Brooklyn Food Favorites 2011

Rucola

I was hoping to do a detailed Brooklyn Food Favorites post today, like the one I did last year. But then the holidays kind of took over and the last thing I wanted to do was gather images and come up with catchy text. Luckily, I already wrote about some of them so it's easy to reminisce about the good food I had at Brooklyn Commune, Dough, andAmple Hills. And while I'm at it, here are a few more places I really loved this year.

Rucola
This Northern Italian restaurant is on one of my favorite blocks in Boerum Hill. Open all day, it's good for a date, dinner with friends, or at 8am when top-notch breakfast sandwiches and bomboloni from Falai Bakery beckon.

Bien Cuit
It was very hard leaving my old block in Cobble Hill and all my favorite places along with it. Had Bien Cuit, a new bakery that makes some of Brooklyn's best bread been there back then, it would have been impossible to move.

Colonie
The Brooklyn Heights dining scene has needed some help for awhile and luckily, Colonie came to the rescue. I celebrated my birthday there this year and loved the rustic decor (and lush green wall!).

Kos Kaffe
This Park Slope cafe recently had a much-needed makeover. Spacious, full of natural light and decorated with soothing colors, it still roasts its coffee in-house and has cupcakes from Baked.

Roman's
A fun spot for dinner with friends, this place from the owners of Marlow & Sons is loud and fun. Start with the straciatella, a soft, stretchy mound of mozzarella and you'll fall in love fast.

Lot 61
Local wine and beer are a big draw at this Cobble Hill bar, but the snacks and small plates are what really impressed me. Their toasts are much heartier than they sound and I would happily eat the honey ricotta one with buckwheat honey and pistachio dust every day.

Kiwiana
Top Chef fans might remember Mark Simmons, the cute New Zealand chef from season 4. His reality TV days behind him, he's now chef and owner at this awesome addition to the Park Slope dining scene that showcases his country's signature ingredients.

Talde
This place hasn't even opened yet, but I'm betting it's going to be one of my favorites in 2012. The team from Thistle Hill Tavern are behind it and the food comes from Dale Talde, also of Top Chef fame. Its navy blue exterior and bright orange awnings add some sophistication to Park Slope's 7th Ave and I'm hopeful the food is going to make a big statement too.

Here's to more amazing meals in 2012. Happy New Year!

Sweets from a Local Cheese Shop

Leave it to me to check out a new cheese shop and stock up on sweets. I'm sure Valley Shepherd Creamery's cheese is amazing and I love that it's all made just an hour away in Long Valley, NJ, but in my defense their high-end treats are way too distracting. I was finally able to try some cookies from Whimsy & Spice (chocolate orange cardamom, so good with a cup of tea) and discover virgin chocolate from Raaka, a company that doesn't roast their cocoa beans. Let me be clear that this chocolate is not cheap by any means, but I'm a sucker pretty packaging, and more importantly, good ingredients—their Black Coffee bar has espresso from Cafe Grumpy. If a glass of wine in a restaurant costs $10, 5 to 8 bucks for some really good chocolate isn't so crazy, right?

I also picked up a cheese slicer for Daniel's stocking since ours broke ages ago, a pretzel croissant that's a lot like the amazing ones at City Bakery but just 85 cents and much smaller, and some hot chocolate on a stick for Nico. Leo loves cheese and has a soft spot for the good stuff. Soon after we walked in, the guy behind the counter must have heard his cries for "more cheeeee" because he surprised him with a nice slice to snack on. By the time I was done obsessing with the sweets, we had to go, but I'll be back again soon to try the cheese, some fresh pasta, and maybe a sandwich or two.

Valley Shepherd Creamery
211 Seventh Ave (between 3rd and 4th Streets)
Park Slope, Brooklyn

Jane's Carousel

The first time we went to Jane's Carousel—a ride built in 1922 that was recently restored and now resides in Brooklyn Bridge Park—I forgot to check if it was open. Of course, we went on a Tuesday, the only day it's closed. Nico and Leo were bummed, but still had a blast running around the pier and being so close to the water. They even threw in a few pile-ons. Brotherly love is the best.

