Rodeo Bar

Spent my Halloween night at Rodeo Bar and couldn't have asked for a more fun evening! Drinks were delish and prices weren't outrageous! The band played an extra hour because of Daylight Savings and a great time was had by all!!! Can't wait to go back when I'm not in costume!

Pros: Great drinks, live music, NO COVER!

Posted 11/01/09

I really think I could've enjoyed this place if there were more than 3 other people in it. I came by with my cousin on a friday night about 3 a.m. and found the place deserted. Let down in the city that never sleeps.

Pros: large and decor is sweet

Cons: no late night party

Posted 04/25/09

I walked in with a friend and was instantly transported into an episode of Cheers. Everyone was friendly and I knew that I would be back. The drinks were great especially the Margaritas!!! The food is delicious my friend enjoyed a steak fajita and I loved loved my enchilada!!! Definately the best in city. I would reccommend this place to anyone who wants to go somewhere that the patrons and staff all try to get to know you and at the end of the night everyone is just hanging together like one big party.

Pros: Fun, Entertaining, Comfortable and Inviting

Posted 04/08/09

In a city that is famous for rushing and moving fast, Rodeo is a wonderful place to hang and enjoy the atmosphere and wonderful service. From the moment my friends and I entered the door, we were treated as friends and taken care of in a way I have rarely found in any establishment. Charlotte was the BEST waitress I've encountered in a long, long time and did a great job of recommending food, drinks and local entertainment and clubs that fit our style and love for 80's music. My 5 friends and I were all from out of town and had heard of Rodeo through the brother of one of our party. We enjoyed great food from appetizers (try the onion rings) to brunch to pitchers of margaritas (try the 1/2 and 1/2 Strawberry/Lime or Strawberry/Mango). We were never rushed, never hinted at to move on and actually ended up staying a while just enjoying ourselves and catching up. Marconi was the manager on duty and he was extremely catering as well. Kudos to the bartender who whipped up some amazing margaritas and a spicy bloody mary that was just right.

If you want great service and to feel at home in a bustling city, make your way over to Rodeo! We will certainly go there again next time we are in NYC.

Pros: Amazing margaritas and very generous portions of food

Cons: Not wanting to leave!

Posted 01/31/09

So 3 of us were seated at a table for two with a chair added that was actually on the stage. I ordered chicken and ribs, the ribs portion consisted of 4 overdone ribs that I tried to gnaw off the bone but was so tough I gave up. the chicken portion was a leg and thigh that was so tiny I could not believe. Fries and corn on the side but no butter, salt or ketchup. When I told the waitress that the meal was unacceptable she snatched it from me and walked away not even offering to replace it with something else. She dissapeared for so long that my friends finished eating before I was able to flag her down to request something else.

I will go there for music but my eating days there are in the past!

Pros: atmosphere, crowd, music

Cons: waitstaff and food

Posted 01/22/09

The watiress was leaving, so we offered to clear our dinner tab and start a new one. After she left, someone came by to bring us one more round of drinks. After that, we were left high and dry, basicallly ready and waiting for the check. None of us really wanted another drink, but didn't know who to ask for the check, so we were just hanging out...no big deal. Then, the hostess came by and in feigned politeness asked us to leave, because we were "weren't ordering anything". Well, it's kinda hard to order, when no waiter comes around to tend to your table. We told her that we had just wanted the check all along, and she had the nerve to ask us "what our waitress looked like". She then told us we were rude for pointing out the absurdity that she didn't know who was servicing our table. This after we had spent 100+ dollars on dinner. I won't be returning to this establishment.

Cons: service

Posted 01/15/09

I was in Rodeo last weekend and had the most amazing time! The food was great!--(beef nachos and shrimp&steak fajitas!)-- staff very friendly, and to top it all off, after dinner we moved into the back room and there was a FREE live music performance! A totally fun and inexpensive night! The Rodeo has a great selection of beer, tequila, bourbon--even good wine! I highly recommend going if you want a fun, casual night out... ps. they even have shiner!!

