Beyond Manhattan Blog
Barcade
Posted on May 23, 2013
Two types of bars traditionally adorned New York’s streets – cocktail bars and dives – and New Yorkers’ practice of steadfastly favoring tradition over both innovation and quality ensured that it was that way for a long time. Chih-Yu and I, as you may have read, are quite unimpressed with dives. I’m…
Chimu Peruvian Cuisine and Steakhouse
Posted on May 23, 2013
Sometimes good discoveries hide in plain site. Very often the spot we walk by every day without paying it a second thought turns out to be the undiscovered gem we never thought about. Chimu is, most decidedly, not that type of joint, unless your usual stroll takes you underneath the BQE.
Carroll Gardens – Carroll Street
Posted on May 17, 2013
How to Get There
We recommend taking the F train from one of its many Manhattan stops – no transfer required if you can catch it at one of these places. For more F train locations, consult the MTA Subway Map.
A. From Soho – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at Broadway/Lafayette – 15 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
B. From Greenwich Village – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at West 4th Street – 20 minutes, service 27/7 unless posted.
C. From 14th Street – “Downtown” F train at 14th Street and 6th Ave – 25 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
D. From Bryant Park/Times Square – “Downtown” F train at 42nd Street and 6th Ave, 35 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
E. From the upper east side – “Downtown” F train at 63rd St and Lexington Ave, 40 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
Cobble Hill – Bergen Street
Posted on May 17, 2013
How to Get There
We recommend taking the F train from one of its many Manhattan stops – no transfer required if you can catch it at one of these places. For more F train locations, consult the MTA Subway Map.
A. From Soho – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at Broadway/Lafayette – 15 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
B. From Greenwich Village – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at West 4th Street – 20 minutes, service 27/7 unless posted.
C. From 14th Street – “Downtown” F train at 14th Street and 6th Ave – 25 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
D. From Bryant Park/Times Square – “Downtown” F train at 42nd Street and 6th Ave, 35 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
E. From the upper east side – “Downtown” F train at 63rd St and Lexington Ave, 40 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
Park Slope 7th Ave – How to Get There
Posted on May 16, 2013
Seventh Ave on the F train puts you right in the thick of postcard Park Slope. Why should you care about this neighborhood? If you’re checking out this website it’s likely because you’re either totally disinterested in Times Square and the Empire State Building or have seen them before.
We recommend taking the F train from one of its many Manhattan stops – no transfer required if you can catch it at one of these places. For more F train locations, consult the MTA Subway Map.
A. From Soho – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at Broadway/Lafayette – 20 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
B. From Greenwich Village – “Brooklyn Bound” F train at West 4th Street – 25 minutes, service 27/7 unless posted.
C. From 14th Street – “Downtown” F train at 14th Street and 6th Ave – 30 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
D. From Bryant Park/Times Square – “Downtown” F train at 42nd Street and 6th Ave, 40 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
E. From the upper east side – “Downtown” F train at 63rd St and Lexington Ave, 45 minutes, service 24/7 unless posted.
Prospect Heights One
Posted on April 28, 2013
Blue Bottle Coffee
Posted on April 28, 2013
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160 Berry St (between 6th St & 5th St)
Among the first of the so-called “third wave” coffee shops to hit New York, Blue Bottle is still the standard-bearer. New Yorkers weaned on bodega coffee and Dunkin D’s may poo-poo it, but they can stay in Manhattan. (And out of Chelsea, since the San Francisco chain has now expanded there.) We don’t review dive bars either. If you want self-flagellation, read somebody’s else’s blog. But then, you’re probably not coming to New York to punish yourself.
Enough foreplay – anyway Blue Bottle is so good it’s worth the trip across the river. (I find myself writing this more and more, because a lot of the joints we review are that good.) The cone-drip method has a number of imitators, most of them vastly preferable to Starbucks (sorry), but no equals. If you’ve experienced third-wave before, Blue Bottle will be a slight upgrade. If you’re used to diner coffee, prepare to have your mind blown, and discover parts of your tongue you didn’t know existed. (Also, leave a good five or six hours to wind down.)
