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[[HIGHLIGHT]]Harbs is always bustling with energy and quite popular, but it's been consistently terrible the times I've come.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]There's lots of seats inside.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The service is terrible and the food is extremely overpriced for what it is, even after accounting for it being in soho. I was quite frustrated when I went to the hostess to be added to the waitlist. Was told she can't help me and to go to someone else, which I did and I was next to be seated. 3 minutes after, the original hostess helped the person that arrived after me to get a table and seated them immediately even though they had the same number of guests! Why tell me you're not the person to help with a table but then seat guess that arrived after? That's incredibly rude. 20 minutes later, they call my name and then realize they wrote the wrong party size amount...then 10 minutes after that another employee calls me to walk me to my table. Then another employee immediately stops me to not follow her colleague. The first one insists that I follow her to sit. Then the second stops me again. Make up your mind! Please communicate with each other! It's so unprofessional, confusing, and frustrating. Please also tell me why it took 20 minutes for them to bring me a slice of cake. Literally a slice. And then forget my tea altogether. Now to the food...$18-$20 for a small slice of the strawberry shortcake is ridiculously expensive even by manhattan standards and isn't that good. [[HIGHLIGHT]]I've been to much better ambiance restaurants with better desserts for a more reasonable price also in expensive parts of downtown.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] This place was a terrible experience.
Really great cakes. I've come to this location multiple times and everything we've had has been lovely. Really pretty presentation, really high quality ingredients, not too sweet, and the cakes themselves feel really elevated. The white peach cheesecake, for example had a more mousse-like texture than a traditional cheesecake and it worked really well with the sweet peach. The teas they offer also work really well with the desserts. However, for $15+ a slice and a 1 item per person minimum, I would hope that the service would be far better. While service is super polite, they do forget about you. Ordering, getting the check, etc. took a few minutes of looking around for a waitress/waiter.
My favorite cake shop in NYC. We love to come here for lunch since it opens because they have a great lunch set menu. The food and cake is so delicious. Always have friendly waitress and servers with great smiles and service. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Clean and neat dining area makes you feel like in Japan.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]
We had a not good experience recently. The wait after ordering was long, we saw the cakes coming out but they were all for other tables. When ours finally came, they were wrapped in foil, which was very strange and I didn't see that with other tables' orders. We were puzzled and still opened the foil and ate the cake anyway, but the presentation was bad. Now that I think about it, I think they made the order to-go instead of for dine in, and when they realized it, they just took out the cake slices and served with the foil on a plate. That's so lazy, they could have served us fresh slices since we're dining in.
[[HIGHLIGHT]]Nice ambiance and good service, though the food was pretty average.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]Great spot for the vibe more than the meal.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]
[[HIGHLIGHT]]Upon entering, it felt like I was transported and on vacation, almost like I was at a nice hotel.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] I was greeted and seated. The staff was very attentive, promptly noticing when I was ready to order and refilling the water in my tea before I noticed it needed a refill. [[HIGHLIGHT]]There was plenty of space and seating, and the conversation level wasn't too loud.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] [[HIGHLIGHT]]As a party of one, it was a nice, quiet place to destress and relax on a weekday night.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The Marron Cake, while on the pricier side, was very much worth the price. The cake was spongey and light. The flavor was also a more uncommon flavor to come across.
It just gets more and more expensive everytime I come here. One slice is cake is 18?? US dollars? Please this is not worth it. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The place is bright and spatial, u can try it here once a while but it prob will break ur wallet if u come here all the time haha[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]]
This Japanese chain has 1 location in the USA and luckily it is here in soho, NYC. Eating here is a unique experience compared to your typical cafe/bar/bistro in this area. It's very much Japanese in detail but the food is Italian/Italian-American. [[HIGHLIGHT]]The ambiance is very light and airy. It's a great place to relax and regenerate. The music is light and classical. It's quiet, great for conversations and day dreaming.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] The food is delicious. The pastas were fresh and not overwhelming. They came with light side salads that were delectable and fluffy white bread with butter spreads. They have a lovely tea selection which you can pick and choose from to match with your meal. Finally, their cakes are airy, light, jiggly and fresh. Price is reasonable - filling lunch for 2 with tea, cake, coffee ~ 100$.
