Sign up for the Brownstoner daily email
« Checking In On Loftology Development Watch: Lexington Avenue Double-Shot »

March 19, 2008

Wednesday Food & Drink Round-Up

tobys-exterior-03-2008.jpg
Now Open: Toby's
6th Avenue and 21st Street, South Slope Greenwood Heights
Last Tuesday, Toby's opened its doors with a menu of brick oven pizzas, such as the Margherita ($12), four-cheese ($14), and white ($13). They're also serving up salads and antipasti, like a selection of "artisan Italian cured meats" (prosciuitto, sopressata, Italian ham) with focaccia. Customers can wash it all down with wine by the glass, booze, or beer — they've got a well-chosen selection, with Hofbrau seasonal brews on tap. But over on the Brooklynian boards, folks are already complaining that the pizzas are overpriced and griping about the "No Strollers" sign in the window. Check out an interior photo after the jump.

Now Open: Moxie Spot
81 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn Heights
As we reported last week, the Moxie Spot is finally open and serving up its family-friendly menu. But according to one Chowhound, some parents on a local list-serv are complaining about their "small portions, and out-of-synch serving (tables getting there plates 1 at a time)." On the bright side, the small portions are offered at low prices (burgers cost a mere $4.75), and Brooklyn Heights Blog is singing the praises of the place's creative entryway, which features an adult-sized door, with kid-sized and pet-sized doors built into it.

Roberta's: "Pizza as Art"
261 Moore Street (at Bogart Street), Bushwick; (718) 417-1118
"The 12-inch pizzas ($7 to $15) are the focal point of the short menu. Roberta’s offers a margherita and a tomato-only rosso, but the restaurant is not a destination for anyone looking to stoke memories of Napoli: the heretically creative pies are the thing to get... Roberta’s take on a Hawaiian pizza comes topped with paper-thin sheets of ripe pineapple, shreds of ham, sliced jalapeños and dabs of ricotta cheese." [NY Times]

After the jump: A peek inside Toby's, Brooklyn's first "occasional restaurant," Trois Pommes Patisserie's hamataschen how-to, a look inside the Hideout and the Habitat, and the official details on Brooklyn Restaurant Week '08...

tobys-interior-03-2008.jpg
Inside Toby's

Open Sometimes: Jack
The Brooklyn Lyceum, 227 4th Avenue (corner of President Street)
Local blogger Habeas Brulee is opening an "occasional restaurant" called Jack in the Brooklyn Lyceum. That is, it's "open for one seating per night at 7 pm on Saturday nights, every other week or so." Their tasting menus are posted in advance, it's BYOB, dinner costs $75 per person, and reservations are required.

Hamantaschen How-To
Just in time for Purim, Grub Street visits Park Slope's Trois Pommes Patisserie and share this video in which Emily Issac demonstrates her recipe for rhubarb hamantaschen.

Reviewed: The Hideout
266 Adelphi St, Fort Greene
"Aside from the bouncer with the eye patch standing outside the thick black door, the Hideout is pretty unobtrusive...A Whiskey Fig Fizz ($12), with Glenfiddich, had a spicy, seedy tang; an elderflower margarita (also $12) tasted pretty much like a regular margarita." [The L Magazine]

Coming Soon: The Habitat
988 Manhattan Avenue, between India and Huron, Greenpoint; (718) 383-5615
"Housed in an old convenience store and built with lumber salvaged from as far away as Maine, the bar and restaurant will let Brooklynites savor back porch ambiance without having to breathe the air from the nearby sewage treatment plant. The kitchen is located behind what looks to be the exterior wall of a house, and a raised deck seems destined for late-night bluegrass jams." [Gothamist]

Brooklyn Restaurant Week: The Details
A Brooklyn Life reports on this year's Brooklyn Restaurant Week, scheduled for March 24 through 31.




Posted by Kara at 11:31 AM | Comments (36)
Categories: Brooklyn, Brooklyn Heights, Bushwick, Food and Drink, Fort Greene, Gowanus, Greenpoint, Park Slope, Restaurants, South Slope

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.brownstoner.com/mte/mt-tb.cgi/4267

Comments

nice shot and you caught the avg south sloper!

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 11:33 AM

21st Street is not the South Slope.

Park Slope = the slope from Prospect Park. Prospect Park does not go to 21st Street at any avenue. Stop making things up.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 11:53 AM

I knew you would get flak from the 'police' about referring to 21st as South Slope.
They are very serious about patroling their imaginary borders.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 11:55 AM

Yup, looks like the park slope/south slope "border patrol" is flexing their muscles again.

fine, you win - let's just agree that toby's public house is in "sunset park" if it lowers your blood pressure, people.

i think they're just freaking out because they can't believe how much this neighborhood has changed over the last few years...

toby's is nice - i stopped in over the weekend for a drink. didn't eat anything, but the beer selection on tap is pretty amazing. i wish 'em all the best...