Pros: casual, fun and unpretensious

Cons: booze goes down a little too easily....

Posted 12/15/08

If youre looking to take someone to a crowded bar to get them drunk and then break up with them this place is perfect. Sip some beers and eat some free peanuts while you try and work things out even though you know its over - If you are lucky, therell be some depressing country song playing in the background which can add to the overall experience -

Pros: Free Nuts in your mouth

Cons: Not enough napkins

Posted 12/08/08

I love this place!! We were at Rodeo for the first time two nights ago and had the most amazing time! First, my friend and I sat at a table and had great service. Everything was delicious and came out really fast. I had the catfish tacos(amazing!) and my friend had a cheeseburger that he raved about. We washed our food down with two of the most ridiculously potent, yet delicious Patron margaritas! mmmmmmm...... The staff was welcoming and friendly from the first moment we were intercepted by the hostess and brought to our seats. We loved our waitress and when we were finished dinner, headed over the bar, continued hanging out and had the BEST time!! Great music, cute, nice bartenders.... what more could you ask for?!!

Pros: laid-back atmosphere, friendly staff

Cons: margaritas are dangerously good...

Posted 12/03/08

i love this place!
its not a place for snobs and you will not get a fake smile,
the dishes I have tried were good, uhm, except for the ribs -sorry!
try the mango margaritas and you won't regret, tip well and be cordial
and you will get nothing short of great service.

Pros: bartenders, huge drinks, peanuts, buy backs

Cons: sometimes the bands aren't great, too crowded on weekends

Posted 11/16/08

Don't go here for the food--it's not very good, but the atmosphere is laid-back and the peanuts are great. Margaritas are pretty standard. I've (infrequently) heard some decent music here, but it's a painful experience on a night when the music is awful. Rodeo is located in a pretty nondescript neighborhood (Murray Hill area), but the windows in the front part of the restaurant have a great view of the street--good place to go on a snowy night, if you like that sort of thing. It's main advantage is that it's open later than other neighborhood restaurants.

Pros: Service, peanuts

Cons: Food, terrible music sometimes

Posted 10/20/08

I live in the area and there's a lot of bars nowadays (Rodeo used to be the only thing except Irish Pubs for miles) - but I still go to Rodeo for the biggest, if not the best Margaritas in town. Two is my limit cause it's probably like four somewhere else.

Pros: Huge Margaritas, Giant Buffalo Above the Bar

Cons: Gotta feel Sorry for the Buffalo spending eternity above a bar... or do you?

Posted 09/09/08

so yes i am from the south and i am damn proud! we were thinking we were going to hear some Johnny Cash or some new toby keith...sadly mistaken! i was not impressed at all this must be a northern version of the south!!!! wow i cant wait to go back Roll tide roll

Posted 07/17/08

I'm from Texas originally and it's a fun place to go when you want to have 10 friends together for a birthday, sit around and eat snacky, casual food (fried pickles - suprisingly yummy) and get a little crazy. They have a lot of areas for groups to hang out in. It's rowdy and busy so sometimes it can be a little bit of a wait for things. But if you're nice they will definitely buy you a round! And the fajitas are almost as good as Pappasito's.

Posted 03/24/08

Great Margaritas.......great Tequila.......gorgeous bartenders (Check out Friday night's hottie)........what else can you ask for......oh yeah....great music

Posted 02/14/08

Rodeo Bar is a great spot to drink some beer, eat some good food and watch some live music. What else are you looking for?

Pros: Drinks, Eats, Music

Posted 02/10/08

Oh this place is my fav. Where can you go in NYC where you see line dancing, banjo playing, peanut throwing, people drinkin good beer along side of a trailor shaped bar? Rodeo bar.
So good. Food is GREAT, beer is awesome, so are the mixed drinks. The wait service is great, and they have you seated pretty quickly..even on a saturday night.
One of my favorite spots.

