Cafe Ornithology

i love cafe ornithology! i come here in the mornings for doing homework, the coffee and the food are delicious. also i think everything is vegan! the music is also great.

Amazing vibes. Very cool people working here. The hummus and zaatar were astounding. Very reasonably priced for the wonderful experience. Good wine list.

Whitney Sederberg

i love cafe ornithology! i come here in the mornings for doing homework, the coffee and the food are delicious. also i think everything is vegan! the music is also great.

Clemens Berrisch

Great place with delicious food. Well organized and quickly served. Stay here for amazing Jazz sessions!

Prashant Vasudevan

Amazing vibes. Very cool people working here. The hummus and zaatar were astounding. Very reasonably priced for the wonderful experience. Good wine list.

Kenneth Geraci

The cafe is a breathe of fresh air in this Bushwick neighborhood The restaurant serves fresh vegan food Also, offer great cocktails,,wine,beer ,coffee or a pot of tea enjoy live supper Jazz in the cafe or the club music is performed by professional Jazz musicians and is exceptional

Rosie

Great atmosphere, feels cozy inside and the jazz ensemble that was playing the night we were there (Pasquale Grasso Group) was a lot of fun to listen to. The food was good, but maybe not as amazing as I was hoping based on other reviews. I liked that they indicated dishes with nuts on the menu and were able to accommodate for my allergy. I think anybody looking for chill vibes and live music would enjoy this place. We came around 7:00 on a Friday evening and were able to snag a table for dinner, so I recommend coming early if you want a good spot.

james andrea

Visited two days after the opening. The food is great the staff are very friendly and the music is professional. The tables and all of the woodwork were custom made and hand crafted. Lots of love and sweat has been poured into this place. It was a joy to experience this destination.

Jenessa Andrea

Incredible food that happens to also be vegan, inexpensive- I think the most expensive item we got was $16 but most everything is around $10. Brunch menu is what I have pictures of but I’ve been there for dinner too a couple of times and theres a much bigger menu. I dream of the zucchini mint pizza 🥹 I’ve ordered it probably 4 times already. Don’t skip their salads. Live jazz music every night, and jazz records playing during the day. Definitely my new regular spot, we are lucky to have this new gem in bushwick

Kennedy Buchholz

What a gem of a place!!! I have now been for both coffee/pastries during the day and dinner/ jazz show at night. Both were incredible. The morning menu is just an assortment of house made pastries and desserts, I ended up trying one of each thing bc I just couldn’t stop. They start serving a small lunch menu at 1pm!! The space itself is is perfect for getting some work done and hanging out. It’s cozy and has plenty of seating/tables. In the evening, the place turns even more magical. Live jazz every night and a small but delicious menu. Again, everything is made in house. We got the hummus plate, pizza with zucchini and mint, soupe du jour, house salad and a gluten free lemon cake. All were amazing, best hummus I’ve ever had. And the price point of all of it is the cherry on top. Such a beautiful all around!!

Caelin Bryant

Ended up coming here after trying to get into the main ornithology. That being said, this had the same atmosphere as the other room, albeit it being a bit more bright. I had a wonderful time standing around with friends listening to sweet jazz. We brought our young cousins here to listen in and they had a blast. Definitely coming back to the cafe during the day to try the rest of their menu.

Richard Cadrouce

great live music, the hot house beetroot infused mezcal cocktail is insane <3

Julie Park

Such a unique vegan cafe serving the best hummus, dips, and definitely try the mujaddara. So heartwarming to see young people playing and enjoying jazz. Spaces like these are so important and reflect the rich cultural fabric of NYC.

Alannah Fehrenbach

Very chill atmosphere to see music, have a date, or hang with friends. They even have a little bookstore in the back where you can get yourself something to read while you cozy up with a cup of their AMAZING hot chocolate. Food is delicious, vegan, flavorful. I particularly like the bagels which come with various dips, and the seasonal stew. But you really can’t go wrong! During the day they play jazz on vinyl, it’s a very relaxed and cozy atmosphere.

