Co-owner Padraigh Connolly (Photo: QueensPost)
Oct. 19, 2011 Staff Report
A new bar/restaurant is scheduled to open on the corner of Skillman Ave. and 46th Street this Friday, replacing the shuttered Bliss Bistro.
The pub/restaurant, called “The Dog and Duck”, will officially open at 5:00 p.m. Friday. The pub, located at 45-20 Skillman Ave., will be offering a menu that includes dishes such as ham & leak pie; beef Wellington; lamb shank; pan fried chick supreme with salmon; duck confit with wild mushroom & mash potato; burgers; and fish & chips.
“It is a gastropub—an English/Irish pub with food a little bit beyond a Shepherd’s pie,” said Padraigh Connolly, a co-owner who used to be the chef at Blooms on Queens Blvd (btw. 41st and 42nd Streets), before the popular pub/restaurant was destroyed in a fire.
Other well known gastropubs include The Spotted Pig in Manhattan.
“I have lived in this neighborhood for 12 years and I have always thought this corner was wasted—I am hoping I don’t waste it,” Connolly said.
The pub/restaurant will feature sidewalk seating and, in spring, a back garden.
Connolly said that the exterior timber that still surrounds the pub will be torn down on Thursday. He said that he will open the restaurant Thursday night for friends and guests.
Jim Dolan is the other partner in the establishment.
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45 Comments
Good luck with you new adventures , can’t wait for a long cold drink sometime soon .
Rather expensive for this area, but best of luck.
Terrible overcooked food. Soggy oily french fries ,tasteless burger meat, faux pate’ (try figuring out what it is because its not pate’- like glue). Overcooked rib eye twice !!!! Good riddance!!!
This is my second post because I noticed the first was taken out oddly enough. Seems someone does not like to have unflattering reviews about a restaurant in the area. So I will post again and here it is: I want nothing else but good food selections in the area because god knows the area desperately needs it. Who ever says “The Dog and the Duck” serves good food is not a good food eater. Sorry folks but the food is terrible! Just another pub with overcooked bland Irish fare. Limp, soggy and oily french fries along with tasteless over salted in the kitchen burger meat . Or how about an overcooked rib eye which was on special one eve and when you notified the waiter it was overcooked and the second time around they brought out another one which was also overcooked -along the likes of dry leather !!! Try the pate’ and try to figure out what the hell it is because pate’ it is not. After going there for two , three times in order to give them another try so to speak one gets a sense the owner does not really care. For foodies go to Yelp / NY and read the reviews. Surely as an owner you have to be sensitive to what foodies are commenting. So the real question is : Is anybody listening over there or is it just about selling booze to the locals ??
I’ve lived in Sunnyside and Woodside for over a decade now. My family and I eat out a fair amount and even though the neighborhoods are crying out for something better to elevate the food scene we get this…another generic pub with a middle-of-road menu. I’m big on applying the Queens curve to rating restaurants in our beloved borough. If this place had even remotely decent food I’d be happily welcome yet another safe but standard comfort-food option but the meal my wife and I had a couple of weeks ago was such an off-the-chart failure that I barely know where to begin. Before I get into describing the meal, I’ll mention one positive: The staff were very nice. Slightly clueless to the misery that they were passing off as food but otherwise very accommodating.
After scanning the uninspiring menu we settled on splitting the onion tart to start and we both ordered fish and chips. My wife liked the tart a little more than I did but overall it was poorly constructed and lacked flavor. The crust tasted freezer burnt and was definitely not made from scratch. Then the fish and chips came out. Right away I could tell this was not going to be good. Each piece of fish was exactly the same size, a clear indication that this was not fresh or homemade, and on the small side to boot. No surprise that the fish was limp and soggy and absolutely tasteless. The batter practically disintegrated before I could take a bite. The “chips” were your standard frozen steak fry variety and there were maybe 10 fries on each plate, none of which were full-size. They were mostly just bits and pieces you would get from the tail-end of a big industrial sized bag of frozen fries. They tasted liked they looked…terrible.
It disturbs me that a pub in Sunnyside (of all neighborhoods) much less one touting itself as a “gastro-pub, can’t turn out an eatable version of this most basic of basic menu items for a pub. What an embarrassment to the neighborhood. It’s like an Indian restaurant opening in Jackson Heights and they try to serve you that prepackaged Tasty Bite crap from the grocery store.
Based on the menu and this experience, not only will I not go back, I’ll tell everyone I know the neighborhood to avoid it like the plague.
Beautiful new resturant. Food wasn’t totally impressive, but I’m sure they’re still getting the hang of things. Service was friendly, just wish they were dressed a little more appropriately. All in all, I will definiately be back for more!
It’s terrific. Great food. Very good price. Great Service. Was skeptical after reading some comments. Well worth it.
Food & service was good. Prices are reasonable. However, no double door entry and french doors will make the place very cold in the winter.
From O’
First visit was today. The food was very good as was the service. I am looking forward to returning often. It is great sight here on Skillman Ave. and I hope it will have only the best of success.
For those who find fault, please try again. It takes time to get the show on the road in the restaurant business. Also, best of luck from Michael D. Higgins.
Welcome addition to the area and hope they do really well. Smart place with a nice decor. They could re-visit their wine list and beer list along with the prices – has to be competitive and remember it isn’t Manhattan. Amount of wine in the glass could also be looked at. I am sure it will be a success and can’t wait until they start serving brunch at weekends. Good Luck.
$6.50 for a pint is too much. $6.00 should be the max, and even that’s pushing it.
was a bit disappointed to see the $6.50 price for a pint. sure they have some decent options, but that’s a little high, esp for sunnyside. many other options around for $5 guinness or IPAs.
I’m for the kinks!
