I love the exotic atmosphere, communal seating and especially the outside seating at Backbar. Their food and cocktails are delicious! They waiters are interesting and fun to talk with. The service is good. Their menu has really developed well over the last couple years, and my husband and I love the food there. My only criticism: ditch the plastic cups, and ecologically unsound and annoying disposable take out containers the food is being served in! You used to serve food on dishes and this new development is not good. Hopefully you'll go back to nice dishes and plates and glasses and become a 100% excellent and fun place to eat and drink in Hudson! read more

Summer solstice, full moon, a hot day cooling down to comfortable temps. The bartender was great, music good, casual vibe. My Bok Choy was delicious. It was alive in my mouth. But why was portion so small? This place could really try to figure out how to make a substantial starch to accompany the great tastes they are making in the kitchen. Isn't a restaurant's job to feed people? My friend had the crab....same deal. read more

Cool bar but snotty staff. I had the worst margaritas I've had in many a year here, too. Maybe best to stick to simpler drinks like beer or wine. read more

We were visiting Hudson from Manhattan. Thank goodness for Backbar. The vibe is cool--even chilling outside. The drinks are great. We had a mezcal drink that was amaze. We super enjoyed the apps we had. And honestly, the best part was getting to commune w other peeps outside. It made us feel like normal times--which by the way, is the best. Great environment. Delightful drinks and food. Highly recommend. read more

Fun! Great food, lovely staff and upbeat vibe. 10/10 would go back. Recommend getting a bunch of shareable plates as everything I've tried is great. read more

This new year has had tons of bumps in the road for people and businesses. Once places were able to open up outside I was quick to head over to back bar. They had a variety of drinks and food to order from with their menus online and on a nice board at the counter. The staff took health and safety very seriously; they paid attention to people having masks on, only used disposables and whipped tables down between uses. I also had the pleasure of being greeted by Alex, who's professional attitude gave me the idea he was working in the capacity of manager/owner. Overall I had a great experience and will be back! read more

Tasty food. Loud music. Too loud for lunchtime. Requests to lower the volume went unaccommodated. Maybe they couldn't hear me over the music? read more

Back Bar is a cool spot. Some locals recommended it to us and I'm glad they did! It has a hip outdoor seating area and the music is upbeat and fun. I liked the vibe and the drinks were tasty. It is also dog friendly which always seems more welcoming! read more

Went to Back Bar for the first time today Saturday afternoon with family party of six. There was a sparse crowd but we just stopped for cocktails and a small bite. Ordered a round of drinks and one appetizer but to our amazement after 1/2 hour they brought us just 2 drinks and the appetizer. Mention to the waitress that they forgot the rest of the drinks and was told she didn't take the original order so she didn't know what happened. She left and the drinks still never showed up , so we all just got up and left ! I guess our money or presence is not important to this place so we would never go back. Terrible service, they don't have a clue very sad. read more

I wouldn't even think about feeding my dog with the food from Backbar. The price point is far from the quality. Very much over priced for shitty food. Besides the quality of food the workers were so nasty. This place deserves-5 stars. Shitty shit shit. read more

Tried to place an order over the phone.. I have a few dietary restrictions so I had to ask a few simple questions. I was told to call back because there was a 'long line' all of a sudden. I'm sorry? Is a phone order not part of your line? What a strange way to handle a phone call from a potential customer. Will not be trying to order from here again. Very rude. read more

I understand that we are going through a crisis at the moment and Covid has restaurants constantly changing but the overall experience of this place was not what I expected. This was our last night here at Hudson with my girlfriend and we were excited that this place we planned on going to was actually open on a Wednesday. We didn't expect to feel like we were eating on a parking lot with gravel/rocks on the ground. Tables were not being cleaned after groups left. We managed to find an open table towards the back and waited about 25 minutes for our food and when we got the text that it was ready we were excited. I ordered the sweet potato curry and my girlfriend ordered crispy rice with shrimp. Holy crap the amount of salt put in the rice and shrimp. It was cringe worthy. Literally needed a gallon of water afterwards. My curry had no taste besides the overbearing taste of straight up curry. My total came out to over $80. It's not cool to overcharge tourists that are also escaping this pandemic and trying to make the best of this COVID situation. You guys should reevaluate your food and overall restaurant experience. I don't mind paying $$ for good food but this as not good at all. The pre made slushy drinks were not bad but way too pricey for something pre made. read more

Amazing food and drink- excellent selection for beer and wine. My group of 8 arrived about an hour after opening on a Sunday for brunch and were almost immediately sat by the gracious host. (Thanks man!) our only complaint was that one of our party members was hungover and in desperate need of a quick, carby snack but the menu lacked anything 'instant' read more

You know when you stop in somewhere and you hope it's nice and then it becomes your favourite spot? That's this place. Make no mistake this is a laid back place so if you want somewhere with tablecloths and the waiter tells you about wine pairings, then yeah no, move on. But if you want to stop somewhere with amazing food and great drinks and a super cool vibe, then look no further. If you are the sort of person that needs to be asked 'is cilantro ok' then also maybe reconsider. My girlfriend and I had a great experience here and we rate things in stars a lot and this is five stars. The service was perfect and everyone was welcoming, even on a night when their food and drink menu was limited because of a renovation close the next day. Five stars five stars five stars. read more

