Treadwell Park on the Upper East Side is a casual and fun space that is family friendly and offers classic American comfort food at very reasonable prices. There is a two hour happy hour from 4 to 6 every night and food specials include immense platters of about seven of their most famous items at $30 per person. You really need to bring a big appetite with you for that. Also immense are their pretzels which are fresh and soft and are kids’ favorites (they are bigger than most kids’ heads, LOL)! There is a great outdoor section at both the front and side of Treadwell Park that has almost a street fair vibe and there is enough seating for at least 60 people. They do not rush you out so you can have your table all night long, which is a real plus for a popular Upper East Side establishment.
My dining partner Gail and I started our meal with fried zucchini sticks which is a great change from fries (but if you do like fries, TP offers them in five or six different styles). This is a huge portion so beware of filling up on these! They are super addicting. That golden crust is the stuff that foodie dreams are made of! You easily get 6 or 7 cups of these veggie delights in one portion so you can cover everyone at the table for appetizers with one of these!
The lemon chicken has become a bit of a legend, especially for low carb dieters. The creamy but light sauce is super lemony and the capers and fresh herbs are a nice touch! This is a portion big enough for two as it is about ten ounces of chicken breast and it comes with a few roasted potato wedges which are a healthy alternative to fries and very filling. I suggest asking for some bread to “lap up” the remaining sauce after all the chicken has been eaten.
In my humble opinion, the best side is the dish of roasted veggies. It is a lovely mix of sweet potatoes, cauliflower, beets and carrots and all of these veggies are cooked to be firm without being too hard. This is just the perfect consistency for roasted vegetables! I think I would come back to Treadwell Park on a “diet day” to eat two bowls of roasted veggies as a complete lunch.
Needless to say, the super thick juicy pork ribs are a popular item. The sauce is a classic mild homemade BBQ sauce but the homemade hot sauce on the table will add a big kick if you are into that like I am! You get four large ribs in a portion and you get a side of tasty pickled veggies.
I am sure that it comes of no surprise that Treadwell Park has large all-American desserts like large slabs of Junior’s Cheesecake and a brownie sundae topped with homemade vanilla gelato and sided with a nice scoop of fresh whipped cream with just the right amount of sweetness. This is definitely something you can share with your dining mates but I’m a hog and would prefer one just for myself, LOL!
I adore root beer floats so I was very excited to see one on the TP dessert menu! It’s made with the very delicious Abita Root Beer from Louisiana and that’s pretty hard to get even in the gourmet stores around town. The same vanilla gelato that TP tops their brownies with is used in their root beer float and you get two generous scoops. I swear that I can drink four of these even after a meal full of ribs, lemon chicken, potato wedges, roasted veggies and more at TP!
Some of Treadwell Park’s great nightly specials are listed above. They have plenty of signature cocktails and more than 50 craft beers to choose from. I think that my next visit will be on “Fry-Day” night so I can get myself a big plate of truffle fries! TP is located on the SW corner of 62nd Street and First Avenue. Reservations are not necessary and there are plenty of fun things to do here besides eat and drink—they have a wall of classic pinball machines and trivia starting about 7:30 that lets you will mugs of beer and TP merchandise! Their official site is treadwellpark.com and they have a sister location in midtown!
You can see the casual wood “picnic style” tables above—these just add to the relaxing atmosphere of Treadwell Park and let you squeeze in up to six guests on each side. There are large screen TVs where you can watch the latest sports games and you can also ask for board games to play from the bar staff!