An absolute gem of a place! Randomly came across them and was extremely impressed by the experience. Every dish was a 1000000000000000/10. The ambiance was top tier, the live bands were amazing..I will definitely be back

Excellent place to hear good jazz and have good food. Very reasonable price considering the quality of the food and performers

I didn't have food, but the performers were awesome and this space is more about easy listening than the club, which I didn't know I wanted until I sat down and started listening. I saw a trio and then a pianist joined in. There is some real chemistry in the jazz community that moves through this space, even though this was a jam and they may not have regularly played together, they just knew what they were doing. It seems like a good move to start here then move over to the club for a set with different energy. Again a really music focused space, that's what people are here for. Tip your musicians

What a lovely place to be! The atmosphere is beautiful. The music is the best. Food is so great. And what a lovely staff. We had a reservation but something went wrong. They fixed it beyond expectations! Thanks so much 🙏🏼🙏🏼.

Jeff Simon

Excellent place to hear good jazz and have good food. Very reasonable price considering the quality of the food and performers

Daniel Dieudonne

An absolute gem of a place! Randomly came across them and was extremely impressed by the experience. Every dish was a 1000000000000000/10. The ambiance was top tier, the live bands were amazing..I will definitely be back

carolien brocades zaalberg

What a lovely place to be! The atmosphere is beautiful. The music is the best. Food is so great. And what a lovely staff. We had a reservation but something went wrong. They fixed it beyond expectations! Thanks so much 🙏🏼🙏🏼.

Sarah King

Shouldn’t have got the big hummus plate for one. Should have got the small plate. So good, ate the whole thing. so full, so full for so long. Didn’t feel good. Note to self : order the small hummus plate for one, share the regular one. Pita so good . Couldn’t stop eating it.

Molly Dillon

I didn't have food, but the performers were awesome and this space is more about easy listening than the club, which I didn't know I wanted until I sat down and started listening. I saw a trio and then a pianist joined in. There is some real chemistry in the jazz community that moves through this space, even though this was a jam and they may not have regularly played together, they just knew what they were doing. It seems like a good move to start here then move over to the club for a set with different energy. Again a really music focused space, that's what people are here for. Tip your musicians

The food can be hit or miss and the menu is small. The cover is always there now and getting more expensive. It doesn't feel like the deal it used to be a couple years ago. But they have more space and events and still good if not great jazz every night. But for the money? Maybe go to Manhattan for really good jazz now. It's a local bk spot

Really wanted to love this place, especially since it replaced Brooklyn Whiskers, but it was kind of a letdown. The $20 cover charge was a shock, especially when we were there for dinner. They had a student discount, but apparently you have to have a physical student ID—wouldn’t take my class schedule with registration details, virtual ID, or even my driver’s license (which is more up-to-date). Also the place was popping so idk why they were fighting so hard to not give me the discount. There was also a card fee for the cover. We even asked if we could just sit outside and take our food to go, but they still wanted to charge us. Not sure if they start charging at a certain time, but we got there around 8pm. Food-wise, the hummus was good, but the pizza was pretty mid for the price—$20 for tomato and arugula, no vegan cheese or meat. Also the hummus plate was big but it only came with 2 tiny pieces of bread. We litterally had to eat the rest with a spoon. I came because it was listed as “vegan cheap eats in BK,” but prices are way up and portions don’t match. Cool vibe inside, but not worth paying cover on top of dinner and drinks. At least throw in a drink or app if we’re paying both. Pretty bummed, especially since it took over Brooklyn Whiskers.

Alekhya Voleti

Really wanted to love this place, especially since it replaced Brooklyn Whiskers, but it was kind of a letdown. The $20 cover charge was a shock, especially when we were there for dinner. They had a student discount, but apparently you have to have a physical student ID—wouldn’t take my class schedule with registration details, virtual ID, or even my driver’s license (which is more up-to-date). Also the place was popping so idk why they were fighting so hard to not give me the discount. There was also a card fee for the cover. We even asked if we could just sit outside and take our food to go, but they still wanted to charge us. Not sure if they start charging at a certain time, but we got there around 8pm. Food-wise, the hummus was good, but the pizza was pretty mid for the price—$20 for tomato and arugula, no vegan cheese or meat. Also the hummus plate was big but it only came with 2 tiny pieces of bread. We litterally had to eat the rest with a spoon. I came because it was listed as “vegan cheap eats in BK,” but prices are way up and portions don’t match. Cool vibe inside, but not worth paying cover on top of dinner and drinks. At least throw in a drink or app if we’re paying both. Pretty bummed, especially since it took over Brooklyn Whiskers.