When we went back last week, we skipped the subway and walked all the way from from Park Slope to DUMBO. We made our way down Union Street, through Gowanus, stopping to admire a sidewalk speckled with cool tiles near what Nico likes to call The Stinky Bridge. We strolled on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens and I thought about places like Halcyon and Sur that have since closed and all the new places that opened up. We made our way to Clinton Street into Brooklyn Heights and I pointed out the first block in Brooklyn Daniel and I lived on and when we reached the Promenade, it took my breath away, just like it always has. Sadly, the gaping hole where the Twin Towers once stood didn't feel quite as strange anymore. A long walk with two little kids might not make much sense to some. But looking back on our day, it was one of the best parts.  Showing such familiar streets to my little boys and telling them about my life before they were here, was both surreal and amazing.

As expected, the carousel was a big hit. It's beautiful and spinning around on a fancy ride with the Brooklyn Bridge, East River and Manhattan skyline in the background was pretty cool. I'm sure it's even prettier at night. We rode around a few times, trying out different horses and the frilly chariots. Seems like Friday mornings are a good time to go since we practically had the whole carousel to ourselves. Bonus: Kids 3 and under ride for free.

On the way home, we played at Harry Chapin Playground, a cute spot that's at the top of a hill Daniel and I used to run up during our jogging days. It was just as torturous pushing a double stroller with two kids in it. After a quick stop for some pizza, Nico and Leo eventually fell asleep and I was treated to another long walk along some of my favorite streets.

Flavor Paper

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Karlyn, you need to start blogging! But until you begin, I'm happy to share the cool stuff you send my way.

Since I'll soon be settling into a new apartment, Karlyn told me about Flavor Paper, a small handscreened wallpaper company that started on the Oregon coast, moved to New Orleans and now has four-story showroom/factory in Cobble Hill. Home to the company's design and screenprinting operations, it's apparently a really cool space where customers can see the process up close and check out the designs. I've never used wallpaper before but have been thinking about giving it a try and already found a bunch from Flavor Paper that I really like. They even have some scratch and sniff ones that little kids would love.

Flavor Paper

216 Pacific Street

Cobble Hill, Brooklyn

South Brooklyn Pizza

When it comes to food in Brooklyn, I try my best to stay in the loop. Rarely do I just stumble upon a place, especially one that's been around for a few months and has a few locations. But that's exactly what happened last night.

Daniel and I were about to go to Moim, a Korean place we really like, when we noticed a bright red storefront on a nearby side street. Inside we discovered South Brooklyn Pizza, a tiny place with a lot of charm and unbelievably good pies and slices. It's pricey—$4 a slice and $25 a pie—but after trying a slice of margherita, a four-cheese artichoke pie, and two cucumber and tomato salads with an amazing pesto-spiked dressing that I wanted to sip straight from the bowl, it's clear they use high quality ingredients. The pizza's crust was crispy with just a few charred spots, and rather than being paper thin or ultra thick, it was somewhere in between.

We sat outside at a marble table with red chairs and had fun showering the owner, a jolly Italian man, with lots of compliments on his perfect pizzeria. Next to us, a big family shared a bunch of pies and through the window, I played peekaboo with an adorable baby girl. It made me think of Nico and Leo. They would happily eat pizza every day if we let them. With such a special place in our neighborhood, it's going to be hard not to.

South Brooklyn Pizza
447 1st Street (between 6th and 7th Aves)
718-832-1022

Pretty in Pink

In the summer, all I want to drink is Rosé. It works well with most warm-weather foods and is refreshing. Last summer, I fell in love with Jelu Malbec Rose from Argentina. It had a really bright, cherry flavor and unlike most Rosés I've tried, it was deep and dark in color. My local wine store isn't carrying it anymore, so last night I decided to search for a new favorite. I went with a 2010 Wolffer Estate Rosé, 2010 Cabochard Cote Roannaise, 2009 Rubiconda Canavese Rosato, and 2010 Jean-Maurice Paffault Chinon.

When I'm choosing wine, I'm usually guided by the descriptions on the bottle or the ones that the wine shop provides, and occasionally I get swayed by cool labels. After trying to describe the type of Rosé I like last night and only being able to come up with crisp and a little bit sweet, it's time to finally take a class and learn a thing or two. I've bought wine at The Brooklyn Wine Exchange before and they offer all sorts of classes, so it seems like a good place to start.