Pros: peanuts on the floor and live music

Cons: you cant wear a tux here

Posted 11/15/07

Well the place screwed up. Very crowd and loud on a Thursday nite. Our waitress messed up on our order and put it up top to the place upstairs. We did get comped on the beer and didn't pay for it.

Chicken burrito was diced chicken not shreaded, and from my friend reaction to the ribeye, it was all fat.

Fun place for low budget food, but just keep in mind the low budget.

Posted 05/03/07

My good friend booked a 30th patry on November 14th, and when we got there, they had no record of it. So we all had to sit at seperate tables, but in the same room. Not to mention there were over 40 people that showed up, who combined had a food and bar tab over $1000.00, and they never even brought anything on the house. The slice of cake they brought out, they charged us for. It stinks because the food is good, but because they treated us dirt most of us will not go back. All they needed to do, was buy one round. After all...we did spend over a grand in their place.

Pros: Fun place, good food

Cons: No buy backs even if you spend over $1000.00

Posted 11/28/06

How can there be only 29 reviews of Rodeo Bar, that perennial NY classic?? Third Avenue would not be the same without it. If you're going for the music, enter through the northern door and skip the wannabes hugging the bar on the southside. You can check the music lineup on their website. Reading these reviews, it sounds like the service is spotty. Sandra is the all time greatest, plus I hear Lillie (of Lillie's in Red Hook) is managing now, so there should be some improvements on that front. I've had disinterested servers here, too, which scks, but the good out number the weak. BEST FROZEN MARGARITAS on the east side hands down.

Pros: music line up, desserts, taco salad, atmosphere

Cons: service gamble, yuppies crowding the bar

Posted 11/27/06

I love Rodeo Bar, it was the first bar I went to after moving to the Murray Hill area, and although the name of the bar sounded a bit hillybilly-ish for my taste, I had tons of fun once I got inside!!

Pros: Music rocks, drinks and food are great

Cons: None I can think of!

Posted 11/20/06

I really just like the idea of this bar. I like ordering a beer from the side of a trailer, I like eating peanuts and dropping the shells onto the floor and I like tapping my foot to a live band. The crowd is eclectic and the band isnt always fabulous but all in all its a different scene that the usual NYC bar.

Pros: Peanuts

Cons: a bit of an older crowd

Posted 11/02/06

I have been using this site for as long as I can remember and I finally registered to post this. The waitress I had tonight was great, our food was running slow so she offered to by us a roud tonight. We haden't even complained to her, that was just perfect and I wanted to publically thank her. I stupidly didn't get her name to post it here. If she reads this I was in the black halter and jeans, my date had a blue collard shirt and flip flops.

Pros: Great service

Cons: I didn't see any

Posted 09/03/06

I love this place. Def. not a place to get dressed to the nines for, but it's one of my favorites. I love the scene. The laidback atmosphere, the great funky decor, the trailer in the back room, the bulls! So funny. The staff has always been very nice. Affordable food and drinks, friendly crowd. The food has been a little bland at times, but overall really good. I always love coming here.

Pros: unique, fun atmosphere, good

Posted 07/23/06

I am from Texas, and I thought the food was bad. A definite step below taco bell.
The service was equally bad. The girls working there are just plain rude. do yourself a favor and stay away from the rodeo bar.

Pros: great if your order was a big dish of rudeness.

Cons: rude staff...

Posted 07/17/06

My goodness...what a bar!!! My friends and I went to the Rodeo Bar because we were visiting from the Texas and the moment we stepped in we felt at home. Between the stuffed bison and the smokin' band I was immediately overwhelmed with excitement as our best night in New York began. Now that I have moved up here the same still stands true for the Rodeo Bar. Always a good time. Always a party. It's the kind of place that you never quite know what is gonna happen but whatever does it will be fun. I have a feeling I will be a long-standing patron at the Rodeo Bar and Grill for many years.