I didn’t know this was a “jazz bar”, I came here like to a Café for dinner. The manager (blonde guy) at the entrance didn’t explain that the ticket fee at the entrance and the table seating weren’t included in the bill you order. In the end, I was very surprised that I had to pay for the table plus my dinner. The manager didn’t bother to properly communicate or correct the situation. The jazz that night was so-so, the service AWFUL, the atmosphere good. Thank you

Honestly the worst experience I’ve had going out in NYC in a long time. We went to both venues as a party of 6 on a Tuesday night. We went to the club location first, and got extremely dirty looks from both staff and other guests. There was no sitting room, and we felt like we were blocking people’s view, so we went to the cafe location. The person at the door told us that we could either have two tables put together or sit in front of the bar. No one moved to put the tables together or seat us, so we sat ourselves in front of the band. Honestly speaking, the band was not good but that is not where my most of my disappointment lies. Our party of 6 was the ONLY group of Black people in this establishment, a jazz venue with an entire gallery wall dedicated to Black jazz artists as well as African and Black art. A member of the staff approached us, told us that we “need to hush because other people cannot hear the band”, and walked off before anyone could even blink. When our waiter came by to check on us, I asked why we were the only group asked to hush, when the cafe was full of at least 5 other groups of 2-4 people, and no one else was asked to hush. In response, the waiter did not apologize or even acknowledge what was said, they simply stood up and told the entire room to tone it down. We were made extremely uncomfortable by this, and left shortly after. It is important to recognize when you are a guest in a genre and culture, and should probably not be discriminatory to the natives of this culture. All 6 of us paid a $20 cover and ordered off the menu, so be told to shut up when this cafe made ample money off of us was beyond insulting. If you are Black or POC, find a different jazz bar and save yourself the micro aggressions and disappointment.

zuhura

Honestly the worst experience I’ve had going out in NYC in a long time. We went to both venues as a party of 6 on a Tuesday night. We went to the club location first, and got extremely dirty looks from both staff and other guests. There was no sitting room, and we felt like we were blocking people’s view, so we went to the cafe location. The person at the door told us that we could either have two tables put together or sit in front of the bar. No one moved to put the tables together or seat us, so we sat ourselves in front of the band. Honestly speaking, the band was not good but that is not where my most of my disappointment lies. Our party of 6 was the ONLY group of Black people in this establishment, a jazz venue with an entire gallery wall dedicated to Black jazz artists as well as African and Black art. A member of the staff approached us, told us that we “need to hush because other people cannot hear the band”, and walked off before anyone could even blink. When our waiter came by to check on us, I asked why we were the only group asked to hush, when the cafe was full of at least 5 other groups of 2-4 people, and no one else was asked to hush. In response, the waiter did not apologize or even acknowledge what was said, they simply stood up and told the entire room to tone it down. We were made extremely uncomfortable by this, and left shortly after. It is important to recognize when you are a guest in a genre and culture, and should probably not be discriminatory to the natives of this culture. All 6 of us paid a $20 cover and ordered off the menu, so be told to shut up when this cafe made ample money off of us was beyond insulting. If you are Black or POC, find a different jazz bar and save yourself the micro aggressions and disappointment.

Otar Jabniashvili

I didn’t know this was a “jazz bar”, I came here like to a Café for dinner. The manager (blonde guy) at the entrance didn’t explain that the ticket fee at the entrance and the table seating weren’t included in the bill you order. In the end, I was very surprised that I had to pay for the table plus my dinner. The manager didn’t bother to properly communicate or correct the situation. The jazz that night was so-so, the service AWFUL, the atmosphere good. Thank you