While I didn't get to every "must have" on my Capital District World Tour, a weather-influenced schedule change brought me to the delightful Smith's. This is a true locals joint but tourists won't cause a cinematic music halt. The waitress was excellent, providing helpful suggestions. I got the Spindle City Cutlet based on its name and its appearance in the Yelp summary, whereas actual Yelpers turned in more votes for spicy rigatoni. I don't know the formal definition of "pan sauce" but based on Smith's I reckon it's like gravy, only better. Smith's is a long way from JC but someday I hope to make it back in better weather for waterfall viewing. I do hope the limited-time Pierogi Bun Smashburger has a shorter interval between appearances than the McRib. read more

I really liked this place! The atmosphere is sophisticated and moody and fun. Our server was great and was highly entertaining! He knew every item on the menu from personal experience because he has tried everything. He was able to make great suggestions for our meal. I got the hibiscus lemonade for my drink from the mocktail menu, which was stupendous. I did something I never do and ordered the chicken Parm off this menu. And to my great surprise, I was not disappointed! They have a very good chicken Parm! I got the house salad, and that was also good. And our waiter suggested the lemon blueberry cake for dessert which was also great and so dense and filling that it ended up being breakfast the next day as well with a lovely cup of tea. This was a wonderful experience and I will be back. read more

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We came here for dinner on a Monday. We've tried to get in here on a Thursday without a reservation which is impossible, but Monday you have a good chance! The front bar was busy. We opted for a table in the dining room. We were seated and given menus with soft leather covers and a glass bottle of water with a flip top to keep it cold. There were a few dishes I wanted to try. I opted for fish and chips. Holy moly. The thing is huge! Atop of a full plate of fries, this is definitely two or three meals. The fish was perfectly crunchy coated. My dinner mate got the chicken parm special. I believe that is their Monday weekly special. It's normally over $23 but $18+ on Monday. Like the fish fry, it was huge and came with a plateful of rigatoni. You have a choice of fettuccine or rigatoni. Also comes with bread and a salad. Great deal! The dining room is pretty big and even has an area in front of a cozy fireplace and has a back bar. A popular spot in downtown Cohoes! read more

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Been a few times now. Love the decor and vibe. The food always looks great but it's average for the most part. My favorites from the regular menu so far have been the mozz sticks and wings. The house salad and Encrusted Haddock were also good. I recommend going if you're in the Cohoes area. read more

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Really saddened to have to give this review a 3.5 star rating but Yelp is an honest place to write my review based on my own experiences. I love the other associated restaurants so when I heard they took over this old known restaurant I was excited to come back and give it a try. I was over there a few years back and it was good food known for their wood fried pizza. Was able to make a reservation online which was really convenient since we have littles to coordinate. Downside is there is no off street parking lot, however there is the cities lot close by. Walk into the bar which is most of the front with high tops. The hostess sat us right away in a comfy 2 top with cushions chairs. Really nice fireplace with couches in the room and then another dinning room with tables and chairs. The table had a mini light for the ambiance however it wasn't effective, I felt uncomfortable as I couldn't read the menu and had to use my phones light to see . Server took a while to greet us. Drinks took longer than expected to be delivered. Apps came out timely. Dinner also came out timely but the server didn't really come back once we were eating, wasn't able to order another cocktail which was whatever. My husband ordered the salmon and it was like they just added sea salt to the top of the bowl and salmon like tooooo much salt, no other flavors. He was disappointed with it. The beef sliders were good but more of a meal than an app. The French onion soup didn't have the mound of cheese on the top melted like it normally does. The chicken parm was good and the vodka sauce was just okay, nothing terribly special. Like I said I was kind of disappointed with it all. Additionally they charge you a percentage fee assuming you're putting it on a credit card. I know that a lot of places have been doing this. Something to be aware of. read more

Smith’s Public House - Chicken Parmesan. Vodka sauce - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