Nice interior and clean establishment. Service could use some work, though the hostess person behind counter was very courteous and helpful. We ordered the Mango mousse cake and Matcha red beans cream cake. Both were delicious and light, wish they used less of the regular whipped cream and put in more matcha cream or cake though. Also, we got the iced yuzu green tea and hot hojicha caramel tea, but the yuzu green tea had no yuzu flavor but the hojicha had a surprising noticeable caramel aroma and taste to it. Highkey want to eat the matcha red beans cream cake for my birthday every year, but it is so expensive, even more than Lady M's large matcha crepe cake.
Came in for lunch on a wed seated immediately Dress code: casual, came in shorts and a t Food 4.5/5: had the lunch special which included an omelette sandwich, house salad, iced black tea and fruit Mille feuille. Toast for the sandwich was soggy by the time it got to me but otherwise everything was quite tasty Ambiance 4/5: clean, cute cafe, well lit, but nothing that wowed Service 4.5/5: orders were memorized. Service was friendly and quick with water refills, food took a while to come out but otherwise no issues. Value 4.5/5: fairly good value for their lunch special, especially in NYC Overall 4.5/5: overall a good experience, would come again if I'm in the area. Parking: lol...nyc
Food Cleanliness Service + Tea! All 5 Stars! I was disappointed when Harbs Chelsea closed. Forgot they had the Soho location till walking by yesterday. [[HIGHLIGHT]]Beautiful bright cafe with Amazing Interesting selection of Premium Cakes Pies + bad on me - never sat down to look @ their Chelsea menu.[[ENDHIGHLIGHT]] Awesome small foods menu. I love looking at what food is coming to other diners tables + while I knew hubby + I were just in for a cake + a little caffeine still had to look. It looked really good! I ordered this lovely Orange mint Darjeeling tea (my Fave lighter black tea- never had fruited before. Amaxing!) they'll make all their teas iced if you look - hot day so Iced it was! Hubby had an Iced latte - we shared a slice of Chocolate dusted cream pie w (real) Rum undertones... really really good but liked the tea better! A Japanese Tea /Dessert/Food Cafe. My description anyway. Good they're still in NYC
I'd been to HARBS in Japan but this was my first time in NYC. One of my friends loves this place, so we came here for lunch today. The cafe is quite spacious with high ceilings and I really liked the atmosphere. There was still plenty of seating when we arrived at 12:30pm, but within an hour or so, it was quite full. We ordered the Lunch Special, which is available from 11am - 3pm. They have a pasta set ($28+) and sandwich set ($25+), both of which come with: - Side salad - Lunch slice of today's cake - Cup of coffee or English breakfast tea (*free refills) We ordered 2 pasta sets and decided to share 2 different pastas: - Pescatora - Lemon & Parmigiano Overall, the food was good. The side salad could've used a little less dressing, but it was nice to have some greens. Both pastas were quite tasty and there was so much of it that we could've easily shared amongst 3 people. For today's cake, we had the option of one of the following: - Fresh Fruit Mille Crepes - Chocolate Cake - Pear Mille-Feuille I tried the Pear Mille-Feuille, which had delicious cream and sliced pears inside. The cream-puff style crust was a little too heavy for me, though, after all of the pasta. I'll try the Fresh Fruit Mille Crepe next time. In terms of service, they were very attentive when we first arrived probably because it was less busy. I didn't realize (and my friend forgot) that the tea / coffee would be served at the start of the meal, instead of with the dessert. So by the time we were having dessert, we needed to order refills even though we hadn't finished our drinks, because they were no longer warm. By then, restaurant was full and it took a while for us to get our drinks. I'd recommend asking them to bring the drinks with dessert, unless you want coffee/tea with your meal. My friend and I had a lovely meal and I look forward to coming back again for lunch or tea time.