Cold-brewed iced-coffee has become almost a cliche in the outer boros (that’s right – it’s harder to get good coffee in manhattan than in the outer boros), but nobody’s quite gotten Blue Bottle’s number. (Oslo is a lower-octane alternative that’s almost equally delicious, though.) The Kyoto style iced coffee is put through a contraption more closely resembling one of John Jamison’s whiskey stills than anything you thought you’d use to make coffee, but the result is a completely non-acidic reduction that tickles the tongue with sweetness, backs it up with earthiness, and packs a caffeine punch.
Be prepared to stand in line here if you come on the weekend. (Wooooo did this ever piss off the old-guard critics, even though the wait time at absolute peak hours is comparable to that of your average Manhattan Starbucks.) Come on a weekday, however, and you’ll likely breeze through.
True, this is pricier than a mediocre cup, but if you wanted average you would have stayed at home.
How to Get There
Blue Bottle is a quick three-minute jaunt from the Bedford Avenue L train stop, and just around the corner from North 6th Street, the “Soho of Brooklyn”.
Five Leaves
Posted on April 27, 2013
18 Bedford Ave (between Lorimer St & Nassau Ave) Brooklyn, NY 11222 Ever since Throwdown with Bobby Flay, the lower east side’s storied Clinton Street Baking Company has become impossible to get into. Two-hour-waits, and if you’re lucky you won’t be told the kitchen is closed when you reach the front of…
Court Street Grocers
Posted on April 22, 2013
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485 Court Street
Brooklyn, NY 11231
If you’re headed to Court Street Grocers, get off at Carroll Street, and not Bergen. This slyly named shop is actually a forward-thinking, chef-driven take on the classic New York sandwich shop. Everything about it is unassuming, including the “about” page on the website, which simply says,
COURT STREET GROCERS is a food shop in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. We carry foodstuffs, mostly from around here, some from not around here; all are things we love.
Well, they let the menu speak for itself. It sports twists on many classic sandwich components like corned beef, roast beef, and even bacon, but the meats are mostly prepared from scratch in house. See if this makes your mouth water – “short ribs corned in house,” “heritage pork shoulder,” “house made roast beef,” “confit dark meat [turkey], roast white meat.”
My personal favorite is the Macho Man, or Woman, if you prefer. One bite and you can tell no detail was left to chance. The meat is perfectly marinated and prepared, and the flavor balance is both simplicity and perfection.
While not my pace, CCG also offers a range of homemade baked goods that my friends assure me are luscious and delightful. (The carrot cake, if you can come by some, got rave reviews.)
I’d recommend CCG for a quick and hearty lunch before walking around the neighborhood. The store offers limited seating, but we recommend taking-out.
How to Get There-
Court Street Grocers is about a five-minute walk from the Carroll Street F/G train stop.
Ki Sushi
Posted on April 22, 2013
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122 Smith St Brooklyn, NY 11201
Ki Sushi is a case-in-point for the limitations of Yelp. Don’t get us wrong – Yelp is the single most important recreational resource invented in the last 10 years, and has practically single-handedly changed the restaurant landscape. But it’s a little like IQ tests: predictive to a certain point – say four stars – after which it fails to distinguish between good and great.
Take Ki, and some if its neighborhood competition. All have four stars, but they’re not even in the same league. Comparing Ki to an average neighborhood sushi joint is like comparing your uncle who rolls some jiujistu to Anderson Silva. In fact it’s worth a trip from Manhattan just to eart at Ki, etc. You get the point.
Astonishingly, Ki is neither extremely expensive nor particularly hard to get into. (Of the tens of times we’ve stopped in we’ve never once waited for a table.) The decor is typical Cobble Hill trying-too-hard, but you’re not here to sight see.
Menu highlights-
Everything is good, including entres, salads, and appetizers. But you’re here for the fish. Don’t mess around – order the Ki Roll and the Spicy Girl Roll. Then thank yourself. The fish is, obviously, fresh. On the spectrum between traditional artisanal and experimental, Ki falls a bit on the experimental side. The Ki Roll is decadence embodied – layers of fish, bonito, topped with gold flakes. The Spicy Girl starts with tuna and adds multiple other dimensions.
If you’re feeling conservative, try one of the roll combinations, or the more traditional sushi variety dishes. (The sushi lunch and dinner can get a bit pricy, though – that’s why we recommend sticking with rolls.)
Word of caution to the late-risers: Ki takes its last lunch order at 2:45pm.
How to Get there-
Ki is a mere block from the Bergen Street F/G train – one reason it’s the keystone of the Cobble Hill daytrip.
