Park West Tavern is the closest thing to a scene that you’ll get in Ridgewood, especially if you’re on the grey side of 40 – so a funny, expensively dressed and trying hard scene at least. We like to grab a drink, eat at the bar, and watch the cougars jostle with their prey under the influence of some well made cocktails.
Let’s talk about the food…
You can definitely go all in and grab a steak, but I prefer their exceptional bar food. Park West Tavern serves a mouthwatering burger with a side of fries in a basket that must be laced with a light dusting of crack – very good. I tried to order a salad instead of fries once in a futile attempt to make healthy choices, but the mixologist’s raised eyebrow at my sad decision steered my back (correctly) to that basket of goodness. Their steak salad and their sliced steak sandwich are also fantastic choices – my mouth is watering as I write.
On the beverage front…
Park West Tavern takes itself pretty seriously, with mustachioed drink makers and fancy ice – but not too seriously, because they have a list of 25 wines for $25 – outstanding! Contrast that with Roots where you need to pay $25 to sniff a cork or have a decent wine by the glass. Since it’s hard for us to break out of our Ridgewood BYO rut because of all the fine choices in town, this list softens the blow a bit.
The bar area at Park West Tavern isn’t too large and gets crowded on the weekend, but this is a great spot for a casual afternoon drink and a nice meal with really any sort of group or even solo. Only bad experience was mother’s day brunch… but isn’t that often the case? Just go one of the other 365 days and you should be pretty happy. Tip – call ahead to try to reserve the seated area to the left of the bar if you have a big group. The upstairs room is also available for private parties, no doubt for a hefty sum – but it looks like a nice spot should you be into throwing nice parties.