Alamo Drafthouse - Downtown Brooklyn

Reviews 3

RE

Renee Nicole Gray

Was hoping to love this place but the customer service needs a serious overhaul before I would come back. We ordered our tickets online, and walked up to the ticket guy to get the physical version. The attitude was like a bouncer at a high end club who wanted to not let anyone in. We get our passes which were white receipts and head up to the theatre. We were pretty early for our movie and nothing was being played on the screen yet, so we checked out the menus to write down our order. It was really dark, so I was using my phone on dim setting for light to read, holding it low under the table when a staff member walked up and reprimanded me loudly. "YOU HAVE TO TURN YOUR PHONE OFF, WE HAVE LIGHTS UNDER THE TABLES FOR A REASON." Well considering I couldnt see well enough to read the beer list, obviously their lights didnt work that well. Not to mention, I wasnt waiving my phone around bothering others during the film-nothing had even started yet. When we decided on our drinks we wrote them down and placed them in the order card slot as directed on the menu. It took at least 15 minutes for someone to come grab them and when he did we got reprimanded loudly AGAIN. "NEXT TIME YOU ORDER, PUT YOUR CARD IN THE BACK OF THE SLOT NOT THE FRONT OR ELSE I WONT BE ABLE TO SEE IT". Ummm...it was literally a one inch difference which did not change the sightline of the card at all, but ok. This was already not a fun experience we felt like we were going to get yelled at for random things the entire movie. Our two beers took TWENTY minutes to even show up. The staff was full out running from side to side of the theatre to tables the entire film like there was some kind of emergency. Distracting is an understatement. Oh, but dont use your phone because thats worse of a distraction than the fire drill running around apparently. The food menu is exactly what you would expect for a movie theatre-overpriced and basic. Burgers, fries, popcorn etc. Just when we were ready to order another round and at the most emotional climatic part of the movie a server walks in front of us with a stack of checks and puts them on each table. Clank, clank, clank, clank. Kind of took me out of the moment. The film still had about 35 minutes left but I guess thats when they cut you off. They collected everyones cards and then during the peak finale moment of the film came back with the checks clanking them on all the tables again. Way to go for timing guys. Overall, id rather do the usual and pack beer & snacks in my purse and go to a normal theatre than come back here. Sure, you dont get a fancy glass but considering the distractions of staff running around and overbearing rules here its much more fun. They could make this a much better experience by fixing the way they do checkout at the end of a film. Possibly install a swipe system, like most airports have when you order food from seats. Or just wait until credits to bring final bills over. Also it would be cool if the movie nazi staff chilled a bit. Everyone goes to the movies to have fun and escape, not to get yelled at.

PA

Paul Travels247

Movies, comfort food and a strict no-texting rule are great highlights from the brand spankin new Alamo Movie Theater. Now, lets deconstruct in practice of this new mega movie theater in downtown Brooklyn. The building is new construction so these theaters are large stadium size with a table between two semi-reclined seats. This is not the smaller intimate Williamsburg Nitehawk Theater screens. Larger screens are great but how does that work in practice in the service black hole of New York City. In our movie, Rogue One, we were in the third row so it is difficult to say that there was not texting but there was definitely a clear message of a no texting zone. The only major issue was the baby which was crying for two longish spells in pivotal scenes in the movie. On Sunday and Wednesday before 12-noon, the Alamo is open with their Alamo for All movies for all which means that people can bring their babies. I did write feedback into these regards to the Alamo which did assure me that this is their policy. I guess if you steer clear of matinee movies on Sundays and Wednesday then you will be okay. The Alamo is still new so there are going to be growing pains but there is a bait and switch feel in the sense that I specifically sought out the Alamo brand because of their no talking style and there is this Alamo for all. For décor and overall experience minus the crying, it was very good. The food is not amazing but you are in a movie theater. We stayed with appetize, popcorn and a shake. The popcorn bowl was large and good. Upon request, you will be served water with large cups. Our server was very helpful overall and there was no issue with ordering. For ordering, you write everything on the sheets and leave it on the bar. Our food came relatively quickly. We ordered For the full food order, we got popcorn with Truffle Parmesan Butter§ $9. The truffle butter was worth the extra dollar. We had three appetizers; Fried Pickels with Buttermilk Ranch for $8, Thai wings with celery, carrots, blue cheese dressing for $12.50, and Baked Pretezels with Brooklyn Defender Beer Cheese Sauce & whole grain mustard for $9. All the appetizers were good. I liked the fried pickles and pretezels were easy to eat in the dark. The Thai wings were tasty but it is not the easiest to eat in the dark. Finally we finished with a Strawberry Cheesecake for $9. The shakes can be made with alcohol which is fun option. Special note for the Star Wars Rogue One screening, there was a special menu which was stated to be inspired by the tropical climates of sunny Scarif. I really like that they would have a special menu for movies. For the overall experience, I would hope the Alamo staff will work to earn their reputation as a good place with quiet text free and noise free screenings. The location can be great but it is about the complete experience.

FO

Foodlover Girl

I have been waiting for this new theater, Alamo to complete construction and open up in Brooklyn for a while. When it was finally done, we went for a visit in December 2016 to see Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. When we found an entrance, we were lost for just few seconds. They have clear signs everywhere, and we quickly found out the theater is located on the 4th floor. Right at the entrance was a huge black and white photo of New York City, and some kind of silver triangle thing in front of it. They also had a few planes hanging from the ceiling. It was for taking a King Kong photo of yourself! The theater was nice size, and since it is just built, it was super clean from top to bottom. The screen was a nice large size, great for an action movie! And everything was brand new – the seats, tables, carpeting – everything! And the seat number is placed on the table, right in front of it. Yes, this is seat assigned theater, which I prefer. It is always good to have your own seat. But… I must mention, no one, not a single staff, checked our movie ticket. Not when we walked in to Alamo, and not when we walked into the theater. I mean, anyone could have taken our seat, without having a ticket! I hope they are more careful and efficient nowadays… The food was great, the movie was really awesome, but the only thing was, the experience of watching the movie. They have wonderful policies like “No Texting, Talking, Cell Phone Policy” and “No Latecomers Policy.” However, we saw there were several people allowed to enter the theater after the movie had started. But that was not the worst part. The horrible thing was that there was a crying baby in the theater. And the baby cried and cried for a while… The mother would not take the baby outside, and that really distracted us from enjoying the movie. The staff never came to handle the situation. Alamo allows mother-and-baby duo on certain days of the week, and that’s great, but when the baby starts to cry and won’t stop, please consider the other patrons and step outside until the baby calms down… And if the customer is not doing so, they should have a staff who talks to them and get them outside. For this reason, I am not sure if I want to go back to Alamo… Read my full review of this theater and food on my food blog, foodlovergirl.

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