I was excited to have a library/bookstore bar but they went for pictures of books instead of actual books. It souod be the equivalent of having pictures of the beach at a Tiki bar. The menu being in a book is a cool idea though they execution was a bit off with the menu overlapping the pages and what not. The beer itself was okay as well. It wasnt bad but also wasnt too memorable.
The reason im being hard on this place is because I could see it being an incredible place with a few changes. If they had actual bookshelfs build into with the wall with books (ans no pictures), with the menu more seamlessly in the book and marked with a bookmark instead of a rubber band, and with good beer. All of these would make this a hidden gem but as it stands I would say its just okay
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Karen Pedersen
This is truly my favorite bar. The drinks are amazing and every time I go I have met some of the most interesting people and spent the night chatting and having a great time. This is a very small bar but the perfect place to go for an intimate night out.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Danielle R
Bartender that was clearly ‘partying’ downplayed and laughed at my severe food allergy - not safe for a food establishment. Would never feel safe consuming anything here ever- celiacs beware!!!!
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
Paige Hammond
First interaction I had here was with an extremely rude staff member. Unfortunate because I was very excited to try this place. Needless to say will not be going back.
Connor
Only non alchoholic option was an 11 dollar pineapple juice with a mint twig in it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 2
Stephanie Neal
Although this place was completely different from what I imagined, I loved it. Mainly because of the bartender (wish I got his name). It’s a tiny place with maybe 10 seats. I didn’t get any food but the drink was really good. Bartender was attentive even though it was very busy. He wouldn’t even let me pay full price for the drink “I'm sorry you have to read while standing up”. He didn’t have to do that at all. In a society completely focused on making the most money possible, he really made a lasting impression on me. So even though it’s small, it’s high quality with great customer service. I would return any day.
Service: 5
Alicia Martinez
This place is a vibeeee! Mike was great behind the bar! Willing to explore and create a beverage that would work for your palette.
Intimate for both married couples and brand new dates or relationship(s) (wife and I amongst the been here done that). Can’t wait to go back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
kayla
The place is super cute with good service and drinks. My only issues are the odd hours and the way the upstairs area has been closed three out of the four times I’ve been there. The downstairs area seats maybe 12 people max, so when that’s full and the upstairs is closed you have no choice but to leave. They’re closed Mondays and Tuesdays and open from 4:00/5:00-11:00/11:30 other days. I’m sure they’d be open more frequently if they could be, but as a customer it’s not very convenient or appealing.
Atmosphere: 4
Service: 4
Areej Tariq
If I could give 0 stars I would. Unprofessional and rude bartender. No wonder the bar was empty. Don’t recommend to anyone!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Shari Javines
Incredibly rude bartender. Was very excited to try this place and will never be coming back. I recommend spending your hard earned money elsewhere, plenty of other good bars around where the bartender doesn’t greet you with a nasty attitude!
I hate to give bad feedback, but I have to for this place. Surprisingly, I am not the only one who is disappointed with customer service here (is it because you charge 20% service fee automatically that you don’t care about your customers at all?)
So good thing first. I love the vibe and the atmosphere. It is a nice place to sit and have a chat over the drink. Cocktails are nice, not exceptional, but for the price, ok.
Bad thing: customer service as said. There was no greetings, no water offered. All the server did was giving out the menu, delivering the cocktails, then asking for cards in the end. I don’t mind at all, since the bar was busy. And I would come back for the vibe if the story ends here.
Yet, I found out that I might have been overcharged. So I came back and asked the server for assistance. The server agreed that I got overcharged, I left my name and phone number there to be contacted by the owner. One week passed, no call. I found the email online and emailed. 2 weeks passed, no reply. It seems like you don’t care about your one single customer at all. All I ask for is to double check my bill, and I understand you can be busy. But a whole month without answer is not acceptable.
