Wining and dining in a romantic french cafe, is every girl’s fantasy. Guys, whisk your lady off to a lovely dinner at Greenpoint’s Le Gamin and let the authentic casual French ambiance make this the best Valentine’s dinner she has ever had (until you can actually take her to France!).
Valentine’s Day Prix Fixe Menu $49/person
Appetizers
Pan-seared Duck Foie Gras with port wine & black truffle lentil stew
Smoked Ahi Tuna Carpaccio with mache & cucumber salad and bourbon barrel-aged sauce
The prix fixe menu ($58) from this delicioso Mexican tapas restaurant will be sure to turn up the heat, not to mention the super sexy interior will set the mood! Check out their full menu here
Guacamole
Tortilla Wafer, cashew crumble, and pico de gallo
______________________
Ensalada De Betabel
Red & yellow beets, brown farro, queso fresco & roasted vegetables
Ensalada De Manzana
Frisee, pickled red onions, caramelized apples, cotija cheese & tortilla crackers
_______________________
One of Greenpoint’s favorite restaurants and best curated shops have teamed up to make magic happen this Valentine’s Day!
Prix Fixe Menu $35
Complimentary glass of Ventoux Rouge or Sauvignon Blanc
Farro Salad-Roasted Root Vegetables, Cauliflower, Red Onion, Walnuts & Goat Cheese Arancini -Risotto Rice Balls with Mozzarella, Grana Padano & House Made Breadcrumbs Sautéed Kale-Caramelized Onion & Capers
_________________
Involtini di Pollo-Free Range Chicken Breast with Sage & Speck in White Wine Sauce Lobster Ravioli-Vodka Sauce Pizza Fritta Montanara-Ricotta, Oven Roasted Tomato, Shallots & Oregano
_________________
Valentine’s Gift Bag From The One Well (Optional, Order Must Be Placed At Time Of Reservation) “lover’s bag” is available for only $30 added onto the cost of your prix-fixe dinner. It includes one superb vegan chocolate bar wrapped in sweet Valentine’s paper, one delicious jar of local goat’s milk caramel sauce, and one bottle of luxurious essential oil scented massage oil.
Tuesday 15th – Sapporo Haru, 622 Manhattan Avenue
Our go-to local sushi place when too tired to cook. Thursday 17th – Selamat Pagi, 152 Driggs Avenue
Had been meaning to try the new Balinese place for ages. Mighty glad we did, it was fresh, charming and delicious.
Friday 18th – Calexico, 645 Manhattan Avenue
Finally got the timing right for the 12-1am Happy Hour, which means 2-for-1 Margaritas. The right way to start a weekend!
Living in Greenpoint, we are lucky to have one of the largest collections of Polish restaurants serving traditionally meat-centric goodness this side of Warsaw. And this is the season for it. Gray, fog-dampened, winter stretches where day and night are hard to tell from one another lend themselves to comfort food.
Grab your sweatpants and your inner fat kid, and read on for what we think are some of the best places in the neighborhood to get your international grub on.
Northside Bakery- Corner of Nassau and Humboldt
Essentially a traditional Polish bakery that decided they could fit some tables and chairs in the space and provide quick counter service. Perfect for grabbing golobki (stuffed cabbage) to go, or chicken noodle soup that’s still has a perfect layer of chicken fat reflecting on the surface. Every variation of rye, multi-grain, rustic, and peasant bread are up for grabs if you wanna carbo-load. This place is about as legit as it gets and it’s crazy inexpensive. Next time you’re in the area, do yourself a favor and get yourself the beet salad.