It's expensive but worth it. A slice of cake is $15 and whole cake is about ~$104+. We tried the marron cake (sweet potato and chestnut) and the green tea mousse cake. Both were so moist and delicate; filled with cream. The Hoijicha caramel tea was divine and so was the organic Matcha tea. We do not feel rushed, and the staff was very attentive.
Review Insights
5 years ago
I love this place a lot, it's one of my favorite dessert spots in New York. However, in this location service is a bit slow (even though the staff is usually very friendly) The cakes are amazing and delicious:) read more
5 years ago
Love love love this place. Why didn't I know about them earlier! Good service, yummy food, delicious desserts and pretty spacious place. What's not to like? This is a family friendly place and my kids ask to come back almost every week for brunch! read more
2 years ago
2 years ago
4 years ago
Awesome experience. Most of the cake slices are around $16-18. The atmosphere is amazing and the service is really good. I went around 4pm and there was a 10min wait. I honestly loved all 3 cake slices I had ordered. The whip cream is the reason why the cake tastes better than so many other places. It is definitely different. Would definitely recommend. read more
3 years ago
Cake didn't taste too fresh and quality of ingredients were quite low. Service was not the best either as the servers weren't attentive. For the price paid, definitely wasn't worth it ... what put me off the most was the harsh taste of the artificial vanilla in the cream for the cake. Also ordered a royal milk tea and there was no tea flavor at all. It just tasted like milk but colored to look like milk tea. The milk tea was not up to the standard it's price of $9. read more
I love their fresh cakes here!!! I've tried almost every single one and they are absolutely delicious! I love the green tea mousse and chestnut creams cake the most!!! Pair them with a nice cup of hot tea and it'll make your afternoon great! Great spot for a girls date or even just a regular date!!! Do try their fruit cocktail!!!! read more
6 years ago
Love love love this cute Japanese cafe. They have the best slices of cake but warning it will give your wallet a dent. A slice of cake is about $10 and a whole cake is around $100. This time I tried the queen of cakes which had strawberries and some blueberries. They do have some alcohol in the cakes but you can barely taste it in the queen of cake. I really liked the cream because it was so soft and fluffy. The cake was also a decent slice and it was just so good. The iced coffee was also made well and they provided liquid sugar and milk so you can pour it in yourself. They also have the Japanese toilets. It's also very spacious inside. They offer lunch specials where they have sandwiches, omelettes, and pasta. I will definitely come back to try the other slices of cake. Omg they also have banana cream pie! read more
Decided to pop in for some cake and tea one fine Saturday afternoon (before indoor dining was banned). They followed the regular covid regulations- temperature, contact tracing and social distancing. They offered outside seating as well but we choose indoors. I had the milk tea and banana cream pie. The milk tea was so creamy and smooth and paired perfectly with the banana cream pie. The bananas were so fresh! It took a bit of time for the cakes and teas to arrive but it was worth it! You simply can't go wrong with harbs. read more
2 years ago
4 years ago
Always love coming to eat cake and drink coffee here - as an avid coffee enthusiast, having something sweet while drinking coffee makes it really refreshing - something like pairing wine with beef, you get the point. I recommend the mocha cake although the most popular one seems to be the fruit crepe cake. read more
7 years ago
Ordered my birthday cake and Christmas dessert here! A beautiful blend of cake and cream. Tried fruit Mille crepe, chocolate mousse, queen of cake, strawberry cake, and many more. The chocolate ones are always my favorite. If you are first time here and blinded by all the wonderful options in front of you, choose anything with chocolate or fresh fruit. You will thank me. A place of many happy memories with my besties read more
2 years ago
The cakes were good ("not too sweet" if that's what you're looking for!) but not sure if they were worth the price of a slice (approx $9-10 per slice not including tax or tip). You're definitely paying more for a seat in a nice area and a place to chat with friends over dessert. read more
5 years ago
cutest japanese dessert place in new york!! quiet little cafe with amazing service and environment fruit milli crepe very light and not overly sweet, pairs incredibly well with any of the teas. the grape jasmine tea was the highlight for me though, not overwhelmingly jasmine and was subtly sweet read more