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Smith's is such a historical gem! I visited on a weeknight and the place was nearly packed so definitely make a reservation, especially if you have a large party. My party of four was sat in the back of the restaurant, which was such a beautiful, cozy space. There were couches, a beautiful Christmas tree and fire place. The ambiance was 10/10! Now onto the food, we started with the Spinach Artichoke Dip, which was served with toast points. It was rich and creamy, and so good. For my entree, I ordered the Chicken Parm with vodka sauce and opted for a side of asparagus instead of pasta. I love the fact that you can get vodka sauce on your chicken parm! My boyfriend ordered the Spicy Rigatoni. Both entrees were delicious and we both had leftovers for the next day. Overall, Smith's is a historic restaurant that definitely has a vibrant future in Cohoes! read more

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Haven't been here in years and gotta say, I can't wait to come back. The food was exceptional and the staff was amazing and attentive. The cozy atmosphere made it that much better. read more

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We've been here a few times now and have really enjoyed our appetizers and meals. The service is always fast despite being so busy you need a reservation. However, last night my wife and I were having our dinner and our waitress/bartender made jokes suggesting my wife was overweight based on how much of her dinner she had eaten. We will return but we won't ever accept service from her. read more

A friend and I stopped in after leaving a nearby candlelight event, and we're so glad we did. I had the NY strip steak, and she ordered the bourbon salmon with an upgrade to the crispy Brussels sprouts--everything was absolutely delicious. Our server, Jeff, was attentive without being overbearing, which made the experience even better. I'll definitely be coming back! read more

Service was horrendous, didn't get drinks for over 10 minutes (sodas, 1 cocktail) apps brought out after entree, we waited forever for our entrees and figured we'd just never get our apps, when we were finallyyyy served and I say "we" but 2 people sat waiting while everyone else was served, food was either incorrect and most of us had an issue with our entree accept one in our party of 5 people. Just unacceptable. The way the restaurant looks is the only part of the dinner that was decent. We're just never going to go back. Poor management. Restaurant seems to be tanking. I hope things turn around for this an honest review from roughly 8 months ago. read more

Great old Remsen Street haunt with good food priced right! Street parking only. Original bar the runs the entire length of the front room from backing the day, with old style banquets, tin ceiling and old school photos of Mike Smith from the 30's. read more

Smith’s Public House - a group of people sitting at a bar - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

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Had lunch here yesterday with some friends from work, very good, great service and atmosphere. I had a chicken pasta dish, superb. My friends had the short rib sandwiches, all said delicious. I recommend and will go back. read more

Smith’s Public House - Short Rib Sandwich!! - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

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Smith's reopened in June under new ownership. I've heard so much about this place. This visit would be my first. I couldn't wait to see it. I was not disappointed. The food and service are great but it's the architecture, interior design and ambiance that you'll notice first. The new owner renamed it Smith's Public House and seems to have restored the place to its original grandeur. It's gorgeous. As explained in the menu, Smith's dates back to 1937. Walking through the door is like stepping back in time. There's a beautiful, massive antique bar, tin ceiling tiles, a luxurious red padded circle booth, cool light fixtures as well as floor tiling. The full bar appears to be very well stocked. The bartender was Mary Grace. She was friendly and helpful. For lunch in the Spindle City, I ordered the Spindle City Cutlet. It consisted of a breaded chicken cutlet with mash potatoes and an arugula salad. It was delicious. My photos don't show any patrons. There was, in fact, an impressive lunchtime crowd. I just didn't have permission to photograph any of them. I look forward to coming back. Smith's Public House has it all. Great ambiance, service and food. read more

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I went there for dinner last night with my husband. Drinks were good and servers were friendly. The pasta stuffed eggs rolls were very good. But for dinner I ordered the haddock and risotto with asparagus. The medium sized piece of haddock was good but the risotto and asparagus were inedible. There was soooooo much salt you couldn't even eat it. The waitress said she would tell the chef. Two thirds of a $28 dollar dinner was inedible and telling the chef was it. Will not return to this restaurant. read more

We were very disappointed at our experience at the restaurant tonight we had 630 reservations. We were not set till 645 after having to stand for 45 minutes before getting a seat at the bar to have a cocktail once we were sat, we never got our server to take our order for 30 minutes. Food was mediocre at best. We spent 2 1/2 hours at the table and had and only had burger and sandwiches for dinner we used to like this restaurant a lot prior to the pandemic at best. We will not be going back anytime soon. read more

Loved smiths! Had dinner last night - enjoyed it all, especially my spicy rigatoni. Will definitely be back! read more

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Talk about wonderful holiday ambiance, went in for a night cap, sat in front of the fire. The place was busy and lively.