Pros: drinks, hot staff, rockin' bbq

Cons: bad ventalation

Posted 07/07/06

I've been going to the Rodeo for over 4 years now and have absolutely no complaints. You can throw your free peanut shells on the very place your cuttin a rug to any of the bands that play on a nightly basis. I go for the California Nachos alone, not to mention the insane #1 rated Margies. If you're in the area for lunch. There's a "burger & a beer" no one can pass up. Happy Trails!

Pros: Great Staff, Great Bands, Free Bumper Stickers!

Posted 01/29/06

The Tex/Mex food was served fresh, hot and with a smile. The drinks were served cold, promptly and with another smile. The music was fun, festive and FREE! What else are you looking for?

Posted 09/30/05

Rodeo Bar is going on it's decade mark and god bless the place. The buffalo's still above the bar. I've watched the Yankees here for years, accompanied by my trusty pint of margarita. The bartender's have been right there with me. I'm amazed that the place is still as affordable as it is in this city and the band's are as great as ever. Best Bar in Murray Hill to be sure. Their brunch is the neighborhood's best kept secret too!

Pros: Cheap eats, great music, great brunch

Cons: weekend waits, loud, parking

Posted 09/30/05

I'm from the South, and this is not it. Order a beer, get a flat, warm beer. Order a vanilla vodka and coke, get flat coke! Other bars have no problem with carbonation, but this one seems to. And then the waittress and bartender will RIP YOUR HEAD OFF for standing too close to their bar. Crowded, noisy, drinks are horrible. Go somewhere else.

Pros: free peanuts

Cons: getting yelled at, flat drinks, unsalted peanuts

Posted 02/25/05

Standing at the bar, trying to get drinks, my friends and I were yelled at the female bartender's friends for crowding the bar, and asked to "go outside." Since I am not in high school anymore, I walked away, but thought I would mention to the manager that they had some rude people alienating the other customers, having been a bar manager myself at one point. After being told to move away from the bar by the bartender, who turned and winked at her friends, the manager eventually came over. Her response? That she is sure her bartender did not act so childish, and there was nothing she could do about the three "charming" women at the bar yelling at anyone in the near vicinity. That bar has bigger problems than its horrible staff and tacky clientele...It just lost 15 people from ever coming back, or ever sending others there!

Cons: , bad atmosphere, JUST BAD

Posted 11/20/04

Every time I go to Rodeo it's always a great experience. The service is good and the bands always get my foot tapping. I love the atmosphere; check out the sadles on the wood logs opposite the trailor-turned-bar!

Pros: Atmosphere, Clean Bathrooms, Music

Posted 11/14/04

do not go the attitude there is awful we went there for a gathering and was ready to order food when we were asked to leave why? cause we did not order out food quick enough, I hope it shuts down for good

Pros: none

Cons: , food, drinks

Posted 04/20/04

THE best happy hour in New York.
You can always fill up on free peanuts and strong margaritas mmmmm tequila.
The bands are usually good and the food is always good.

Pros: Happy Hour, Peanuts, No cover

Posted 11/09/03

Four of us ate here recently and while the food is good, the service is terrible. Our waiter was very inattentive and seemed unable to deliver anything but warm beer - so warm, we had to go with glasses of ice. To make matters worse, he didn't apologize once for this. Service was also very slow - again, no apologies (waitstaff take note - apologies go a LONG way - patrons understand that things happen). To top this off, when we get our check, which was more than 50% drinks, there is a 20% tip added on. They add 20% to every tab over $100, even with 4 people in a party. Ordinarily I tip 20% as a rule, but I like to reserve the right to tip less if service or food is substandard, which in this case I would have. Not an option at the Rodeo Bar though.

Pros: Food

Cons: Service

Posted 10/12/03

I went to a few bars before but this bartender is decided to make you happy.
Ask for the best, enjoy it and don't forget to tip well.

