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Ellis Bar in South Slope... — Brooklynian

Ellis Bar in South Slope...

parkslopian1234
parkslopian1234
edited November -1 in Park Slope
Hey there!

Has anyone heard anything about Ellis Bar? It's on 5th Ave btwn 17th and 18th...It's under construction, I live in the area and am excited for a new place to open. I just wanted to know if anyone has any information...

Thanks!

Comments

  • babel
    babel
    It's gonna ba a Southwest tapas bar open late. The place is huge inside with a backyard and such. They have a website, something like ellisbar.com.
  • downstat
    downstat
    I saw a sign on Sunday the 20th saying Ellis would be open for business on July 21st. I haven't been by since. Has it opened... How is it!?!
  • smitty
    smitty
    Anyone tried it yet?
  • babel
    babel
    Not that great, sadly. Decor is pettymuch Union Hall complete with the wall of books that have probably never been read. Beer selection is very average, I think they charge $5 for a bud which is a slap in the face. They advertise $5 shot of Jack during happy hour (?) is this really a savings? Do drinks cost that much now in P Slope? It is obvious they spent a lot of money renovatng the place, I guess they will just pass it on to the consumers/guests. Don't know about the food, haven't tried it. Save your time and go to Commonwealth. They at least have Jever on tap and it is good when the tap lines are clean(most bars around here keep them quite dirty, that is why a $6 beer always taste like a $.01 copper penny). Beer Table is great, expenive to get drunk at but nice for one or two special beers.
  • jurydutysucks
    jurydutysucks
    wow, if that OP doesn't sound like the owner trying to plug the place, I don't know what would!
  • scarlett
    scarlett
    I don't think so......... well, maybe.......... but I used to live closer to there and when Kitchen Bar and BarBQ and the sushi place and wine bar opened it was AWESOME to have something right there. This place is like the second round and much welcomed by the neighbors I bet-- as long as the $9 G&T I keep reading about isn't true.
  • the chipster
    the chipster
    Underwhelmed. We had one round and left. One round!!
    Babel--the starkly pristine books rubbed me the wrong way too. If it wasn't in park slope, i'd say it felt like a TGIF with a "hip" staff and darts.
    Cold, austere, huge, probably great for large groups.
    I remember when Buttermilk opened; even new it had a warmer, more welcoming vibe.
    soooo dissapointed. :(
  • besus
    besus
    Give them a chance...they're tweaking some things...getting their full menu ready for when the fire dpt gives them the go ahead...

    Their juke box is awesome, except they need some Yeasayer...they're revamping their wine list and adding some new beers...they're nice and open to new ideas...
  • opossumqueen
    opossumqueen
    I thought this post about Ellis from the Village Voice food blog was worth sharing here. If this is true, just, wow. When I worked in a restaurant, we actually got paid more during training (tipped workers got $2.13/hr, but as a trainee I got min. wage).
    I went to an open call at Ellis Bar. They said I was hired and that I could come in and train. They told me that in order to train I had to bring a crowd of people with me to my training shift. They had me come in on a Monday, and I brought out as many people as I could for a rainy Monday night (about 25 people, which as I found out, is more people than that place has at any time). I "trained" for 4 hours with another bartender, made the place and the bartender money (my friends were the only people in the place) and then was told I could go. I never received training pay and they never called me with a schedule. Then I found out from another person who used to work there that the owner and his wife only PRETEND they are hiring people so they can bring people in to train and make them bring their friends for a night and make money off of the person.
    link to full post:
    http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/archives/2009/07/shameless_resta_1.php
  • anastasia beaverhausen
    anastasia beaverhausen
    I haven't been a huge fan of the place as it is - now I'm sure not to go back.
  • ekoleda
    ekoleda
    very shady (if true) never been there.....no interest
  • opossumqueen
    opossumqueen
    If they really do this (esp. if they did it more than once), it sounds like the kind of thing that needs to be handled by the local news stations. You know those segments where someone was shafted by a local business and the news crew shows up with a camera and shames them into paying/rectifying the situation. It's really ballsy.
  • the chipster
    the chipster
    Weird! I cringed when I saw my previous post, because sometimes places do improve, as they need time to figure it all out. Having been there again, I can absolutely say my first impression was right. Very TGIF.
    They have .99 specials though, so maybe if you go with a crowd it could work...but then again, they might try to "hire" your friends too!
    Weird!
  • raw
    raw
    OpossumQueen wrote: I thought this post about Ellis from the Village Voice food blog was worth sharing here. If this is true, just, wow. When I worked in a restaurant, we actually got paid more during training (tipped workers got $2.13/hr, but as a trainee I got min. wage).
    I went to an open call at Ellis Bar. They said I was hired and that I could come in and train. They told me that in order to train I had to bring a crowd of people with me to my training shift. They had me come in on a Monday, and I brought out as many people as I could for a rainy Monday night (about 25 people, which as I found out, is more people than that place has at any time). I "trained" for 4 hours with another bartender, made the place and the bartender money (my friends were the only people in the place) and then was told I could go. I never received training pay and they never called me with a schedule. Then I found out from another person who used to work there that the owner and his wife only PRETEND they are hiring people so they can bring people in to train and make them bring their friends for a night and make money off of the person.
    link to full post:
    http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/archives/2009/07/shameless_resta_1.php
    I don't want to support businesses that don't pay workers, Anyone know if this is true?
  • ellis bar
    ellis bar

