Park Slope
Belgian Beers over Bergdorf
Brooklyn's 5th Avenue
Long Tan has the best Pad Thai in Brooklyn at Two AM
Beso on the other side of Union Street has simple decor and standard South American fare. While it is mostly unremarkable, the Empanadas are fine and the prices reasonable. If one can get a seat, the brunches are good too. In the summer time, their front windows are open allowing one to look out onto the passing parade and the Body Reserve, a serious gym which occupies a converted bank.
5th Avenue has two main shopping options: several antique stores occupy a 10 block stretch, while gourmet stores offer fine beer, wine, and cheese. The most startling of these recent arrivals is Red, White, and Bubbly, a wine and liquor store with a climate controlled cellar consisting of fine Italian, Bordeux, and Burgundies. The proprietor, Darren Sigfreid is charismatic and knowledgeable. Without condescension, he informs the buyer of options and lesser-know labels. Red, White, and Bubbly offers wine classes and chills champagne to go. Although it's prices for high-end wine and champagne are not competitive with the internet, the service and setting add value.
The Italian restaurant Al Di La is touted as the best restaurant on the avenue. The fare is decent, the prices steep, and the service insouciant. While the sardine appetizer is good, the risotto is overly salted and the salads fit for a rabbit. Most 5th Avenue restaurants do not take reservations and are happy to turn away customers on a weekend night if customers are not prepared to wait. This backwards system is a disservice to Park Slope restaurants and will make them forever inferior to their Manhattan counter parts. When I asked the proprietor of Al Di La why they didn't take reservations, his response was that people wouldn't show up, leaving them in the lurch.
The true stand-out on 5th Avenue is Blue Ribbon, the sister restaurant of the SoHo original. The extensive menu is fresh, offering everything from Burgers to Trout, and signature items such as Oysters and Bone Marrow. Relative to other restaurants in Park Slope, the space is massive and the architecture makes intelligent use of the beams and rafters of the old building. The service is highly professional and attentive - wines offered by the glass include a very capable Pinot Noir and tasty Merlot. The restaurant is open till 4.00 AM, an option which becomes most appealing after a pub crawl along the many bars on 5th Avenue.
The most established 5th Avenue bar is The Gat. It has a good-sized beer garden and wood-paneled bar dampened by years of drinking. Although The Gate serves everything, it is a beer drinker's bar. It has a collegiate feel which is more cozy than clubby. The Gate is generally considered an old neighborhood stand-by: Boston plays on the juke box and the bar counter top is wood instead of burnished steel.
5th Avenue is also home to several store/bars that are stylistic anomalies. Two bars fall into this category - Bar Reis, a gallery/bar/garden and Moda Vechia a clothing store/record store/tapas bar. Try hard as they might, they cannot shrug off their origins in entitlement, a contrast with their working-class environs. Both bars occupy a narrow area, but Bar Reis's back tiered back garden is definitely worth the visit. Artists' work is featured in the bar - one illustrator drew a pen and ink satire of an irate Mr. T. Reis, the proprietor, has also added a loft area above the bar for more seating - couples perch atop and look down at the patrons below.
One block over, past 6th Street are two solid restaurants: the Chip Shop, specializing in English Cuisine, and Coco Rocco, a Peruvian restaurant. Chip Shop is authentic and proves that English cuisine can be a serious contender. The restaurant space is small and utilitarian - telephone orders and the pick up window probably generate more business. Their delivery car anticipates Austin Powers and is an original Mini emblazoned with the Union Jack. Most all items on the menu are fatty and outstanding. The fish and chips are good, as are the welsh rarebit (toast, cream, cheddar, mustard) and the deep fried Mars Bar dessert. The cuisine isn't subtle, but it's fully satisfying and cheap. Cocco Rocco also has pick up and delivery (chickens on the spit) and is pleasant for a sit-down meal. Their Civiche is decent, and their salads and fish better. The restaurant is popular with families - adults and kids alike can draw on the paper table cloths with crayons.
Barbes keeps the eye amused too.
Recommended:
Barbès: 376 9th St. (corner of 6th Ave.)
Chip Shop: 383 5th Ave Brooklyn NY (718) 832-7701
Blue Ribbon: 280 Fifth Ave. At 1st St. 718-840-0404
Long Tan: 196 Fifth Avenue (between Union & Berkley) 718-622-8444
Red White and Bubbly: 211-213 5th Ave. 636-WINE
Other options:
Moda Vechia: 294 5Th Avenue (718) 832-8897
Coco Rocco: 392 Fifth Avenue, Brooklyn 718-965-3376
Bar Reis: 375 fifth avenue brooklyn, ny 718.832.5716
The Gate: 321 5th Ave (718)768-4329
Al di La: 248 Fifth Ave. Park Slope/Prospect Hts 718-783-4565
Besso: 210 Fifth Ave. (between Union St. and President St.), Brooklyn, 11215 (718) 622-9894.
Writer Dimitri Darras
Dimitri lives and works in New York. He is currently writing a narrative about Great White Shark Diving in Southern Africa. You may email Dimitri your critiques, or better yet, offers of free drinks and/or meals at ddarras@brainlink.com