For paying an arm and a leg for a slice of cake, you would think they would hire a more organized wait staff to tend to their patrons. I stopped by this location on a Friday at 5PM and it was a disaster. The man behind the cashier taking care of the take out orders was sweating profusely and so flustered. It was chaos. I purchased a $110 fruit mille crepe cake for my husband and asked them to write a Happy Birthday message on a chocolate disc. Firstly, they left the cake sitting outside of the fridge for 15 minutes and secondly, they kept taking other orders and not completing my order even though I was waiting. I'm sure if I didn't speak up after the 15 minutes, it would've been sitting there even longer. While I was sitting there, patrons came up to the man behind the cashier complaining about not given a menu and not having a server come by their table. They really need to get their act together. It really ruins the entire experience. read more
4 years ago
5 years ago
You can not go wrong with the lunch special menu!! This includes a salad, a main and a slice of cake, oh and tea! It's very good and the strawberry cake is delicious. Also, order the bread with strawberry preserves. It's not included in the lunch menu, but it's soooooooooo good read more
5 years ago
5 years ago
The best strawberry shortcake! So light and airy, it's the perfect cake to share or just eat all by yourself! They also have a vast selection of other cakes I will definitely try read more
4 years ago
Food is delicious, especially the pasta. Come during lunch time for the lunch set which includes an entree, cup of coffee/tea, and a slice of cake (half slice). Service was very slow, it definitely has gone down since the pandemic. However the interior is very nice and gives this modern elevated feel. read more
I came on a Sunday afternoon and waited 30-40 minutes for a table... it was so hot inside the restaurant so I got the iced sencha yuzu and the cream cheese Mille crepe cake. The sencha yuzu was good but it came out 30 minutes after ordering. I had to wait 45 minutes for my slice of cake, my friend and I had to remind them to bring our cake THREE times which is pretty ridiculous because they are not making the cake from scratch. The slice of cake was also room temperature which was not my favorite and the cream cheese was really heavy. I don't think I will be going back... read more
4 years ago
Salad, cake, and tea was delicious!! And the space is so elegant and beautiful. We stumbled upon this place but we'll definitely be coming back! read more
7 years ago
I don't usually write a review but this experience tonight really pissed me off! I had a really good dinner and decided to get myself some dessert. i walked for 30 mins to get to this place aiming for the best Japanese came in town. The lady recommended me the creme mille ad showed me a sample with several layers of colorful fruits and including strawberry, kiwi, banana, etc. I took her advice and she cutted a piece from a whole cake for me. I took a look at the cake in the box and see no red or green, then asked the lady whether it's the same one as she showed me. She said yes yes they're the same! And ... Look at the picture, this is what I got. Pear only. The environment was good, and they packed the cake nicely with an ice bag to keep it cooled. But I didn't get the cake that the lady shown to me. It's not a big amount of money, but I feel disappointed that the lady lied to me just to sell the incomplete cake. Waste of money. Will never return and let my friends know as well. read more
4 years ago
The food was good and very affordable if you get the lunch special. However I'm concerned on how sanitary this place is considering the number of flies swarming me while I was trying to eat my lunch. I even asked a worker (I believe the manager) what she could do about it and she gave me a shrug. I even moved my table towards the back and the same fly problem happened. Overall wont come back even if the food was good because I just couldn't eat comfortably. read more
4 years ago
This is a great Japanese bakery/cafe/lunch spot! + Chocolate Cake is decadent...a pure chocolate dream with rich dark flavors and forgiving layers of cream and sponge cake. You could tell lots of thought went into the creation of this otherwise simple concept. + Irish cream cheesecake hits back surprisingly tart...a different take on your classic sweet New York cheesecake. What I love about cakes here is that the flavors are thoughtful and intricate, and never overwhelmingly sweet like some cakes are, which border on lines of being offensive. I haven't tried the lunch set yet but it is very economical (~$20 with choice of pasta/salad/sandwich, tea or coffee, and a slice of cake). The service is wonderful and polite in typical Japanese manner, and the space is huge with lots of seating and modern decor. I will be back!! Bonus fun fact: HARBS is named after the word "herbs." The owners wanted to customers to feel relaxed and happy here (I definitely was). How cute is that! :-] read more