Arrived 30 minutes early for a reservation. Checked-in and was told no seats available so hung at the bar. Bartender got us drinks right away which was refreshing. Stout pours. So far so good. 30 minutes goes by - no one has checked with us so speak with the hostess again. She says they just need to bus our table. Back to the bar and a group of 5 jumps our table - hostess does nothing. Waitress does nothing. 45 minutes in (so now 15 minutes after our reservation time), check with the hostess again, same message - just need to bus your table. That table turns out to be the worst in the house ... which was also vacant from pretty much the moment we walked in the door (?). Finally get seated. 5 minutes goes by ... no waitress. We see her serving others. Tell my buddy - if the waitress doesn't come in the next 5 minutes we're out. Watch her serve the table next to us, try to get her attention, she scurries away. Still clearly ignoring us ... so we walked out. What the heck is with the Cohoes restaurant scene - rudest two experiences ever both here and next door. read more

New to the area, and thrilled to have discovered this gem. Incredibly inviting with an upscale dive-bar vibe (a good thing) this is now my watering hole of choice. Cold beer, good food, and an incredibly comfortable atmosphere. read more

It started with drink with no alcohol in it then it continued to food I wouldn't serve to jail bird. Fish and chips shouldn't be so hard to make, however what came out of the kitchen is beyond well done. Lemon dried up and fish needed steak knife to stab through to attempt to eat. Savior of the dish basic fries that even four year old could take out of freezer and warm up in the toaster oven. If you don't believe me take a look at picture of dried up plate. Quite sad as I really liked the atmosphere. read more

Smith’s Public House - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

I had Miso Glazed Salmon last night that was absolutely amazing!! So delicious, I want it again tonight!! My husband had Tuscan Chicken Pasta and he really enjoyed it too. Beautiful restaurant. I'll definitely be there again, highly recommend. read more

Smith’s Public House - Miso Salmon - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

our family celebrated my mother's 94th birthday in Smith's warm and spacious atmosphere and the service, accomodating among us 2 wheelchair bound guests, was impeccable. the food was well prepared and we were made to feel at home, even the waitress alerting us politely when the the Star Bus arrived for our wheeled family members. A perfect score for a perfect dining and service experience. read more

Smith’s Public House - a perfect birthday party - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

Nice place that I will visit again. Pizza was tasty and beer cold, at a reasonable price too!

Food was very good and the service was very good as well. The ambience is very nice and I would definitely recommend going back a nice place for pub food. read more

Smith’s Public House - Menu - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

My son brought me here for dinner one day and the Food , service was right on point . One of my favorite spots now . Be there 4 times and each time it's been very consistent in flavors and drinks . Check it out ! read more

the food was not good I had a grilled cheese and it was so hard and not much cheese it was not good, other people with me had burgers and there was so much pepper on them they couldn't even eat them and you should not put pepper on fries people can add their own not good, another person I was with they burnt her burger so bad it was hard as a rock. read more

Great to have the classic Smith's back with a modern twist. Mixed drinks were excellent, BLT was thick pork belly, salad was fresh. Love the new lounge setup by the fireplace. And so great to see the original history (bar, booths, floors) in tact, mixed with the newer whiskey-barrel theme. Service was quick and friendly, too! read more

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We are here for lunch twice. The first time our experience was wonderful. Our server was pleasant and attentive and the food was delicious. We liked it so much we came back with friends. Two of us got roast beef sandwiches which were almost inedible. The rolls were stale and the beef tough as nails. The server didn't come back till the others were almost finished. She never asked how the food was, and apparently didn't notice that 2 of us never even ate our food and didn't want it wrapped. We just paid and left. We will not go back. read more

"All talk no walk" This place LOOKS so nice! We came in for a couple of apps and drinks before a show next door. The drinks were bad, the wings were inedible, and the "short rib" sliders just tasted like pulled pork I could make better at home. We spent 85 dollars to not enjoy anything besides one another's company. So incredibly disappointed. Avoid this place, save your money. read more