Pros: drinks, music, service

Cons: upholstery

Posted 09/21/03

I tried to plan a party for a mdeium size group and I was baffled by the lack of cooperation and attitude by the host as well as the Manager. They seemed bothered that I was asking to spend my money at the establishment and were not very forthcoming with the details I would need to plan a 40 person Shin-dig!.. Too bad.. You Lose!.. My money will be spent elsewhere and I assure you I will not even come back in a small party capacity.- Rodeo Bar !!-- Why don't you get out of DODGE !

Posted 01/28/03

Although this bar claims to be a little slice of the mid-west, it is really just another place to kick back, listen to some live tunes, and munch on peanuts. If your looking to get a bit tipsy, or down right smashed, stick with the long islands. At $7.50 a glass it only takes me one to feel it and two to get all smiley. It's pretty loud, and I wouldn't say the music is a reason to go, but the peanuts are worth it and the seating upstairs is quite nice. Advice: get away from the dance floor and just enjoy the company of those you're with.

Pros: strong drinks, frozen margaritas, nice atmosphere

Cons: too loud, bands aren't great, no seating downstairs

Posted 01/09/03

Having grown up in the Midwest, I've seen a cowboy or two in my life and was excited to go to a bar that would be a rockin good cowboy-esque time. We got into the bar, there wasn't much seating, the live entertainment was terrible, either the soundman had no idea how to adjust the mics or the woman singing was being run over by a lawnmower... overall, had an awful time and left after one beer. And the peanuts are unsalted. UNSALTED!!! who does that?

Pros: cool horse trailer, inexpensive, not too crowded

Cons: unsalted peanuts, bad entertainment, boring

Posted 01/03/03

This place has been corrupted by NYC. If it ever was an attempt to be a Texas honkytonk it no longer. Last I checked there wasnt even a Southerner working in the place. My first night in the place a bartender was wearing what appeared to be black leather pants and a rubber skin tight shirt. Another bartender needed assistance on how to make a "garden variety" shot (lemon drop) and yet another refused outright to make a shot I requested. The only thing good about the place is it happens to be the only live venue in the neighborhood. Check it out if you like but you aren't likely to see me in there again.

Pros: Live Entertainment, No cover

Cons: Bartenders, No Southerners

Posted 12/29/02

Well, the food in the Rodeo Bar was out of this world! We went twice in the five days in NYC. Service was fantastic, the food was like nothing I've tasted before (I reccommend the Mashed Potato). Wonderful live music was played for both of our visits, and the drink prices were very good for New York. I want to go there now please!!

Pros: Service, Food, Atmosphere

Cons: Crowded

Posted 11/08/02

I decided to do Texas in the NYC style. After eating mexican food on Irving, we wandered over to the Rodeo Bar. The Tejano band was from San Antonio. The bartender wasn't the best, but was hilarious when dancing country. The bar-back ROCKED (granted, he did his time in Texas). He was very attentive to our needs and made sure the margaritas were perfect. I thank the manager for giving the best of Texas in NYC. I never felt like I had left my home state. The website has several honkey tonk links...all lead back to Austin, my home...and yes, they are pretty much the same as the Rodeo Bar. When I move to NYC, and the nostalgia kicks in, I will visit the bar. No complaints from me, I love knowing that city carries everything!

Pros: great theme, great atmosphere, good times

Cons: bartender's attitude

Posted 10/08/02

the food, especially the cowboy kisses and the poblano spinach enchiladas; the frozen margaritas, the live music and the atmosphere are totally outrageous for the middle of manhattan! I go at least 4 times a week to see some of the best music ever.

Pros: totally laid-back, true texas brisket, best live music scene

Posted 08/12/02

Best bar & restaurant in town ,margaritas and BBQ are all you need at the end of a work week!!1

Posted 08/12/02

1) no cover
2) good bands
3) fun atmosphere
4) not bad food
5) they always remember when you ask for extra lime
6) not too expensive.

Posted 08/11/02

Enjoy the atmosphere, live music, reasonably priced food & drink and....ride em comboy!!

Posted 08/06/02