Couleur Café

Some of my favorite places are on Seventh Avenue in the South Slope. There's Cafe Grumpy, Beer Table, Thistle Hill Tavern (whose owners are opening another restaurant just a few blocks down with Dale from Top Chef!), and now I have a new one to add to the list: Couleur Café.  It's a French cafe that just opened and now has me craving a sweet brioche topped with crunchy sugar crystals and an almond croissant every day. Oh, and their fresh lemonade is on the tart side, just the way I like it.

On Saturday, Nico helped me do a few loads of laundry. While our clothes were washing, he tried out his new scooter. After we transferred everything to the dryer, we went to Couleur Café for a treat. Being there with him reminded me of the diner trips I used to take with my grandfather every week when I was little. We'd squeeze into a booth, put some quarters in our jukebox and after drinking my own cup of coffee and eating a donut twist, I'd practice my dance moves on the leather seats. I loved that diner and our special outings so much and am sure they encouraged my love of restaurants and food.  Nico still has a long way to go when it comes to restaurant etiquette. When I told him to calm down on Saturday and explained that we were in a restaurant, he responded, "But Mama, this is a cafe, not a restaurant!" Still, it's so fun to be starting some rituals of our own.

He devoured a chocolate croissant in about one minute. He ate in silence and didn't take his eyes off it for a second. After, we built train tracks out of sugar packets. Before I knew it, he was laughing wildly and ready to run around outside again.

Couleur Café 
435 Seventh Ave, between 14th and 15th Streets
Park Slope, Brooklyn

Cupcakes and Weddings

Last weekend, my friend Mona got married. She and I grew up together and were inseparable for many years. At her rehearsal dinner, we feasted on Lebanese food at Al Bustan and listened to lots of funny and touching speeches. Secretly, I hoped I'd get away without making one. I had plenty to say, but have never been a fan of public speaking. As the microphone kept getting passed around the room, I wanted to crawl under our table and hide. Soon enough, I found myself trying to explain to 125 people just how much Mona means to me.

At the wedding on Saturday at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers, a beautiful spot where I once sat next to Glen Close and made Matthew Modine think he knew me (more on that another day), I was so happy to see our friends, a big group that goes back over 20 years. I didn't want the night to end. This might explain why I let some of them persuade me and Daniel to attend the after party at the SoHo Grand.

We knew we'd pay the price the next day, and indeed we did. Leo woke up less than two hours after we got home and Nico soon after. My Mom had slept over and kept them entertained while we "slept in", but our little boys sound a lot like wild baboons first thing in the morning. Needless to say, we were dragging the entire day.

Daniel likes to tease me about how I eat too many sweets. On a day when we were dreaming about bedtime by 3pm, a few cupcakes from the new Butter Lane in Park Slope helped us both wake up.

Butter Lane
240 7th Ave (between 4th and 5th Streets)
Park Slope, Brooklyn

Smith Canteen

The owners of Seersucker, a really good southern restaurant on Smith Street, just turned a century-old pharmacy on the same block into a cafe. I checked it out on Monday and fell in love on the spot. Outside, pretty plants line the sidewalk and rest on marble-topped tables, while inside, they kept the original tile floor, tin ceiling and wood shelves, and added pale blue cabinets and more marble. The space is really bright and sunny and gave me good ideas for my own kitchen.

I went in the afternoon when most of their pastries, such as homemade strawberry pop tarts and strawberry rhubarb muffins, were long gone, but the chocolate chip cookie I tried was excellent, with big chunks of dark chocolate and a touch of sea salt. They started rolling out their lunch menu this week and I'm curious about the duck confit banh mi. Coffee and espresso is from Counter Culture and they also have sweet tea and hand-squeezed lemonade.

There are only a few small tables, but Carroll Park is right across the street. If you tend to travel with a bunch of kids like I usually do, get your treats to go and enjoy them over there. The F train stops on the same block and it's absolutely worth the trip from other parts of Brooklyn. Since Smith Canteen opens bright and early every day every day, I'm planning to go again soon for breakfast.

Smith Canteen
343 Smith Street (at Carroll)
Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn
7am to 7pm, daily

Brooklyn Commune

Vanderbilt Playground in Windsor Terrace is one of my favorite places in Prospect Park to take Nico and Leo to play. It was renovated last year and has lots of different structures that appeal to big and little kids. Occasionally, we stop at the pizza place across the street for slices, and for a while, I thought it was the only food option nearby. Then I read about Brooklyn Commune, a new cafe on Greenwood Ave. We tried it out last week and just a few blocks from the playground and right next to the Fort Hamilton subway stop, it's a wonderful, and much needed addition to the neighborhood.