Lomzynianka-646 Manhattan Ave
Outside of actually having a Polish grandmother, this place is as close as you’re going to get to getting a home cooked meal. The decor here is probably more famous than the menu. Permanent Christmas lights, multi-colored streamers that scallop their way across the drop-tile ceiling, and taxidermied deer heads are festooned with Hawaiian leis can all be found in what is essentially a Polish rec-room from the early 70s. The white borscht and tripe soup are some of the best we’ve ever had and that’s no small compliment. For the more adventurous among you, boiled pork hocks and tongue in horseradish sauce can be found. This place is an institution, and the most expensive thing is only $9. Did we mention that this place is also BYOB? Yeah. We’ve spent many an afternoon sipping Żywiec and nibbling on perfectly prepared farmer’s cheese in this little gem. Krolewskie Jadlo-694 Manhattan Avenue
We guess when you advertise the fact that you used to be a head chef at Rober DeNiro’s Nobu, we should know what we are getting ourselves into. Easily spotted by the iconic suit of armor found out front, Krolewskie Jadlo takes traditional Polish dishes and elevates them to more complex and innovative offerings. Sure, most Polish dishes are one of the infinite iterations of meat, cabbage, and potatoes, but head chef and owner Krzysztof Drzewiecki is doing his best to change that misconception. A still wildly affordable menu is real big on game meat. Stuffed wild boar with cognac pepper sauce, venison meat balls with garden dumplings and mushroom truffle oil sauce, and grilled pheasant breast served with port fig sauce can all be had for less than $15 bucks each. Grubbing on wild boar in a space that feels like a king’s mead hall is also a pretty tight way to spend an evening.
Karczma Polish Restaurant- 136 Greenpoint Ave.
Growing up in Florida, we guess we’re just a sucker for a themed restaurant. Eating at Karczma is like visiting a historical reenactment site. Not like Civil War reenactments, those are just weird. Once inside the decor and costumes do their best to convince you that you’ve somehow made a wrong turn and ended up in 18th century Poland. Traditional polish food, live polish folk music, and waitresses dressed in traditional peasant garb all combine to create the illusion of dining in a rustic country side inn. Peasant style lard is easily one of the most amazing appetizers we’ve ever had. Mixed with bacon and spices and served with warm rye bread, it’s probably a good thing that lard isn’t that easy to find. We’d put it on everything. Grilled blood sausage, pierogis, hunter’s stew, and spicy beef goulash are all damn near perfect. They also have a full bar and a pretty sweet happy hour on Thursdays. $3.50 Żywiec every Thursday from 5pm – 9pm is some of the cheapest beer offerings in town.
This list is by no means comprehensive. There are dozens of delis, bakeries, and cured meat spots peppered throughout Greenpoint. Visit one, be adventurous, and eat something with a name you can’t pronounce. Chances are it’s going to be something you’ve never had before and wouldn’t be able to get anywhere else.
Don’t be fooled by the scary vegan word, because food is food and we all love eating. Especially at a restaurant when someone else is doing the cooking. Being a health-conscious vegan eater with a boyfriend who will eat anything, going out and grubbing out is something we DO. I’ve gathered together the best vegan meals in Greenpoint; even though there are definitely more than just five.
1. Paulie Gee’s (60 Greenpoint Ave)
With a separate vegan menu, and one cozy dining space, you are sure to enjoy one of the most delicious pizza joints in all of New York City. Five white pies and a red pie with tons of toppings start at $10 and go up to $18. They even have homemade vegan sausage! I have to say the “Vegan Greenpointer” with the lemon juice is my personal favorite. Lemon on everything!
2. Spritzenhaus (33.33 Nassau Ave)
You can’t miss this giant beer garden featuring tons of beers on tap and a list of German bratwursts. The most unsuspecting thing on the menu is a vegan brat! A specialty locally sourced vegan brat with apple wood sage and a balsamic reduction on a pretzel bun topped with a heavy helping of peppers and onions, this brat will blow your mind, for only $11. In fact, my meat guru boyfriend prefers this vegan brat to some of the more game-y ones. Don’t forget to get a side of the Belgian fries and try the surplus of mustards they offer.
3. Greenpoint Heights (278 Nassau Ave)
The most talked about new hangout in “this side” of Greenpoint, you all know how awesome Greenpoint Heights is. The chill, unpretentious vibes, matched with the incredible food and drinks, this spot is my jam. Elizabeth is one amazing chef, concocting some serious tacos. The vegan options include a sweet plantain taco and a black bean taco. Mango salsa, guacamole, and fried shallots are a few of the yummy toppings. Other favorites include the banging chips & guac as well as the kale salad (without the cheese of course.) Tacos are $4 each but $3 on Thursdays!