    Subject: Statement from Ellis Bar

    The above statement is simply not true. We hold open calls for bartenders/serving staff as needed. From time to time we want to see someone in action prior to hiring them. This is explained to them BEFORE they come in to train. We say, ‘we’d like to have you come in and see how you do. If it goes well, we’ll put you on the schedule.’ That statement is made every time to every person without fail. They come in for only a portion of a shift, maximum 2 hours. If they don’t work out, we let them know. Most of the time they do work out and are hired on for a full schedule the following week. If anyone ever had an issue about it, it would have been better to hear it from them directly. We would have been happy to explain things more clearly prior or to find a resolution following. Please come in and ask our staff, they’ll tell you the same. Sincerely, Ellis Bar
  • carnivore
    carnivore
    MOD NOTE: I don't know which side of this is true, but I do appreciate the owners of Ellis Bar for posting as themselves and addressing this directly. This is the correct way for a business to respond to criticism on these boards.
  • yannis188
    yannis188
    While I'm glad that Ellis Bar responded, I still have never heard of making you bring people in to the bar for a training/try out shift.

    Also, I thought people needed to be paid during training (although I am not sure).

    Care to respond, Ellis Bar?
  • MOD
    MOD
    You should be paying people, man what a swindle
  • opossumqueen
    opossumqueen
    Getting people to work for free, even if they agree to it (re: probably desperate) seems like something that might be illegal, even if you hire them afterwards.

    Ellis, you might want to look into the legality of this before you end up with a costly lawsuit on your hands.
  • brokechick
    brokechick
    i have worked "audition" shifts for other jobs--doggie daycare, customer service desks, whatever--but i always got paid, even if it was for under an hour. it isn't mandatory--if someone agrees to work for nothing, that's up to them--but it's nice.
  • MOD
    MOD
    I think the point was made that they conned the newbies into thinking they'd get paid and hired and didn't.
    They said I was hired and that I could come in and train.
    PS, the first post in this thread does seem to be a shill for Ellis. Same IP as another 1-post-member "MrsEllis" plus a few others too.
  • scarlett
    scarlett
    I went to Ellis last night to ask about this and the staff told me that they auditioned 4 people and hired 3 of those 4. I love Ellis and while I didn't win at trivia last night, I will continue to go there for their wonderful staff, beer selection, gigantic vats of vodka and an occaisional penny night, trivia or karaoke. I don't believe for one second that there was wrongdoing on their end. You shouildn't either. Meet me there for a drink!
  • torisoaw
    torisoaw
    I was there too! And I actually did win trivia, 3 rounds!! (well, two were ties). :D

    Trivia was fun, but I'm still just not crazy about Ellis. My friends and I were trying to decide what it is, and I think that the space just isn't inviting... it lacks personality. But yes, the people there are nice, and they have a good beer selection and a lot of fun events and stuff, so good on them. Hopefully the allegations of bad hiring practices aren't true.
  • scarlett
    scarlett
    Were you the nice person who gave me a drink token?
  • torisoaw
    torisoaw
    Hmm... I don't think I was. I gave one away, but it was to a friend of mine. I'm the blonde girl who was on the team in the middle of the bar. :)
  • scarlett
    scarlett
    Huh! It was some guy who gave it to me outside. Wheeeeeeee!!!!!
  • toadette
    toadette
    What time does trivia start?
  • torisoaw
    torisoaw
    9 on Tuesdays
  • smitty
    smitty
    Trivia there is fun, except for the time when there was a round of questions about the show Scrubs and me and my friend had only seen maybe 10 episodes of that show, tops. We got 1 question right. heh.
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