Have you been to Motorino (319 Graham Avenue) yet? It's fantastic. All the ingredients taste absurdly fresh; Chef Mathieu Palombino even makes his own mozzarella every morning. Check out my interview with him over at The Feedbag.
Time for a bit of shameless self-promotion! I am currently writing over at The Feedbag, the new Citysearch food blog managed by Mr. Cutlets, aka Josh Ozersky, formerly of NY Mag's Grub Street. Anyway, recently I interviewed Dylan Dodd and Danny Minch, the owners of the excellent new Walter Foods on Grand and Roebling. I was tipped off to the restaurant by Chrysanthe Tenentes, managing editor of the seminal web publication Brooklyn Based. Anyway, the food there is fantastic and the owners are super-friendly--I highly recommend giving it a try.
Two restaurants I can only afford to eat at when my parents come to visit got Michelin stars in the new 2009 Michelin Guide for New York City. Dressler (above), the highest-end restaurant in Colin Devlin's Williamsburg empire (DuMont, DuMont Burger), got one star for the second year in a row, as did the neighborhood's classic steakhouse, Peter Luger. If you're a fan of local nabe favorite DuMont, you really need to try Dressler--it's basically DuMont to the next level, in terms of both the quality of food and the prices. Along with Marlow & Sons, Zenkichi and the new Walter Foods, Williamsburg is looking like a great place for upscale-yet-casual dining.
Yipes! Grub Street has word that beloved Greenpoint spot Queen's Hideway is closing on October 18 because of lease issues. That means if you've never been there, you only have a month left to sample Liza Queen's adventurous cuisine.
10. Falafel sandwich at Oasis ($3): You can't argue with the price or the great location. Yes, you do want hot sauce on that.
9. Jerk tofu at Mighty Diamond ($7 for plate of 3 items): A tofu dish is no place for weak flavors. The spicy (but not too spicy) jerk seasoning has the potency to make me feel irie.
8. DuMont burger at DuMont Burger ($12): The DuMont burger has gotten some hater-ation as of late, but I still love it. It's like a fist of meat for your face.
7. Burnt end baked beans at Fette Sau ($5): The most consistent item on the menu is the side of savory baked beans. I'd eat an entire meal of them if I, um, didn't have any roommates or never wanted to meet a girl again.
6. Carnitas tacos at Kiosco Piaxtla (around $2): The music is waaay too loud and it's always kind of empty, but the tacos are almost California-worthy.
More restaurant news for Williamsburg from the NY Times. Zakary Pelaccio (pictured), who runs the absolutely delicious Fatty Crab in Manhattan, is opening a Southeast Asian BBQ spot in the 'Burg to be named Fatty 'Cue:
Soon, Mr. Pelaccio will return to his Williamsburg roots for three tiny floors of barbecue spot with Robert Richter, another partner, at the pit. Classic American will meet Southeast Asian as brisket is soaked in spices and coconut milk before smoking, and pork loin is treated to an Indonesian brine: 91 South Sixth Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. November.
With this place opening in November and Pies 'n' Thighs opening in December, this Fall/Winter is looking really good for the Williamsburg dining scene.
I would literally murder somebody to get my hands on some Pies 'n' Thighs' fried chicken. Not that I have. Or have I? Anyway, the point is everybody thought that the beloved comfort food spot would be back by the end of summer, but in case you haven't noticed, the summer is kind of over and still no delicious biscuits or fried chicken or collard greens.
Luckily Brooklyn Based, aka the blog/newsletter that you should sign up for ASAP, has the latest news.
The ladies behind all that Southern fried goodness have requested an expedited hearing for their now-completed paperwork (the 166 South 4th St. storefront had been empty for several years before PnT set their sights on it). A 2008 opening is still the target, likely in December.
December? How am I going to build my fat stores for the long winter ahead? Anyway, BB also has news on potential new Williamsburg restaurants from Thomas Keller, and Balthazar alum Danny Minch, plus the 411 on the new spot from Dennis Spina, executive chef for the Roebling Tea Room.
La Superior es un restaurante fabuloso en la calle
La Superior, 295 Berry St, nr S 2nd St, (718) 388-5988
Yao Ming would not be pleased with the dining options in Williamsburg.
The good ol' Burg has plenty of good food options. DuMont has the whole New American comfort food thing down, there are quite a few good Mexican spots, and the Polish and Italian food is great. But there is a giant, gaping hole in the culinary offerings: Food from the lovely continent known as Asia. Being a hapa, I was raised almost solely on Filipino, Chinese, Japanese and Thai food, with some Mexican thrown in for good measure.
Browsing through Chowhound, I came upon a thread called "Williamsburg/Greenpoint: is there any decent Chinese takeout" and the consensus among the many responders was no, there is not any decent Chinese takeout. In fact, I started thinking about if there was any decent Chinese food at all. M Shanghai is overpriced and hit-and-miss, and the myriad bullet-proofed glass takeout spots aren't exactly exemplars of fine Chinese cuisine.
There is some decent upscale Japanese, and some of the Thai is passable, but overall this just isn't a good neighborhood for Asian food. Last Saturday when I rode my bike to Flushing I realized how much I miss great Chinese food. Now I understand that Flushing, a neighborhood made up almost entirely of Asians, and Williamsburg, a neighborhood made of mostly of white hipsters and Hispanic and Polish people, aren't going to be on the same level in terms of Asian cuisine. But is it too much to ask for one decent, authentic sit-down Chinese restaurant? And when will we get our delicious Ichiran noodle shop?
For now, I guess I'll just have to take the L to Elvie's in the East Village or the JMZ to Chinatown. The price I pay to live in beautiful Williamsburg, Brooklyn ...
Short answer: No.
The Good: Overall it's a good addition to the neighborhood. The top-quality, hormone-free beef was delicious, and the generous slices of smoky cheddar cheese were a nice touch. Plus, the service was beyond friendly.
The Bad: Did I get my burger medium, rare, well done? I don't know, nobody ever asked me how I wanted it. The thick-cut fries? Yaaawwwn. Also, '90s alt rock? I'd rather not hear Perry Farrell whilst enjoying my burger. If you're not up to date on music today, stick with the classics i.e. the Rolling Stones, Otis Redding, etc. Soundgarden isn't, and never was, a good band, and Chris Cornell's voice makes it hard for me to concentrate on my mediocre fries. Also, beer would be nice.
Ultimately, the brioche bunned DuMont Burger, while a tad pricier, is just plain superior to the sesame bunned Williamsburger. As for the slogan "Beefing up hipsters," I don't thinks it's offensive, it's just a harmless pun, although it is a scary portent of a future where the neighborhood is filled with muscled, pink-poloed bros whose idea of culture is taking a break from watching ESPN to leaf through a copy of ESPN The Magazine.
I am hopeful that Williamsburger will improve in time. The basic ingredients are there--high quality ingredients and friendly service. Just ask me how I want my burger, give me some better fries and change the '90s alt rock and I'll be a happy man.
Williamsburger, 342 Wythe St nr S 2nd St, ( 718) 468-6969
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