I noticed there were many young children here, however there were many violent, bloody, and explicit scenes on the television that was too low for my liking and lowkey forcing people to watch it. Who wants to watch that while they're eating?! There was scenes of people getting shot in the mouth, hands getting cut off with an axe, and so many fight scenes that were way too explicit to watch while eating. Also, my food was burnt. The waitress was nice though! read more

Loved the food and atmosphere here... Don't live in the area and decided on this spot for a date that lived nearby. We were not disappointed. read more

Heard and read a lot of good things about Smith's so we decided to go. The food was decent - menu not too exciting. Beer list ok. The atmosphere is weird. The place is huge but lots of unused space. The faux fireplace in the middle room is nice - a few big couches in front - but no one sitting there. Wonder if it would be better to put more tables in that room instead. Tables in back with a second unopened bar. The back room felt very generic like someone's basement. The lights in both the bar area and back room were on very bright. Not sure if we will return. read more

We had tickets to a show so we got there early. A party of 8 was seated after us and got their food first. We finally got our orders and it wasn't hot al all, barely warm. read more

We were excited to go back to Smith's and try under the new owner. Started with the mozzarella sticks (logs), and they did not disappoint. Also had the arancini, that too was delicious, but not hot, even a bit cold inside. Dinner was the haddock for me, which was delicious, but the risotto was undercooked. Little hard bits of rice were unpleasant. hubby had the burger with short ribs, which was supposed to be med-rare, but came out well done. The neighbors had the Tuscan chicken pasta that she was was bland, and and he had the Philadelphia with jalepenos. His response was nothing great. The place was loud, bar crowd lively and the drinks were good! Old fashioned for me and espresso martini for my neighbor. Both were delicious. Wish they paid as much attention to the food as they do the drinks! read more

I live right down the street and finally got myself here. 10/10 must go. The inside is gorgeous the atmosphere is lovely. The food was so delicious and the service was great. This will be a regular place for us now! read more

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First time going to Smith's and the last for sure. We ordered Salmon over whipped sweet potatoes with Brussel sprouts for one meal. The salmon was way over cooked, the sweet potatoes were cold, had huge lumps in them and the brussel sprouts were cold and half raw. The other meal was Chicken pesto, the pesto was flavorless, the chicken was cold and the noodles were not fully cooked. The food took well over an hour to come out to so no wonder it was all cold. The waitress never asked how we liked our food, nor was she around often (the bar was busy, but the restaurant wasn't), the place looked nice with tin ceilings, the couches in front of the fireplace and comfortable seating, but it didn't help the poorly cooked meal. $65 for the worst meal of my life and that's saying a lot. read more

Super disappointing that a place that had so much character has embraced the typical (US) Irish bar feel, right down to the regulation beer signs on the wall and burger-centric menu. And pizza. Oh, and they want you to sit on stools at barrel tables even if you're there for a meal. There are still some actual tables in the back room, but it's lost much character. Service was kind of dippy, cocktails not very good. This used to be a destination for us and we're probably not going to make a point of it anymore. Oh well, at least they have preserved the beautiful old bar up front. And that's wonderful. read more

Have been to the new Smiths six or seven times since they've reopened. Yes, I am a local, but obviously would not have gone that often if I wasn't pleased with what they are doing. I like the small changes that were made to the back room, but they've left the historic character of Smiths intact. The service has been good at the bar, and in back each time. My wife and I love their pizzas and wings, and my wife was thrilled, (and surprised) with the frog legs appetizer we found on one visit. One Friday night me and a freind were surprised with free Kettle One Cosmos! I only hope that they will eventually expand their menu of entrees. So glad that Smiths is alive and well on Remsen Street! read more

Bartender amazing & attentive. Food even better! Highly recommend...so glad this classic place is open again! read more

Smith’s Public House - Hot oil pepperoni ricotta pizza - New American Near Me - Cohoes, New York

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I have come now 3 times and my experience has been amazing. The staff is so friendly. The food is AMAZING! It was slammed in the bar area but we got our food and drinks in a normal amount of time. The ambiance is probably the best part. Very rustic hometown tavern feel. Can't wait to be a regular! read more