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

Mast Brothers Chocolate Tour

I'm usually too frugal to take cabs or park my car in a garage, but take me to the factory where my favorite chocolate is made and even though each bar costs a dollar more than I pay at the Park Slope Food Coop, I buy six. 

In my defense, I found a few flavors that the coop doesn't carry. I also love the papers they're wrapped in and hadn't seen the yellow and red one before. Isn't the anchor one awesome? I bought two of those, but gave one to my Mom.

Inspired by my own post about a Mast Brothers tour being a better way to celebrate Valentine's Day, I bought tickets for me and Daniel and we visited a few weeks ago.

Mast Brothers began about five years ago when Michael and Rick Mast, two Iowa boys,  began making chocolate together in their Brooklyn apartment. Now they work out of a 2,000 square foot space in Williamsburg that didn't feel like a factory to me. Sure, there are a few big, crazy looking machines, but overall, it felt more like a laid-back place where a group of good friends hang out and make chocolate together.

Our tour guide told us to call him Herbster, drank what looked like coffee from a mason jar and said they make about 4,000 bars of chocolate per week. They're all hand wrapped and the brothers thought about changing that, but decided to keep what's known as "the golding table" because it's simply so fun to sit around, talk about girls and wrap the bars themselves.

Mast Brothers uses cacao that's been organically farmed in Madagascar, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. Before our tour, I had never seen a cacao bean. Now I've tasted one fresh from the oven and watched them get winnowed, conched, tempered, molded, and turned into beautiful, glossy bars.

 I've always been drawn to Mast Brothers because they don't dumb down chocolate and load it with unnecessary fillers. The only bean to bar chocolate shop in New York, they use just cacao and sugar. The only other ingredients they'll add are things like cocoa nibs, hazelnuts, sea salt and crushed Stumptown coffee beans. For some, Mast Brothers chocolate might seem too intense or take some getting used to. I love having a few squares after dinner and rather than chomp right into it, I like to savor a piece at a time, letting it melt slowly so the different flavors linger.

The tour lasted about an hour, cost $10 per person, and even though there was a lot to learn, Herbster made chocolate-making sound easy. If I didn't have such good options in my very own borough, I might try making my own at home. For now, I'll rely on the Mast Brothers. (By the way, what is it with siblings making such good sweets in Brooklyn these days?)

Mast Brothers
105 North 3rd Street
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
Tours are Saturday and Sunday at 1pm

Playing Top Chef at Fatty 'Cue

Fellow Top Chef fans, tell me something. Do you ever pretend you're a judge on the show? If you haven't tried this, you should. Anthony Bourdain is especially fun to imitate while eating a meal you don't like. Tom Colicchio, too. When I told Daniel I was going to admit that we do this, he warned me it's geeky. Oh well, I guess we're geeks.

And if Fatty 'Cue were on our version of Top Chef, they could easily win a quickfire with their BLT. A clever take on a classic sandwich, it wedges extra crispy coriander bacon, green tomato, baby lettuce and a spicy aioli between two thick slices of perfectly toasted pullman bread with crunchy edges. As Padma might say, they really hit it out of the park with this one.

But their Sunday special, a whole smoked pig that sounded so promising was one-dimensional, bland, uninspired, and not what we expected at all. Tom would have said that the flavors just didn't develop. Anthony would have wondered if they scrubbed the pork under water and then wrung it dry like a dish rag before serving it. Gail probably would have added that even two over easy eggs and bao buns just couldn't save a REALLY BORING DISH. We begged our server for something, anything to give it more kick. She came back with a really good house made sriracha that helped a little bit.

All joking aside, I don't think brunch is the best time to fully judge a restaurant. I love Fatty Crab and am not ready to tell Fatty 'Cue to pack their knives and go. Not yet.

Fatty 'Cue
91 South 6th Street
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
718-599-3090

Turn on some lights, Aurora!

For our November get together, the Brooklyn girls and I found comforting Italian food at Aurora. I don't visit Williamsburg too often, but dinner a few days earlier at Roebling Tea Room made it my second trip in one week. If you ever go there, get the roast chicken.

But back to Bklyn Girls Night.

Located at the end of a fairly desolate street, Aurora is a warm and cozy surprise with a dark wooden bar, exposed brick, wide plank floors and high ceilings. I arrived a good fifteen minutes early (definitely the first time that has ever happened!), and used the extra time to linger over the menu. Once the rest of the girls arrived, we were seated in the restaurant's winterized garden.

All of Aurora's homemade pastas were enticing (and thankfully there were only 5 to choose from), but the buckwheat ravioli filled with chestnut and fontina won over six of us. Indecisive as usual, I convinced Roxanne to split them and a seafood stew with me.

While sitting at the bar before everyone arrived, I loved the slight glow coming from small paper bags scattered throughout the restaurant. When it came time to eat, I felt like an old lady, poking at my food and sticking my face close to everything so I could get a better look. All of the couples canoodling at nearby tables didn't seem to mind the low-lit, romantic vibe, but for someone who needs to photograph her food, I was slightly frustrated. With Roxanne's undying devotion to the success of This Little Piglet, we managed to get a few.


Topped with chaneterelle and porcini mushrooms, the ravioli was buttery and cloud-like with a smooth and subtle chestnut filling. I would have liked a bit more sweetness in the dish but it sent the rest of the table swooning.

I was less impressed with the seafood stew. It had a nice amount of lobster, clams, calamari and snapper, but with only a little broth, it didn't feel particuarly stewy to me.


Maggie was in charge of ordering the wine and she found us a great red from Italy's Piedmont region (where my Italian relatives happen to live), though I of course forgot to write down the name.

For someone who loves desserts, I'm sorry to say that Italian sweets never really wow me. Aurora's selection was no different, but true to form, I still managed to lick the plates clean. My favorite was the chocolate and chestnut cake that Judith ordered. The consistency resembled cheesecake, though its crust crunched like a piece of biscotti.

I couldn't get any of the desserts to perk up for a picture, so we decided to have a Bklyn Girls Night photo shoot instead.


Here is Maggie deep in thought about something while the guy behind her throws back a buckwheat ravioli in one bite. Look closely and you'll see what I mean.


Molly smiles for the camera while showing how damn dark it is inside Aurora.


It was Megan's first Brooklyn Girls Night and though Judith and I told her how lucky she was to join the group right before we closed membership (it's too hard to coordinate more than ten New York City agendas at once), I still couldn't resist inviting four more people during Allison's birthday dinner last weekend. Sorry Juuuuuudy!


Judith and Roxanne discuss how much they love my blog, especially this list of restaurant recommendations.

Judith: Isn't This Little Piglet THE BEST? I don't know how I ever lived without it.

Roxanne: I know, I can't let a day go by without finding out where and what she's eaten.

(For those of you wondering, Roxanne selected Knife + Fork for her birthday dinner).


Roxanne and I demonstrate other fun uses for the glowing paper bags. If you find yourself at Aurora without any cash, I have two things to tell you. There's an ATM in the back of the restaurant, but bring one of these along since it's pitch black back there too. Otherwise, you might end up taking out $40 more than you need like I did.

Thanks ladies for another wonderful evening! Looking forward to our next outing in Carroll Gardens. We'll be starting with wine and cheese at Lucy's second shoe/clothing store, Lucia, located on the corner of Smith St. and Douglass, followed by dinner at Robin de Bois. (To anyone reading this who lives in the neighborhood: If you're tired of all the pricey boutiques, Lucy and her shop are sure to cheer you up. Go there now!).

Aurora
70 Grand Street
Brooklyn, NY
718-388-5100