Opal

Well, o.k., being the world traveler, living in numerous cities internationally and being the fact that I'm a native new yorker,... "You Can Not Get Over On Me...!!!!" Now, here's how I deal with people on a 1 to 1 basis, you respect me, I respect you back, "you disrespect me and you will feel the wrath of Khan"...!!! So I'm with my friend whom also is a world traveler and I'm saying this to you reading this review because it's important that you know that myself and my friend, "OWNERS OF OUR OWN BUSINESSES" know how to treat customers and we know how to deal with a potential client. So with this said, "now we are at OPAL after 6ish kinda like 7 or so, and, we are in the room where it's the club part with the bar, he orders a stella and I order a Guiness. Now you have to know that by being native new yorkers and travel, that we know when beer, wine or premium drinks do not taste right and in this case this was the case. First, he drinks his drink but not normally, he keeps taking this little sips.... and then finally, I ask what is up...??, and he says, "hey man, this Stella draft taste not good at all, and I think there beer line is dirty, so I take a sip of his beer and it was like "AWFUL"...!!!, so I said, o.k., lets go into the main room, because in the club room it was noisy, packed and they had 2 bartenders barely paying attention to us. So in the next room, "the main entrance room" i walk up to the bartender and without a word, she rolled her eyes and sucked her teeth," """!!!!!! daaammnn !!!!!!!!""" , "I mean if I would have known what was about to happen to me I would have left the bar. But freak that, I've lived long enough to know that new york is made up of nothing but the concern of MONEY...!!!, so I explained what happened and she rudely just walked away, but I yelled, "Listen, "I"M NOT GOING ANYWHERE YOU RUDE CHIC"s """""!!!! "Now I want another beer from your line, the same one and make that s--t fast and make it now...!!!" So with this crazy psycho attitude she made the drink fast and walked away, and I said, "YOUR DAMN RIGHT I'M NOT PAYING FOR THAT S--T B---H" !!!! then I turned to my friend bringing the beer to him calmly and cool, and I said, "See what I had to do but they gave me no lip because I turned it up so fast and quick they didn't even know who to respond, so OPAL BAR YOU SSSSSSSUUUUUUUUCCCKKKK!!! YOUR NOISY, DIRTY AND ATTITUDES FLAIR FROM STAFF MOST TIMES, AND YOUR A LITTLE RACIST TOO FROM WHAT ME AND MY FRIEND FELT, SO Go to the TWILIGHT ZONE CAUSE LOST IS WHERE YOU NEED TO BE AND TAKE YOUR STAFF WITH YOU, THEY SUCK AS WELL......LMAO, LMAO !!!!! I'M NEVER COMING BACK TO GIVE YOU AAANNYYY MONEY, and people of respect and class "I do not recommend this place to you at all" That's it....!!! more

Terrible experience. I'm not a difficult customer, but considering the experience I had last night, I recommend you avoid this place at all cost. Plenty of respectful and good bars in New York. Absolutely no reason to waste your money here. We were in the backroom and had already ordered a few rounds. When i came back for a third or fourth round, I saw that the bartender was making the drinks extremely weak (90% mixer with a splash of alcohol). I asked her if she could make them a little bit stronger. First she ignores me. When I repeat my request, she just says, "take it or leave it." I declined the drinks and turned around to go to the front bar to maybe get better drinks. At that point she drops the glasses on the bar on purpose splashing the drinks all over my shirt. That level of disrespect is unheard of. Previous to this she had also failed to bring back my change to the $20 bills I was paying her and effectively "assumed" all remainder were tips. It took us 10-15 minutes to see the manager. He shows up and when we tell him the story, he just offers to buy us a round. This is when another random guy comes up and starts complaining about the same bartender to him. At the same time he was talking to us, he was also picking fights and disagreements with other customers around. When someone bumped into him trying to get around him, he moved out his elbow into her and turned around and rudely got into a back and forth with her. He is the "Manager." Clearly setting an example and managing his staff are not his areas of expertise though. Here is one of his statements during the conversation, "I deal with a lot of pretty cu*ts that work here." Classy. We declined the shots and walked out. There is a price for dignity, respect, and a ruined shirt. I don't think I'll let a round of shots erase all that. Avoid this place. We go out and spend money to enjoy the company of our friends and family. There is no place for such disrespect and lack of professionalism. Spend your money at a place where you don't have to deal with a bartender spilling drinks on you. Seriously? Highlights: Weak Drinks, The Rudest Bartender I Have Ever Met, Rude and Ineffective Management. AVOID / AVOID / AVOID. Pros: Decent Music Cons: Weak Drinks, The Rudest Bartender I Have Ever Met more

This bar is just full of surprises! We came in on a Saturday night with crazy rain and wind so it was kind of empty. But they have two rooms and we were at the room in the back where there are booths, dance floor and a live DJ spinning great hip-hop mixes. Drinks here are good price and everyone was having a good time on the dance floor. It is not as crazy as a club but definitely pretty fun for a bar. If I do live at midtown East, I will come here for a fun night out. Pros: Dance floor, cheap drinks more

I work nearby. So my coworkers and Ilove to go to opal. Cause they have such a good deal on Thursday night. $20 all you can drink beer and wine and small platter from 6-9pm.. who doesn't like that kind of deal?? more