Just had dinner here on a Friday night with a group of 5 for a friend's birthday. Food was three stars, but the place has a funky, relaxed atmosphere, and you can happily stay all night sampling things off the menu in waves and soaking up the cozy vibe (which is exactly what we did). We appreciated the fire on a cold January night, and the warm spices of many of the dishes and cocktails. Having spent a lot of time in Southeast Asia, I miss the bold flavors. It was nice to see a broad representation of Thai cuisine - not just the usual suspects. Favorites were the spicy eggplant dip with shrimp "chips" (and they mean spicy, which I appreciate) and cocktails - try the tequila-based, margarita-like one. Fried chicken was tasty (loved the spicy oil they serve with it), but a tad overcooked - one piece almost burnt. Sweet potato curry was a hit. Tofu and sticky bun dishes less so. I wouldn't return for the food specifically, but for an easy, fun night with friends where everyone will find something new to try and get a superb cocktail - absolutely. read more

They are serving their food in to go containers. It's a shame because the food is good. The food deserves a plate. I prefer not to eat out of a box like a pig at the trough. Additionally, they now use a checkbox menu you submit (to the "waiter"? To the bartender? Unclear) with table numbers painted on the table. If you are interested in a dining out experience do not go here. They have ditched traditional table service for a system that is borderline offensive for the price of the small dishes. It is demeaning to eat here and I will never return. read more

We arrived to Back Bar for dim sum brunch on the weekend. Each plate was exploding with flavor. Surprisingly, the standouts were the salt & pepper broccoli and the barbecue pork baos. I recommend going for the more inventive options - the dim sum standbys like shumai were fine but paled compared to the other options. Can't wait to go back. read more

This was the worst lobster roll we've ever had in our whole lives. A good lobster roll isn't that hard to do and shouldn't be experimented too much with. The taste, texture and temperature were all bad. Like not just blah, it was gross! We were horrified by it. We had decided not only was it the worst lobster roll we had ever had, it was the worst meal we've ever had. And don't try the over salty 'fermented' chillis. We tossed it in the bin with the rest of the lobster roll. read more

So cute inside and outside seating options. Pet friendly! Malaysian BBQ, love the fried chicken and Dan Dan noodles. read more

Backbar - Mezcal slushies - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Hudson, New York

Spicy steamed dumplings, good drink selection and great music made for a fun Friday night!

I came to Backbar thinking they'd have good drinks and fun, moderately priced food being that the place is very casual looking. And by casual, I mean strung up Corona bottles and wooden folding chairs. I was shocked to see how expensive the food was. We ordered the salad to share, which was big uncut leaves of romaine with flavorless dressing and seeds sprinkled on top. The tables don't come with forks only chopsticks, so you can imagine how that went. The waitress brought all of our meals out at different times, which was weird and kind of uncouth. My meal came out last. I ordered the skirt steak, which was $22 and it came with Chinese eggplant. The steak was tender and the eggplant was yummy, but the steak came with five thin slices and four tiny pieces of eggplant. I cleared my plate in three minutes. I was starving afterwards as was everyone else at the table. If you're catering to a bar crowd, these prices are unrealistic. I didn't expect to pay $80 for three people to sit on broken wooden chairs in an unheated bar/restaurant with crappy music and overpriced mediocre wannabe-eclectic food. If you eat like a bird and can afford $18 curry served at a bar, this is the place for you! read more

Loved this bar! Very small bar, so you have to be lucky to get seated at the bar. Drinks and local beer selections were the best! The dumplings were also to die for. read more

I frequent Hudson bars and restaurants and don't mind paying for a good meal but their prices definitely do not match the quality of the food they are putting out. Not to mention the rude employees and shitty overpriced beer selection. 1/10 definitely don't recommend and won't be going back when there are so many better options in the surrounding area. Such a shame because it's a nice looking place hope they can get it together read more

So I wrote a mediocre review of this place over the summer. Basically I said if you are not into southeast Asian/spicy food it may not be the place for you, menu was limited, etc. Pretty sure I even said I would try it again and I think I gave it more than one star - wasn't even a terrible review. Somehow, these guys got Yelp to remove the review and I got a message from Yelp saying it was removed because it was not relevant or some such nonsense. I have never heard of such a thing and it goes against everything Yelp is supposed to be about, HONEST reviews. So I'm giving this one star and I would be happy to have this deleted and wiped from the record if my original, non-biased, clean, fair and honest review is re-instated. read more

I went to Back Bar with some friends the other night . It was great. We had such a fun time the music and the atmosphere were fantastic. We were there only for drinks. My friend who loves beers was impressed by all the local drat beers. We ended up staying for some food and that was amazing too. I would definitely go back. read more

