizing store is open Tuesday–Sunday 8am–5pm. It's closed Mondays.