Growing up, my parents were big on going out to eat. My mother was not much of a domestic goddess to say the very least. We had three popular locals that we pretty much ate at every week. One night would be Frost, another night would be Bamonte’s and sometimes more than once a week it would be Monsignor’s. I feel like the owners and waiters were part of my extended family for God’s sake.
Bamonte’s and Frost are still around and the last time I was in either, the same waiters were at each. It was comforting. Monsignor’s however sold to new owners long ago. I had never even been in the Monsignor’s that was on Nassau and Lorimer. We used to frequent it when it was this small and intimate restaurant on Manhattan Ave.
I did notice that the space on Nassau and Lorimer looked huge and it’s also been vacant of Monsignor’s for awhile. Turns out a new joint, Lokal (Polish for cafe/place) is in town. A Mediterranean bistro with a a Polish name? Um, ok.**
**Update 10/24/07 – According to one of the commenters – Lokal is actually named for the Turkish word meaning Local. Makes sense now, huh?
I love Bamontes. Especially their stuffed eggplant. Yummy.
Lokal looks sooo cool, I loved the place and the food:):)
One of the owners said, they are turkish, and LOKAL means “local” in turkish. 🙂 I didnt think that someone will open a Mediterranean bistro with a a Polish name!! I was so curious and asked :):):):)
Ah – interesting! Makes sense now, huh? Thanks for the update.
I have lived in Greenpoint 10 years now, and walk from L everyday and to be honest with you I was NEVER tempted to set my foot at Monsignor’s, it always looked dirty, cold and deserted to me, so having a nice clean and interesting restaurant instead of Monsignor’s doesn’t really bother me.