Food and Drink (incl. Restaurants) « Page 8

Category Archives: Food and Drink (incl. Restaurants)

[UPDATE] AMORINA Cucina Rustica opened, and …

Posted on March 4, 2005 by dailyheights

UPDATE: So, speaking of (hopefully) decent pizza in Prospect Heights… ~~What’s the verdict on Albano Ballerini’s new place?~~ What are your first impressions of this place? And don’t be fooled by that awning: the name of the place is Amorina.

As EXCOM notes in the Comments below, he/she just posted a mini-review of ~~Cucina Rustica~~ Amorina on Chowhound. Excerpts: "Sausage and mushroom: a great, earthy slice. The sausage (homemade?) and crimini mushroom combined beautifully. I think the same fresh sauce as the Margherita ... nice extra virgin olive oil in the background ...They do have wine ... The prices are more than fair for what you get. I didn't see a pie that was more than $13, nor a slice more than $2.50."

(Actually, ALMOST everything is less than $13… we had dinner there over the weekend, and the octopus-containing pizza is $14.)

Amorina (Cucina Rustica) | 624 Vanderbilt Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11238. 718-230-3030.

New: Decent Pizza in Prospect Heights

Posted on March 4, 2005 by dailyheights

3 Comments

…by delivery, at least. Two Boots (Park Slope, Brooklyn) just expanded its delivery area to include "beyond Flatbush Ave. to Underhill Ave." Will they deliver a Cajun Bloody Mary? Maybe, if you ask nicely.

Two Boots | 514 2nd St. btw 7th and 8th Aves., Brooklyn, NY; 718-499-3253. Delivery hours 5-10:30 pm Sun-Thurs; 5-11:30 pm Fri-Sat. $10 minimum.

Fulfill Your Lifelong Dream of Co-Owning an Anarcho-Vegetarian Cafe/Restaurant

Posted on March 3, 2005 by dailyheights

1 Comment

Post Punk Kitchen co-host Isa Chandra took time out from finishing her cookbook to ask: "Can you see if someone wants to open a cafe with me? … I’ve been planning on opening a veg cafe restaurant for awhile actually. I have a business plan and everything, I just don’t have enough money. But yes, I’m serious!"

Here is one location option: $1750; 720 sf + basement, corner of Washington Ave. and Dean St.
Here’s another: $3000; 900 sf, Washington closer to Eastern Parkway (WARNING: incredibly annoying ad copy)
Another: $2450; 1,000 sf, "up and coming" Prospect Heights area
Another: $3500; 1,300 sf, Carlton Ave. at Pacific St.

I think Isa is on to something. A well-done vegetarian restaurant would draw people from all over the city, and an up-and-coming corner like Washington and Dean would be a good place to start, if you can squeeze a kitchen and seating into 720 sq. ft. plus basement. Who’s in? (Bonus: Name the "up and coming" location of the storefront in the photo.)

TRADE SECRETS: "Traditional Indian Salad" at India Place

Posted on March 1, 2005 by dailyheights

12 Comments

During a recent visit to INDIA PLACE on Vanderbilt Ave., we discovered the Mixed Traditional Indian Salad w/House Dressing (SOUP & SALAD course, $2.50). Though there are no guarantees that you’ll be able to reproduce this dish in your own kitchen, we offer this as a rough guide to the ingredients:

-Iceberg Lettuce
-Sliced Tomato, ripe
-Sliced Cucumber, also fairly ripe
-Italian dressing (Kraft? Wish-Bone? The waiter wasn’t specific)

A lot of questions remain. On what part of the subcontinent can you find "traditional Indian salad" consisting of iceberg lettuce, tomato, cucumber and Italian dressing? And how far back does this tradition date? We may need to do a follow-up on this.

INDIA PLACE | Finest Indian Cuisine | 655 Vanderbilt Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11238; 718-398-7776. Open daily. Take-out available.