3 years ago
7 years ago
Harbs Soho OVERALL: 6.5/10 I got to say this place is fancy for a cake spot. But at around $10 a slice I expected WAY more than what I put into this precious mouth of mine. The cake is very basic, the coffee was good though. Very strong cappuccino I got, and tasted different than another coffee shops I been to. The two cakes we got one was a walnut cake with fruits in it... BASIC like hardcore basic. I mean it looked basic but I expected non basic. The other one was like a fruit cake, like super basic fruit cake. I will not come again, but if you coming here for coffee, I'd say it's quite alright. Expect to spend around $25-30 for 2 cake slices and a drink read more
7 years ago
I fell in love with HARBS when I was looking for a dessert spot in Chelsea, so of course I was beyond excited when I found out that they opened a new location in SoHo! They have a pretty decently priced lunch special ($25 for a pasta of your choice + a cake slice + a coffee or tea), but if you visit, you absolutely HAVE to get their Royal Milk Tea Cake. It's so light and fluffy that it's hard to believe you're actually eating cake. I also love that this location is a lot more spacious. The Chelsea one seemed a little cramped and you also have to enter through a door to get to their back room for seating. And don't forget to check out the toilets when you're there. They have bidets! read more
3 years ago
7 years ago
By far one of the nicest little cake and tea shops I've been to in the city! Elegantly styled with beautiful white, yet rustic decor and high ceilings, this cake shop is a breath of fresh air away from the business of SoHo. My friend and I came to this place around 3PM on a snowy Saturday, when it was quite full. Luckily, the large cafe immediately accommodated us, and as we walked by, I noticed the beautiful displays of all the cakes. Definitely got me hungry for cake when I originally wasn't planning on eating any at all! We ordered two items: the mint tea and Irish cream cheesecake. Mint tea: - Surprisingly so delicious and refreshing! - They use fresh mint sprigs and just fill the teapot up full of them. Such a nice herbal flavor (though understandably not for everyone) - Only provides one tea cup, but we just used the water cup for a second cup Irish cream cheesecake ($9): - Not super sweet, but perfectly balanced with a butter cookie-like crust and dense cheesecake - Reminded me of a cross between apple pie (crust) and cream cheese! - We spread the cream on top across the entire cake, and I highly recommend this to distribute the fluffy whipped cream! All in all, it was such a beautiful location with kind staff members, perfect for catching up with a close friend and relaxing in a warm environment away from the snowy cold weather outdoors. I will definitely be back (and bring all my friends). read more
I really enjoy having a reliable Cafe and cake shop that reminds me of the kind of care and quality you get from little cafes dotted across Tokyo. Price is reasonable(ish), they have seasonal variety, but I just wish they had a bit more emphasis on the selection of cafe items. read more
7 years ago
One of my favorite cake shops in the city. It's a great place to enjoy tea and amazing Japanese cakes while shopping in SoHo. The location is great and it's usually not too loud so definitely a perfect spot to relax and enjoy some tea time. Ambience is great. Inside is surprisingly huge and decorated in modern style. Staff are really friendly and courteous. Only downside is that each cake slice is averaged around $10 a piece and with coffee, the check price goes up a lot but you don't enjoy Harbs everyday so to me, it's worth the tea break and paying for the ambience. Banana crea pie and green tea mousse are my favorites. I'd like to be back to try the king chocolate cake next time. They also serve pasta and sandwiches and also offer set menus for lunch at a reasonable price. Definitely check the place out when in SoHo. read more
More info about HARBS SoHo
465 W Broadway
New York, NY 10012
SoHo
Directions
(212) 473-1981
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https://www.harbsnyc.com
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Ask the Community - HARBS SoHo
Are their cakes seasonal?
For the most part I think they are seasonal. The flavors of cal available the day we were there reminded me of summer.
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HARBS SoHo - bakeries - Updated August 2026
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