Opened by a couple with culinary backgrounds, the cafe uses CSA-sourced produce and sells a small selection of local products. We went for an early breakfast on one of those days when it was sweltering by 9am and cooled off with some grapefruit juice mixed with mint before sharing a bowl of homemade granola, an egg sandwich with mushrooms and spinach on multigrain, and a blueberry yogurt muffin with an incredibly light crumb.

We picked up a jar of rhubarb rose petal preserves and have been enjoying it all week on buttered toast and I'm hoping to go back again for lunch to try one of their salads. They also sell prepared foods that would be perfect on nights when it's too hot to cook, and since Brooklyn Commune is BYO, it was nice to discover The Juice Box, a cool wine shop one door down.

Brooklyn Commune
601 Greenwood Ave
Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn
718-686-1044

Strawberry and Chocolate Ice Cream Cupcakes

Ice cream cupcakes aren't exactly ideal in 98 degree weather, but how was I supposed to know it would be that hot on Leo's first birthday? We ordered a dozen from Blue Marble using the Doodledeal I bought back in February and went with strawberry ice cream with crushed Newman's O's and chocolate icing. Leo and Nico both loved them. I thought they were way too rich and the buttery icing kind of clashed with the ice cream.  I'd prefer a simple scoop of Blue Marble's stawberry ice cream any day, but first birthdays call for something extra special and these did the trick.

The Rapture, Roberta's Style

At Madison Square Eats last week, I finally tried a pizza from Roberta's. The guys behind the Bushwick pizzeria brought a mobile wood-fire oven to the pop-up food court and were making a few of their specialty pies on the spot. I went with The Rapture: mozzarella, kale, spring garlic, lemon and pecorino, the lightest of the bunch. I loved the crispy kale (something I've been adding raw to smoothies and salads a lot lately), but thought there were a few too many charred spots on the chewy crust. The Bee Sting—mozzarella, tomato, spicy soppressata and honey—was another contender and I hear the sweet and salty combination is awesome. Since the actual pizzeria is much closer to me than Manhattan's Worth Square, I need to finally plan a trip there this summer.

Outdoor Eats

When I worked at Food Network, warm days often led to long lunches at La Bottega, an Italian restaurant with one of the best outdoor areas in NYC. The spacious patio's white and blue umbrellas, paper lanterns dangling in between trees, and a view of the hip Maritime Hotel soaring into the sky made it such a fun place to escape the daily grind.

Unfortunately, I haven't been there in a while, but I still included it in a list of my favorite places for outdoor dining on Mommy Poppins.

What are your favorite places for outdoor eats?

Image via The Maritime Hotel

Long Weekend

When you live in New York, sometimes it's better to stay home on a holiday weekend than go away. While others flee, you can spend three glorious days going on adventures and falling in love with your crazy city all over again. Take it from me, since that's exactly what we did this weekend. It is the way to go.

We started our weekend at home made bklyn, a sweet spot in Red Hook with comfy white couches and a serene garden. We sipped fresh lemonade, cubes of watermelon bobbing in each of our cups, and shared a big bowl of local yogurt with Early Bird granola and sliced pears. The sticky buns, almond croissants and other breakfast foods were tempting, but we had our hearts set on lobster rolls from the Lobster Pound, a place that brings fresh Maine lobster to Brooklyn. The rolls were as classic as they come, served on toasted hot dog buns with either a hint of mayo and some spices or tossed with butter, Connecticut-style. We tried both and agreed they were a million times better than the mediocre ones we ate at the Ditch Plains Drop-In at Brooklyn Bridge Park last weekend. After, we hung out in a community garden, met a woman who grows hops for homemade beer and a guitar maker who told us about Valentino Pier where Nico and Daniel played by the water and Leo napped in the shade. On the walk back to our car, we spotted a cool bar on a cobblestone street that we want to check out some day.

That night, Daniel and I had a date at Rucola, a new Italian restaurant in Boerum Hill where we split gnocchi, soft shell crabs, brook trout, an arugula salad with radishes, ricotta pudding with greenmarket strawberries buried at the bottom, and a second dessert—a warm rhubarb cake with a buttery toffee sauce—at Seersucker, another restaurant that was a 15-minute walk away. 

