Stand in the notoriously lengthy line, browse the Sunday Times at your charmingly minute table, and be a part of New York at Barney Greengrass, where the lox is delectably salty and bagels without holes (aka bialys) still exist. Since opening in Harlem in 1908 and moving to the Upper West Side, this family-run institution has brought a century of excellence to Manhattan's borscht-and-latke-loving noshers. Fish for breakfast has never seemed so right as in one of Barney's trademark scrambles – featuring Nova Scotia salmon, sturgeon or lox scrambled with eggs and onions – but you'll also get your pretty penny's worth with a simple bagel and cream cheese. Beer available. Cash only. Serving breakfast and lunch Tue–Sun (until 4 pm Tue–Fri, 5 pm Sat–Sun). Closed Mon.
"Some things shouldn't change; like our obsessive dedication to hand chosen fish specialties and our nearly 100 year old Greengrass character. ... experience "The Sturgeon King's" commitment to Epicurean excellence."
– Barney Greengrass website
"The kitchen makes awesome omelets and all manner of terrific deli dishes."
—The New York Times
"A Formica-clad shrine to smoked fish and everything else that defines the dying art of Jewish appetizing ... savor Barney's raison d'etre: the holy trinity of sturgeon, smoked salmon, or Nova scrambled with eggs and onion, with an H&H bagel and cream cheese on the side."
—New York magazine
"... indulge in a whitefish salad of the gods, a light, almost mousse-like spread imbued with a whisper of smokiness. And, oh, that Nova Scotia lox; I don't think I had better when I visited Nova Scotia."
– Newsday
"Once you have the sturgeon scrambled with eggs & onions at Barney or the sable with a bialy, you'll see why people line up for those tables."
—Delta Sky magazine
How others rate Barney Greengrass
The New York Times
Top Pick
New York magazine
Critics' Pick
Zagat 2009
24 food rating (very good to excellent)
Village Voice
Best Blintzes, 2008 critics' poll