4. Café Royal (195 Nassau Ave)
A coffee shop by day, and a gourmet kitchen by night! One vegan special this café features for dinner is the quinoa plate. Quinoa with sautéed tofu, kale, corn, and roasted tomatoes and pine nuts, topped with some pesto. This healthy dish is a hearty helping that includes a side salad and toast for only 11 bucks. It is one of those dishes that is so good (and easy) that when you try to do it yourself, you can’t even come close. Chef Juan is the master of this bad boy.
5. No Name Bar (597 Manhattan Ave)
No name, no website, no press. But, I couldn’t refuse. This hidden spot in the middle of everything is also featuring a secret Thai kitchen with a badass woman chef. The sprawling backyard is where the kitchen is tucked away and it features a couple vegan options. One is the homemade veggie dumpling noodle soup with bok choi for $9. Spruce that baby up with some chili paste, and this big serving of hot soup with scrumptious dumplings is the perfect soup for a cold day.
Adelina’s dinner for 2 package : 2 free glasses of mulled wine w/purchase of two items (pasta or pizza) from the menu! (mention “GREENPOINTERS”)
Every year around the holidays a good friend of mine takes me out for an amazing dinner. We sit, eat, drink wine and spend some quality time together. She picks up the tab as her gift to me and I honestly couldn’t ask for anything better!
This holiday season treat a friend to some quality time and a quality meal at Adelina’s in Greenpoint.
If you’ve lived in North Brooklyn for a while, you’ve likely walked by MyMoon a handful of times. Situated on North 10th and Driggs, this sprawling indoor/outdoor restaurant has been around for quite some time by Williamsburg standards (I remember a friend having a birthday party there in 2006 or 2007, so that should give you an idea).
But the MyMoon of my younger years is not the one I visited last week. While the space is still massive, draped with trees and curated with large metal sculptures and purple curtains, the menu has shifted direction from a classic Greek, to Spanish-influenced Mediterranean. A perfect example of these new flavors lies in the Chef’s Choice Tapas Sampler. At $24, the sampler provides ample variety, while relying on customer favorites, as well as what is fresh and seasonal. While we were there, we tried the salmon ceviche, which was at once spicy and cool, citrusy and minty. It was the perfect scoop of flavors for a hot summer day. Continue reading →
When I heard Lokal got a citation for serving Brunch on the sidewalk before noon on Sunday because it would prevent people from making it to church, I thought, “You gotta be kidding me!” Aetheism, laziness and in my experience hangovers are what stop people from attending. But let’s hear what my badass and hilarious preacher Ann Kansfield has to say:
Dear Members of Community Board 1:
This letter is in regard to sidewalk café seating, specifically the City prohibition against outdoor seating before noon on the Lord’s Day. The notion that sidewalk dining in some way restricts, inhibits or in any other way interferes with church attendance is utter hogwash. Consequently, I respectfully request that you not cite religious observance, specifically church attendance, as an argument against sidewalk dining. Unless a local clergyperson or other representative from a faith community actually complains about an issue, it is not an issue for us. To my knowledge, neither I, nor none of my clergy colleagues, have voiced any complaint about this issue.
Two observations might be additionally relevant. If there were so many church-going people in Greenpoint and Williamsburg that sidewalk seating would interfere with church attendance, all of our churches would be packed full of people. This is not the case.
Sunday morning worship at the Greenpoint Reformed Church is so exciting and my sermons are so riveting and life-changing that sidewalk seating in no way keeps our congregation from attending services here. We simply traverse along the empty portion of the sidewalk and are able to get to church.
Lastly, regarding the law itself. By only pertaining to Sundays, the law clearly discriminates against others who observe Sabbath on other days of the week. Therefore, it would be my hope that the community board would petition the City to eliminate the law all together.
Lomzynianka-646 Manhattan Ave