I tend to give a place at least a few weeks to iron out the kinks in their service and menu. All small businesses have growing pains.
I still look forward to trying it though!
The duck was very good but the dog was a bit tough. It was the 1st night, give them a break.
Sticking to the other Irish pubs which have good food. Oldies but goodies! Glad I did not go there with a date – he would have been ticked off waiting to be served. But good luck anyway. I would like to see the place do well.
My husband and I tried it last night. The place was packed! It was craziness, but a welcome addition to the neighborhood. It took awhile to get served but that was expected on opening weekend. They just need a few extra staff and they will be fine. The food was good, and well priced. They did a nice job on the renovation. I wish them all the best for success, we will be back.
There are some mean people that are hard to please. No wonder there are empty stores.
Give the owner a break, the place just opened. Perfection doesnt happen in one night.
There appears to be some issues which hopefully they will figure out over the next couple if weeks.
The decor is really nice, this restaurant/bar is definitely welcomed to the area.
The food was just ok – hopefully there will be some improvements after the opening teething problems are resolved as there is much better food in other locations close by.
glasses of wine quantity pretty miserable for $7 and $9.
Service could be better but I’m sure will improve after a couple of nights.
Will definitely go back and try the food again in a couple of weeks, hopefully some issues will be resolved.
@BitchyWaiter – I was a waitress for years. I am guessing you are a server. If you had a table that was eating and drinking all night and never so much as peeped a complaint, would you say “Can I bring you your check?” after serving them their third round of drinks?
Was there last night and went in with expectations of an opening night. It was kind of chaotic and waited 45 minutes for my meal. The atmosphere was nice and the staff very friendly. The food was good, but could’ve had a bigger portion of potatoes/vegetables with my Lamb Shank and bread with my pate. Definitely will try again in a few weeks. Cut them some slack for a while.
Their electricity went off last night and they closed the kitchen early. Probably a good thing as a friend ate there last night and said that her meal was really, really bad. She also said that the bar is small. Anyway, can’t wait to try it all for myself.
Sorry. Just standing up for the overwhelmed server.
Jeez, Nora. They just opened. Give ’em a chance to get their groove.
The Dog and Duck opened at 6:00 this evening. I took my 5-year-old granddaughter to celebrate their opening after four months of renovation. I had the lamb shank. which was absolutely delicious, and my granddaughter had the hamburger, which was perfectly cooked and came with French fries, lettuce, tomato and onions. It was great fun seeing friends and neighbors through the French doors and by the time we left a little after 7, the place was almost filled. Good luck to Padraigh and James and their staff.
I can’t wait to try this place, and as they’ve only been open a day or so, I’m sure they’re still putting on the finishing touches and finding their rhythm.
The service was not great. It took a long time to get drinks and even longer to get refills. I saw one patron wandering around trying to get someone to run her credit card so she could pay the bill and many tables had empty wine or beer glasses. It took a while for the waitress to take our order. I was especially put off when she asked us, upon delivering our third round of drinks, if we wanted the check. She did not even bother to ask us if we wanted a dessert or a coffee. Sadly, the check was the only thing that arrived quickly that night.
The Dog & Duck can be a welcome addition to the neighborhood. If they had a more experienced wait staff, the drink would have been kept flowing so the kitchen’s shortcomings would not have been so obvious. Sadly, all the beer in the world would not have been able to hide the fact that the $27 we spent on the Beef Wellington was money poorly spent.
If the bartenders pour a pint to the top without an inch of foam, I’ll be impressed. If they pour a pint of Guinness properly, I’ll be even more impressed.
I walked by this morning – it looks lovely inside. Great layout, design, and furnishings. The tap selection is OK – nothing you can’t get anywhere else, but maybe they’ll spice it up in the coming months. I’m really looking forward to grabbing a beer and sampling some food over the weekend.
So happy to see something new and well-done in the neighborhood. Skillman Ave just keeps getting better!
was able to get a look inside when walking by yesterday. very happy to see a great tap selection and beautiful seating area. will be in this weekend for sure!
I hope they can last. As much as I like restaurants, I think there are too many on Skillman Avenue and they can’t all stay in business with this economy. I miss the Orchard which used to be on Queens Boulevard.
I hope they take down the plywood.
Good luck. Like the funny name. Who is the dog? Who the duck?
um…. THE Jim Dolan? Maybe Isiah Thomas will be the Maitre D’.
Sherry and Sside
Totally agree with both of you. I loved Bliss Bistro, and although we have PLENTY of pubs in Sunnyside, I do think that the chefs here hope to do something a little different from usual pub fare.
The space here is GORGEOUS. The backyard, etc. I will certainly be a regular!
I can’t help but think it’s a pity the back garden won’t be used right now, with the leaves starting to turn. But I’m sure there’s a reason.
I wish the business the best of luck!
Bliss Bistro was my favorite restaurant in Sunnyside. I do wish you the best of luck with Dog & Duck and hope you can match or go beyond the culinary delights we experienced with Bliss Bistro. Especially looking forward to dining in the outdoor garden during the warm weather.
Great news! Excited to try it.
Awesome! Looking forward to trying it out!
I really miss Blooms, so I’m pleased to know the co-owner is their former chef. The food there was great — definitely a cut above typical pub food. Good luck — we’ll try to stop by soon!
Always happy to see new, small businesses emerge, especially in this economy, but Bliss Bistro was an elegant and rare gem in a neighborhood with countless pubs.
Yeah? Well the last restaurant owner screwed Dorothy Moorehead out of well over fifty grand in back rent before she got a court order to toss him out….Good Riddance!!!!
BEST OF LUCK TO THE DOG & DUCK!!!
I am sure that I will try them out, however I miss Bliss and don’t think that the corner was wasted.
Good luck. See you there for some shep’s pie and a pint.