Great Lakes

04/25/2008 Posted by charliecompany

i've been going to this place for eight years and i don't really notice much of a change. the jukebox is still good, the bathroom is still nasty and they serve booze. i don't need a bartender to make me feel particularly welcome. they put up with enough garbage from park slope yuppies. i think you can cut em a break.

08/26/2007 Posted by devon7

Avoid this place - the barstaff were Ill-mannered, not trained properly, monosyllabic, even cheat you on measures. Shame, as the jukebox is well-stacked, just the service is low-class.

Pros: The only pub I saw for a few blocks

Cons: Low-class barstaff, fake interior, small measures

08/20/2007 Posted by rossgill

the bar was awesome. i happened to be there when the other person seemed to flip out at the girl working because she didn't get any free beers. it seemed sad and cheap.i found the girl bartending to be really nice and funny. i liked the place. do people really complain about not getting something for free? i'm not from new york but to me that seems really strange and i would be humiliated if i was ever with someone who wasn't willing to pay for what they ordered. anyway i liked the bar it was fun and the people seemed really nice. it was uncomfortable when this large woman was freaking out about not getting something for free but other than that i had a nice time. i haven't seen anyplace in this hood quite as comfy yet. maybe its different here but i go out expecting to pay for my drinks. this woman who was shouting behind me was just a little crazy.... why would you be mean to someone because they didn't give you something for free?

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

08/18/2007 Posted by girl_who_bars

Seriously, terrible service. Bathrooms are abysmal. No buybacks after a HUGE tab. Nasty - mean, even - young girl bartender who complained all night. We tipped excessively, but no buybacks. NEVER again. Too many other awesome places around.

Pros: Hi-life for $3, if you can get it and the bartender doesn't complain

Cons: Really awful, pseudo hipster bartender. Nast, mean, and generally unpleasant enough to ruin a good time.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful

12/04/2006 Posted by daytrader007

Probably the worst single bartender I've come across in nyc. Granted I live in Manhattan and expect a certain minimum level of service, but spending an entire night at this place buying drinks with cash and on my card, I was waiting all night for my buyback. When I finally closed out the rest of my bill at the end of the night, and asked for one, he threw it in my face and said he wouldn't give it to me because I asked for it. I think that the appropriate time for a buyback is at some point throughout the night when you're buying round, not when you're closing out the credit card and leaving the joint. Regardless, they obviously have no idea how to treat a customer in that place. It was my first time in the place, and will be my last. PS- The scene is pretty dumpy. Someone wrote below me it's the best bar on 5th avenue. God, if that's true I'm even more happy about living in the city. Please tell me Park Slope doesn't stink that much. PLEASE!

Pros: They serve alcohol, always a plus for a bar.

Cons: Dirty, dismal scene, worst bartender ever, people going to bathroom in groups (hmmm...)

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

03/02/2005 Posted by halfcircle6

This was the best bar on 5th Ave. The junkebox was amazing, New York Dolls to Sebadoh. The staff was friendly and knew their music as well as thier customers. I sat at a table and had a good first date and i sat at the bar and had a good time complaining about the same first date. A rare bar that has no attitude just like it's name midwestern friendliness.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful

06/23/2004 Posted by chinesestar

I don't know what Racket's talking about, these are probably my favorite bartenders in all of Brooklyn. Yes, they're very cute, but they're also very warm and make you feel like at home as long as you're not a jerk givin' them crap. In that case, then yes, they can get quite testy, and more power to 'em. If you treat them with respect though, you won't find better bartenders in town.

Pros: SERVICE!, great jukebox, weekdays are perfect

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful

01/16/2004 Posted by dr_morbius

In what appears to be an unfortunate case of "hands-on" ownership, the most popular bartender/ resident mensch of the Great Lakes' Golden Age has been exiled, along with his vaunted jukebox stock. There are still decent folk who pour here, but the clientele has been increasingly dominated by ever-louder yakking packs of recent collegians, possibly trying to quaff their way down from a Brooklyn Industries-induced shopping high. The more lucid and laid-back among us, who know the '99-03 aura has left this place, are bar-hopping our way down Fifth Avenue in search of a new roost.

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful

03/30/2003 Posted by racket

What used to be a pretty cool place had sadly taken the low road; it seems that, in an ill-conceived attempt to increase business, management has resorted to hiring a succession of young ladies (ostensibly attractive) of questionable bartending skills and temperaments unsuited to the hospitality industry. Instead of competent workers that have the cranial capacity to remember regulars AND pour drinks, 'Lochs now boasts a revolving door of short-tempered brats who peer quizzically at beer bottles from all angles before discovering the proper method of opening. There is still one dude there who is tops, (as of last visit) but I fear his days are numbered. Yes, it still has one of the best jukeboxes in the city, but that can be cold comfort when you are waiting half an hour for a cocktail while being subjected to verbal abuse from the resident harpy.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

10/15/2002 Posted by vcroog

this is a wonderful little bar, often with live music. great bartender when i was there and great environment.

Pros: unpretentious, cool area