Love it! Great atmosphere in the back of a very cool architectural finds and other delights front retail space. Inviting bar and staff. Delicious bites. I went with the fried chicken with the chili honey sauce. Yum! I'd also recommend the bird soup with vermicelli rice noodles, sausage, shiitake and shrimp. Delectable. The wood burning stove only adds to the warm atmosphere. read more

See all

Ordered 2 slushie drinks and chicken lemongrass dumplings. The drinks are premade, so the ice and booze separates but still tastes very good. Had to wait about 20 minutes for the dumplings. When the 5 dumplings are finally called as ready, they were completely cold. Not, these got cold waiting for us, these were fresh from the fridge cold. Taste of the dumplings is good, but just very sloppy food and drink preparation. read more

Over priced, mediocre food, and slow service. The place might be better off as a bar not as a restaurant. The chicken wings had 5 very salty pieces and was $9. The beef skirt was so small in portion it had a few measly slices of zucchini and very few pieces of steak and didn't even come with rice and cost $17! The glass noodle was even more pathetic not worth describing. The chef was probably rationing his ingredients. The two beers took 15 minutes to come in a 1/3 full restaurant. We left the restaurant hungry and feeling ripped off. read more

Backbar - Cocktail Bars Near Me - Hudson, New York

Great bartender, excellent drinks, music and vibe. Some of the best ramen I've ever had.

I love this place as it's my go to for when I want to good meal or a stiff drink and of course to bring friends and celebrate special occasions. The food is delicious and the service is awesome. read more

Come here on a gorgeous spring/summer/fall day and enjoy the huge and open back seating area. Do yourself a favor and order the burger. It's fantastic- crispy on outside and tender on inside. read more

I'm so glad this restaurant is till operating during COVID. Sat in the outdoor tent. Our group had the lemongrass chicken dumplings, teriyaki checked dumplings, noodles, Chinese long beans and roti. Everything was excellent. Wait staff is really friendly and drinks were excellent. Can't wait to come back again. read more

Very cool atmosphere with an great outdoor patio area. Great music and vibe. However, the food is overpriced for the quality and quantity. I think I paid about $60 for 3 plates of 4 dumplings and a broccoli dish, none of which were particularly inspired or interesting. Very standard dipping sauces and a sameness to the fried dumplings. The broccoli dish while good, not worth the over $10 they charge for the dish. If the famous chef's name was not attached to this restaurant, I would say the food would be on par with a TGIF's or Applebee's and half the price. read more

I'm not one for writing reviews but this place was terrible. Its unfortunate because it was really cute and had a nice vibe but the food was awful and the prices are insulting. Ridiculously overpriced and I lived in the city for 10 years. No way in hell I would go back. read more

I'd love to be able to rave about the atmosphere, cocktails, and food, but I need to add my voice to other reviewers who have pointed out the 20% "living wage fee" that is added to any check that orders food at Backbar. My friend and I sat at the bar and had drinks, but then got one order of cumin-spiced tater tots (tots cost = $8). When the check arrived, there was $7 applied for the living wage fee and we asked what it was about. We were told that under NYS law, the front of house staff (i.e. bartenders, waitstaff) could not redistribute tips to back of house staff (i.e. cooks) and this was how they were addressing the issue to make it equitable. I absolutely believe that restaurant employees should earn a living wage, but why is the customer shouldering the cost of the inequity created by the restaurant's owner not paying their cooks a living wage? Not to mention, the fee was not mentioned in advance of our order (we later found it in tiny print on the menu). So our $8 tater tots ultimately cost us $15, plus we still needed to tip the bartender on top of everything. I will skip Backbar in the future and will ask every restaurant I go to what fees they add, because this sort of thing is becoming commonplace now. read more

Back bar has come to be my favorite bar in Hudson!! They always have great drink selections and great food selections. I like that they periodically freshen the menu up and I love trying the new food. Recently tried their burger and its super juicy/flavorful and surprisingly filling for the size. Their fried chicken is delicious, and the fried potatoes is one of my faves to order!! read more

YUM!!!! Have the burger here it was FRESH!! We had beers and a burger and dumplings outside. It was gorgeous. Even during the pandemic these people really came through. Thanks Backbar for awesome service and awesome food. Made coming to Hudson worth it ! read more

Second time in Hudson at The BackBar. Food is great, but service is the worst! Note: not the servers!! both times servers were so polite and professional..they just don't staff properly. First time we were told that they were down a server..i now think they just can't figure it out. Have seen 2 groups of 6 leave...how much lost revenue?? was just told only 1 bartender for the morning...it is 4pm?! focus is on bar and outside backbar suffers, wait...isnt that their name?! I struggle so much with tipping and especially taking poor service into account on a server when management doesn't staff appropriately, but why should I over compensate for management's poor decisions? Management wake up!! read more

Nicely Done...Great Vibes,Good Food,I Had I Fine Time...,Indoor/Outdoor Environment, Cool For Late Night Drinks And A Snack... Differently 4 Stars... read more

Good service, cozy casual setting with a fireplace, cheap beer, good cocktails, and good music.