There was a family trip to a bike shop followed by jelly donuts, a fresh fruit tart and a bear-shaped financier at Colson and an afternoon visit to Rockaway Beach, where Nico dug in the sand and Leo discovered the ocean. Green smoothies with kale, granny smith apples and lemon from Veggie Island were sipped and stories about armadillos and a big, bad wolf were told while we waited on a long line for tacos (two with fish, one with chorizo), a bean, cheese and plantain quesadilla, and a spicy jicama, mango and cucumber salad at Rockaway Taco.

An air conditioner was installed, winter clothes were happily put away and summer ones were yanked out, loads and loads of laundry were done, tons of sunblock was applied, photos were taken, cameras and wallets were sometimes forgotten at home, Leo's bike seat was installed and yesterday, we rode to Pier 6, one boy on the back of each bike, helmets on, wind tickling our legs and the blazing afternoon sun stinging our eyes. We climbed, splashed, swung, dug and ran around, welcoming summer with open arms and happy for the place we call home.

An Afternoon at Ample Hills

Today was beautiful in Brooklyn. With a blinding blue sky and not a cloud in sight, it was the kind of weather that begs you to have a picnic in the park followed by a trip for ice cream. And since Ample Hills Creamery—the new Prospect Heights ice cream parlor—officially opened this afternoon, that's just what we did.

At an Ample Hills fundraiser a month or so ago, I wasn't eating sweets because of Lent and had to just watch as Nico slowly ate a few scoops. I made sure to sample a bunch of flavors today, loving how they're all made from scratch in the shop (with lots of local ingredients!) and are packed with fun mix-ins like chocolate covered pretzels, brownies, and cookies. I finally settled on Peppermint Pattie—peppermint ice cream with homemade peppermint patties and a dark chocolate fudge swirl—a nice spin on classic mint chocolate chip. I wanted something refreshing and it really hit the spot.

Ample Hills is ultra kid-friendly and has plenty of space to park strollers, a changing table in the bathroom, and even a small ice-cream themed play area that Nico loved. In fact, he and Fox had so much fun playing with pretend ice cream that they didn't try any of the real stuff for a while. Eventually, Nico made his way over to the counter and requested a scoop of dark chocolate. He really wanted it on a cone but they were all out of them at the time. They started making fresh ones as we were getting ready to leave and I contemplated having another scoop just so I could try one, but talked myself out of it knowing we'll be back again soon. Maybe even this week since it looks like the good weather is here to stay, for a little while at least.

(A big thanks to Karlyn for taking all these photos with her phone, and for always being up for long walks for food with me!)

Ample Hills Creamery
632 Vanderbilt Avenue
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn

Ample Hills Creamery Opens This Week!

Remember that fundraiser for Ample Hills Creamery I mentioned a few weeks ago? Well, Nico and I went and he had fun sampling a few flavors while reminding me that I couldn't have ANY because I had given up sweets for Lent. I've been waiting to try the ice cream myself ever since and will finally have my chance when the Prospect Heights parlor opens this Wednesday. For more information about Ample Hills—the only ice cream parlor in New York City that makes all of their ice cream from scratch, on site—read the post I wrote for Mommy Poppins last week.

Ample Hills Creamery
632 Vanderbilt Ave between Prospect and Park Places
Prospect Heights, Brooklyn

Smorgasburg: A Brooklyn Food Flea Market

Daniel and I tried to snag a table at Marlow & Sons a few months ago when we were in Williamsburg for our Mast Brothers Chocolate tour, but didn't have any luck. We ended up at Fatty 'Cue instead, but for months, I've been meaning to try again, and I want to pick up some stuff at Marlow & Daughters as well.

Now I have another reason to go back. Smorgasburg, a food flea market opens this weekend! The New York Times recently shared a list of all the vendors  and I continue to be both amazed and overwhelmed by how much incredible food is made in Brooklyn. But the fact that so much of it can now be found in one place is very exciting. I'm not sure I'll make it there this weekend, but it looks like I'll be spending more time in Williamsburg very soon.

Smorgasburg
Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
27 North Street, between Kent Avenue and the East River (near East River State Park)
Williamsburg, Brooklyn