I am a young professional who has spent a lot of time throughout the years down the second ave. bar scene. When Opal first opened, I loved going there. I even planned a surprise birthday party there and had a blast. Went back with a large group recently and the bouncers gave us a hard time. I let that pass when the same group wanted to go back. Well it happened again and to others around us. I'm done.... this place has hired the most ignorant and rude bouncers (I'm trying really hard not to curse right now). Be careful because they will ruin your night! Just because they have a guaranteed crowd on the weekends doesn't give them a right to treat people like they are lucky to be there; it’s not that great of a place. I would get rid of all of them. It’s a shame because now I will never go back again. Pros: Bartenders Cons: Too Crowded, Bouncers act like gods more

it just seemed like the typical midtown bar...crowd was young urban professional acting as they would in college. really crowded also, it was hard to get outside for a smoke. on the flipside, the dj was playing good stuff, the kind of thing that gets you moving and the staff was really chill as well. there were wayyy too many guys, and for some reason, they did not seem to be approaching anyone. all in all, nothing special, definitely reflective of people that work in the area. Pros: staff and bouncers were friendly, dj was good Cons: crowded, the crowd itself was ehhh more

Beer, appletinis, and cosmos were $5 on Thursday night until 10. There was a good DJ and the place was crowded. more

Had a great night, went there on May 30, 2008. For girls night out!! Friendly atmoshpere, bartenders are great!! Cons: parking more

this is a great place.. had a great time when i went here.. bartenders are so accomodating, and the crowd is awesome. overall a definite must in nyc.. .totally awesome. great bar! more

I went here the weekend before last and had an awful time. The bouncers were incredibly rude and just had really nasty attitudes. The bartenders were nice (of course, they rely on tips) but it wasn't enough to salvage this place. Luckily it's near some much better places to go. more

I had a great time, the people and the staffs are very friendly. The food was served on schedule and the place is very nice. more

An okay bar wrecked by a bouncer! This one possibly illegal. One of our group was visiting from New Orleans. He's a likable young man, with a severe stutter. After half a dozen of us were seated, there's a knock on the window. I go out to talk to him. The bouncer will not let him in because "of a dress code." There is no dress code. People inside are wearing everything from suits to tracksuits. (The crowd looks like guys on steroids trying to make barely 20-somethings.) I try to talk to the bouncer. "He's a friend of yours?" asks the bouncer. I said yes. "He can't come in," he says. "There's a dress code. He needs to talk to me." Given the uncomfortable situation, the stutter became so severe that my friend was unable to talk. "Can't you just let him in?" I ask. It was becoming clear that the reason he was refused was more his speech impediment (making people feel" uneasy") than any dress code. When I went outside to mediate, the bouncer turned his back on me and walked inside. My friend (who was visiting for just a few days) was forced to leave. This spoiled the night for all of us. Side note: The Federal AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT makes it illegal to discriminate against people with disabilities. Looks like that's what we have here. I only wish I were a lawyer. --Drink Club is a roving group of NYC drinkers Pros: Waitress was attractive and accommodating Cons: Evil Bouncer, discriminatory policy, jocks and airheads more

I cwent to Opal because it won one of the best after-work bars on citysearch, so I headed out on a Friday and stayed from 6pm-9pm. With all the great bars in the city, I don't understand why anyone would choose to come to this one. The crowd: Male-fest! There were literally about 5 women in the whole place. It was 95% over-30's males, and they all looked like they work in the IT department at Initech. And that's fine so long as they're interesting to chat with, but they're not. It looked like a high school dance. Everyone kept to themselves in their groups and talked to no one. The drinks were okay, nothing to write home about. Same for prices. The one good thing was that the music was actually pretty good. All in all, this place was just mediocre! Pros: Easy to get a table Cons: Lame crowd, Mediocre service more

Had a private event here not too long ago and I have to say it was great! The room was nice a cozy, perfect size. The staff was very accomodating and helpful. DJ played great music. Oh and the appetizers that we had passed around were so tatsy! I have to say I was very impresses by Opal, I booked it figuring it would be good but they far beyond exceeded my expectations and I cant wait to stop by one night with some friends again! Thanks OPAL!!! Pros: Great Private Party Service, Good Bartendars, DJ and great food~! more

They have recently renovated thier party room and it is great! Real nice space. Staff is very attentive and friendly! If you are looking for the perfect place for a bday or any other kind of party coming up Opal is an awesome place. Pros: Happy hour, private parties Cons: Nothing! more

I went to Opal for my birthday and was pleasantly surprized. We got this private lounge area downstairs which was quite comfortable. I had about 35 people and there was still room to dance after my champagne toast. When I asked about specials I found I had many options, even a cake. I was able to take my mind off of worrying about details and concentrate on having fun!! The price was decent and the service was great. I'd reccommend it. Pros: Birthday party was great, service Cons: None more

Fun happy hour spot, good place to meet guys or girls in suits. Laid-back vibe, unpretentious. Average prices for midtown. I like to come here after work; it gets really packed with the after-work crowd. Lots of mingling, just a very chill, trendy spot. more

If you want to throw a surprise party for a friend or celebrate your bday w/ pals--definitely check this place out for location/set-up. Their lounge downstairs is perfect for friends to be able to sit around and talk and drink-you'll be able to hear each other/see each other/feel each other, whatever you like. If you're going there and are not invited to the party downstairs, the place is kinda lame. Pros: Private Parties, Location Cons: Private Parties if you're not invited more

I went after work, and found the place to be your sorta typical after-work, lame, pick-up'y, people getting drunk kind of place. People acting fake, shallow, etc. I personally prefer more subdued places... where you can actually have conversation, i.e., hotel bars like the Chambers Hotel, etc.. I'd never go back to Opal myself. I only went there because some co-workers wanted to go there for drinks. more

This place makes a fairly nice sports bar, with pool tables and tvs showing the latest game. So I have no idea why the reviews here try to make it sound like a hot ultra-lounge. Nothing wrong with sports bars -- if you like those, you'll like this one. But just know that's what you're getting, rather than some glamarous lounge. more