There are many bars in Philly, and if all you do is building a nice place and serving cocktails like robots, you will lose your customers soon. Thanks for reading this long feedback.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 1
Rishabh Phukan
I've been only been here once on a Friday night when it wasn't that busy. The bartender was rude for no good reason, but I guess that's what happens when you automatically charge a 20% tip. It wasn't about anything important... My friend and i wanted to sit at the bar and the sign said to take the drinks upstairs. We asked if we could and were asked "well what did the sign say?". We came back downstairs after dropping off our empty glasses and Lo and behold...a few folks were sitting in the bar area. Whatever.
I grew up working at pizza places and so did a lot of my friends. I'm never rude to wait staff and am patient to a fault. We just bussed our glasses back to the bar and left after having our first drink even though the space was cool.
There are so many awesome bars in this town that I can't see myself going back here unless someone in my party really wants to head there. The cocktail was fine though I guess.
Unpleasantly meh. Looking at reviews, I'm not the only one who's had this experience.
Editing to address their response below. The bar was not being cleaned at the time. If it was then that could have been a simple response. Other friends who had recommend this bar in the past reported that they had similar negative experiences recently. I rarely ever leave negative reviews but felt compelled to here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
祁祁
bruh just drink here
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Vojta Machacek
One of the bartenders thinks he can offer his unsolicited opinions to any conversation he randomly hears. But he makes best old fashioned I had in a long time. We are in a same boat.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Zachary Mathes
I've been to a lot of bars and a lot of restaurants but I've never been personally offended by a host staff like at Writer's Block tonight. We showed up and were told we'd need to wait 10 minutes, perfectly fine. As more groups showed up we figured we'd be first in the queue. A group of two leaves and the host returns to - what we expect having been there first - take us to a table. Instead he will only take a table of three and when we spoke up about being first, the host scoffed in my face and said, "I'd prefer three." I will wait 30 minutes for my drink to be wrong and laugh about it but this felt personally disrespectful and I'm ashamed to have ever recommended this place to our out of town friends. I'd be humiliated if this happened to them upon my recommendation. I never leave reviews unless an establishment earns it, and Writer's Block went out of their way to earn this one.
I was excited to have a library/bookstore bar but they went for pictures of books instead of actual books. It souod be the equivalent of having pictures of the beach at a Tiki bar. The menu being in a book is a cool idea though they execution was a bit off with the menu overlapping the pages and what not. The beer itself was okay as well. It wasnt bad but also wasnt too memorable.
The reason im being hard on this place is because I could see it being an incredible place with a few changes. If they had actual bookshelfs build into with the wall with books (ans no pictures), with the menu more seamlessly in the book and marked with a bookmark instead of a rubber band, and with good beer. All of these would make this a hidden gem but as it stands I would say its just okay
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
This is truly my favorite bar. The drinks are amazing and every time I go I have met some of the most interesting people and spent the night chatting and having a great time. This is a very small bar but the perfect place to go for an intimate night out.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Bartender that was clearly ‘partying’ downplayed and laughed at my severe food allergy - not safe for a food establishment. Would never feel safe consuming anything here ever- celiacs beware!!!!
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
First interaction I had here was with an extremely rude staff member. Unfortunate because I was very excited to try this place. Needless to say will not be going back.
Only non alchoholic option was an 11 dollar pineapple juice with a mint twig in it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 2
Service: 2
Although this place was completely different from what I imagined, I loved it. Mainly because of the bartender (wish I got his name). It’s a tiny place with maybe 10 seats. I didn’t get any food but the drink was really good. Bartender was attentive even though it was very busy. He wouldn’t even let me pay full price for the drink “I'm sorry you have to read while standing up”. He didn’t have to do that at all. In a society completely focused on making the most money possible, he really made a lasting impression on me. So even though it’s small, it’s high quality with great customer service. I would return any day.
Service: 5
This place is a vibeeee!
Mike was great behind the bar! Willing to explore and
create a beverage that would work for your palette.
Intimate for both married couples and brand new dates or relationship(s) (wife and I amongst the been here done that).
