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Veselka
- Restaurants
- New York, NY
About this business
While the East Village has long been a hip neighborhood, it was first known as an ethnic community. The Ukrainian restaurant Veselka is a remnant of that history. This combination luncheonette and sidewalk cafe with an Eastern European air features breakfast muffins, bagels, potato pancakes and cheese blintzes among other selections. For lunch, a hearty borscht and their famouspierogies should do the trick, while a dinnermeal ofkielbasa or veal goulash should leave you smiling and satisfied.
Location details
144 2nd Ave, New York, NY, 10003, United States
Get directions| Weekday | Schedule | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | |
| Tue | 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | |
| Wed | 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | |
| Thu | 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | |
| Fri | 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. | |
| Sat | Closed | |
| Sun | Closed |
Pierogies, yummy – Velselka has really good pierogies. The rest of their food is standard diner fare. If you are hungry and you want polish accented diner food then go here. Definitely not a place to eat if you are looking for any more than that. Service is also really slow and semi unattentive.
don't leave without eating the meatballs – you must get the meatballs!!! i'm not even a fan of meat, but they were delicious. unlimited coffee refills. but beware of the staff. some are very moody and ignore you until it's time to tip them.
Very Good Eastern European Food – I visited Veselka seven times during a three week visit to New York and never left dissatisfied. The service was very good though they tended to be a little slow with the check. On the other hand, I never felt rushed to vacate the place at the end of my meal. Sit near the back and enjoy the wonderful original mural painted on the back walls. I was only a little disappointed in the stuffed cabbage and pierogies but only because the Ukrainian recipes were somewhat different than the Croatian/S... read more
great comfort food – The best place for hot soup on a cold day, great pierogies and borscht. Be sure to visit J. Bacynsky's across the street for Babka afterward.
Memories of Grandma – If you are Eastern Eurpoean, Ukranian, and so on, this place will bring you back to time when grandma was rolling out the pierogi dough in her kitchen and frying the onions in tons of butter. I usually come in the colder months for takeout soup (try the mushroom barley) after paying a visit to the butcher across the street for some kielbasa, but last night some friends and I hopped in a cab late night, some 40 blocks to get some cold borscht, blintzes, pierogis, and stuffed cabbage. What a treat! Touris... read more
overpriced tourist spot – The great thing about NYC is that there are so many restaurants that you only have to visit the bad ones once. Not that Veselka is horrible, it is just VERY average. Unfortunately it poses as a far above-average spot and people are being fooled. Watch the lines on any given weekend. The food is only mediocre at best. The coffee is atrocious. If you want a good deal on Polish or Ukranian food, go over to 1st ave to one of the diners between 10th and 14th Street -- Neptune or similar. Lots of good foo... read more
So many choices – Have only been here once. You know those places where you sit down and look at the menu and you can't decide what to order because so many things sound good? This is one of those places. A good mix of tradional diner offerings mixed in with great-sounding Ukrainian options. Opted for the "Deluxe Meat Combo Plate" - portions weren't huge...but enough to fill me up. Everything was good. I now only feel the need to go back to try all the other things I didn't order the first time.
Makes me proud to be Ukrainian – My grandma used to take me here when I was little...she used to tell me that they were the only people in the world that make pierogis like hers. And it's true. Maybe I'm biased, but this is a great dive-y type place to go on the LES with a couple of friends before a big night of drinking. Try the beet salad, yum! The pierogis, of course, the borscht with sour cream, and if you're really daring, give the kasha varnishkes a shot. One bad thing - the Ukrainian beer - tastes like Shlitz. The ser... read more
If you're looking for great comfort food in a slightly funky, very busy setting, this is the place to go. This is a solid diner, but a diner nonetheless. Veselka's does offer one of the best cups of coffee in the city (when the brew is fresh). If you're going for weekend brunch, try the raspberry pancakes. The desserts are also solidly respectable, if you still have room after all those pierogi.
Frequently asked questions about Veselka
How is Veselka rated?
Veselka has a 4.6 star rating with 7,265 reviews.
When is Veselka open?
Veselka is closed now. It will open at 9:00 a.m.
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