MORE WEEKEND PLANS: Oscars at Soda

Posted on February 25, 2005 by dailyheights

4 Comments

Is it already that time of year again? Tamara the Friendly Bartender says Soda will host a big-screen Oscar party Sunday night. If Oscars, celebrity wine tastings, and tapas bar openings aren’t enough, you might want to check out DH’s garish but functional post-your-own-event calendar.

If Friday afternoon work avoidance is your plan, then go create some controversy in the forums. But don’t make me delete you.

PUNK ROCK WINE TASTING: Friday at Fermented Grapes

Posted on February 23, 2005 by dailyheights

9 Comments

In what will certainly be the coolest wine tasting in all of Brooklyn this weekend, Andy Shernoff of ex-Dictators fame will be pouring Argentinian and Chilean wines over at Fermented Grapes. The Argentinians are "of exceptional quality while not being overly pricey," according to Debbie, Jan and Kilolo. Brace yourself for Chardonnay with "notes of beautiful pear, fig and honeysuckle," and Malbec that "has
very dark fruit with lots of mineral undertones."

FRIDAY, Feb. 25 from 6-8 PM at FERMENTED GRAPES WINES & SPIRITS | 651 Vanderbilt Avenue – Brooklyn, NY 11238 ~ phone: 718.230.3216 ~ fax: 718.230.3237 ~ www.fermentedgrapes.net

[PHOTO: arg0t.tripod.com]

Bob Law: Of Radio, Restaurants and Retail

Posted on February 18, 2005 by dailyheights

2 Comments

87law_bob_1 Check out this profile of Bob Law, 65, the former music director of WWRL and host of the "Night Talk" radio show, who owns both the Namaskar health food store Bob Law’s Seafood Cafe: "Both establishments are on the same block of Vanderbilt Ave. near Prospect Place in Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights neighborhood. Namaskar has been there for almost 14 years, the Seafood Cafe for three … (Law) doesn’t see his move from radio to retail as such a stretch. ‘I’ve been preaching entrepreneurship to African-Americans for years…’"

"…he and his wife, Muntu, opened the Seafood Cafe … ‘I wanted it to be in between a fish-and-chips place and a sit-down restaurant … The idea was to create another city dining experience by offering people a little something different.’"

Go read the rest of Clem Richardson’s profile in the Daily News.

Trader Joe in the ProHo

Posted on February 17, 2005 by dailyheights

2 Comments

Newhome1_02 Victoria writes: "… my husband and I read your site all the time. We’d love for a Trader Joes to move into Prospect or Crown Heights. There are all those warehouses on Dean, Bergen, and Sterling (past Washington). Any ideas about how to bring Trader Joe’s to our neighborhood?"

The story is that Trader Joe’s is looking for a storefront somewhere in Brooklyn but, a spokeswoman says, "we need to find a deal that makes sense for us."

According to the Daily News article, "Trader Joe’s is still considering how much parking it will need … ‘We’re trying to be open-minded’ …"

Wine Tasting Tonight: Costieres de Nimes, Gaillac

Posted on February 17, 2005 by dailyheights

No Comments

Tonight from 6-8 PM at Fermented Grapes (651 Vanderbilt Av,
Brooklyn,
NY 11238; 718-230-3216): "Laurent, from Baron Francois,
will be pouring three French wines. A white and a red from Costieres de Nimes (both
Grenache-based blends) and a delicious red blend from Gaillac
(southwest France)."

Soda Bar Gives Pool Table The Boot

Posted on February 9, 2005 by dailyheights

10 Comments

Heather investigates: "The long-adored pool table in Soda on Vanderbilt Ave. has bitten the dust. A major selling point since the bar’s opening, the pool table was removed about two weeks ago because, according to one bartender, it was the cause of ‘too many fights.’ She attested that the table was not broken or anything; ‘it was just time’ for it to go." Pictured: The space left behind.
Soda Bar; 629 Vanderbilt Ave. btw Prospect Pl. and St. Mark’s Ave.; 718-230-8393.

DailyHeights

Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, New York | Blog for the Prospect Heights Neighborhood.