Can’t wait to go back!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The place is super cute with good service and drinks. My only issues are the odd hours and the way the upstairs area has been closed three out of the four times I’ve been there. The downstairs area seats maybe 12 people max, so when that’s full and the upstairs is closed you have no choice but to leave. They’re closed Mondays and Tuesdays and open from 4:00/5:00-11:00/11:30 other days. I’m sure they’d be open more frequently if they could be, but as a customer it’s not very convenient or appealing.
Atmosphere: 4
Service: 4
If I could give 0 stars I would. Unprofessional and rude bartender. No wonder the bar was empty. Don’t recommend to anyone!
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Incredibly rude bartender. Was very excited to try this place and will never be coming back. I recommend spending your hard earned money elsewhere, plenty of other good bars around where the bartender doesn’t greet you with a nasty attitude!
Atmosphere: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
I hate to give bad feedback, but I have to for this place. Surprisingly, I am not the only one who is disappointed with customer service here (is it because you charge 20% service fee automatically that you don’t care about your customers at all?)
So good thing first. I love the vibe and the atmosphere. It is a nice place to sit and have a chat over the drink. Cocktails are nice, not exceptional, but for the price, ok.
Bad thing: customer service as said. There was no greetings, no water offered. All the server did was giving out the menu, delivering the cocktails, then asking for cards in the end. I don’t mind at all, since the bar was busy. And I would come back for the vibe if the story ends here.
Yet, I found out that I might have been overcharged. So I came back and asked the server for assistance. The server agreed that I got overcharged, I left my name and phone number there to be contacted by the owner. One week passed, no call. I found the email online and emailed. 2 weeks passed, no reply. It seems like you don’t care about your one single customer at all. All I ask for is to double check my bill, and I understand you can be busy. But a whole month without answer is not acceptable.
There are many bars in Philly, and if all you do is building a nice place and serving cocktails like robots, you will lose your customers soon. Thanks for reading this long feedback.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 1
I've been only been here once on a Friday night when it wasn't that busy. The bartender was rude for no good reason, but I guess that's what happens when you automatically charge a 20% tip. It wasn't about anything important... My friend and i wanted to sit at the bar and the sign said to take the drinks upstairs. We asked if we could and were asked "well what did the sign say?". We came back downstairs after dropping off our empty glasses and Lo and behold...a few folks were sitting in the bar area. Whatever.
I grew up working at pizza places and so did a lot of my friends. I'm never rude to wait staff and am patient to a fault. We just bussed our glasses back to the bar and left after having our first drink even though the space was cool.
There are so many awesome bars in this town that I can't see myself going back here unless someone in my party really wants to head there. The cocktail was fine though I guess.
Unpleasantly meh. Looking at reviews, I'm not the only one who's had this experience.
Editing to address their response below.
The bar was not being cleaned at the time. If it was then that could have been a simple response. Other friends who had recommend this bar in the past reported that they had similar negative experiences recently. I rarely ever leave negative reviews but felt compelled to here.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
bruh just drink here
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
One of the bartenders thinks he can offer his unsolicited opinions to any conversation he randomly hears. But he makes best old fashioned I had in a long time. We are in a same boat.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
I've been to a lot of bars and a lot of restaurants but I've never been personally offended by a host staff like at Writer's Block tonight. We showed up and were told we'd need to wait 10 minutes, perfectly fine. As more groups showed up we figured we'd be first in the queue. A group of two leaves and the host returns to - what we expect having been there first - take us to a table. Instead he will only take a table of three and when we spoke up about being first, the host scoffed in my face and said, "I'd prefer three."
I will wait 30 minutes for my drink to be wrong and laugh about it but this felt personally disrespectful and I'm ashamed to have ever recommended this place to our out of town friends. I'd be humiliated if this happened to them upon my recommendation.
I never leave reviews unless an establishment earns it, and Writer's Block went out of their way to earn this one.
Service: 1
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