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:06 PM

first of all, who cares what you call it. i live on 22nd and call it "south of park slope" but honestly, how does it hurt you to let someone call it whatever they want? I could call it Pakistan and it wouldn't hurt you.

anyway I ate there on Saturday and it was nice. Maybe a tad overpriced but they always have a $3 beer on tap and it'll be lovely when the weather's nice and they set up the outdoor tables. The place is TINY so the "no strollers" sign is a matter of practicality. One can easily fold up a stroller and leave it by the door.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:06 PM

I don't see what's so wrong with pointing out that 21st Street is in no way, shape or form Park Slope.

If you all were calling Clinton Hill, Bed Stuy, you'd be up in arms per usual.

This is not Park Slope. They are simply calling it that to rape the Park Slope name for money.

How is that ok?

Should we start calling 137th Street the Upper West Side so they can sell condos there for 5 million?

It's not that big a deal really, but this is NOT Park Slope. If you want to call it that, be my guest, but don't be all over people who are just pointing out a fact.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:11 PM

What's up with the new thai place on washington & st. marks? anyone eaten there?

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:11 PM

Toby's is in Greenwood Heights/Sunset Park.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:22 PM

12:11, (the 1st one)

Neighborhood boundaries do tend to expand, kinda like your sphincter.

While we're at it, is "rape" really an appropriate word for you to to insert in your diatribe? You obviously must consider this to be an egregious expansion of the Park Slope "brand.".

Why?


Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:30 PM

"Neighborhood boundaries do tend to expand"

Agreed. Let's call it Brooklyn Heights and then call it a day.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:34 PM

Listen...I live and own in Park Slope.

If you want to start calling all of Brooklyn, Park Slope...please be my guest. It's only helping me out.

But I think it's absurd to rip someone a new one for commenting that 21st Street is not Park Slope.

Neighborhood boundaries do indeed expand (thanks for the sphincter reference, but I'm a top) and they have expanded from what was once 3rd street to now 16th.

Nowhere has the boundary of Park Slope been expanded to 21st.

Even honest brokers tend not to go that far.

And yes...the only reason people expand the boundaries of Park Slope is for greed. Pure greed.

No other reason.

I thought everyone hated Park Slope on here anyway. No??

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:38 PM

I once posted a comment on Gowanus Lounge referring to something in that general area as Greenwood Heights, and was attacked by a life-long Sunset Park resident for not calling it Sunset Park, which he said starts at Prospect Ave. So I emailed Kevin Walsh at Forgotten NY, and he said that as long as he could remember Sunset Park's northern boundary has been 39th St. But then people claim Greenwood Heights is a fake neighborhood invented by real estate brokers five years ago. I met Marty Markowitz in person once and asked him if he knew what neighborhood my old apartment (16th St. between 3rd and 4th Ave.) was in, and he had no idea, either.

So the point is, it's really useless to argue about what neighborhood Toby's is in. People know what South Slope means, regardless of where 20th St. "officially" is.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:43 PM

I heard Flushing is now part of Park Slope.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:43 PM

Oxymoron alert above, "honest broker".

I'm still amazed that even "Food & Drink Round-Up" discussions can turn into debate on the boundaries of Park Slope!

Posted by: Biff Champion at March 19, 2008 12:48 PM

C'mon, it's fun to argue about the name of this neighborhood!

Agree 12:43, no one really seems to know. I live close to Toby's, been here four years, and I hear the following names:

Greenwood Heights, Greenwood, Park Slope, South Slope, Sunset Park, North Sunset Park, and, my personal favorite:

South Brooklyn!

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:49 PM

Yes, as the other poster said, it's Greenwood Heights, a place that many of you will be posting about in few years after it's officially "discovered" that life exists beyond 15th Street. Meanwhile, please continue to drag your strollers into the ghastly Pino's. I live nearby, and since they opened a week ago they ain't exactly hurting for business, $14 pizzas aside.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:53 PM

12:49.

Ironically "South Brooklyn" is one of the -oldest- names of any Brooklyn area, but most commonly refers to the stretch from Downtown to Carroll Gardens to Red Hook. Not South andnot a new name.

"C'mon, it's fun to argue about the name of this neighborhood!
Agree 12:43, no one really seems to know. I live close to Toby's, been here four years, and I hear the following names:Greenwood Heights, Greenwood, Park Slope, South Slope, Sunset Park, North Sunset Park, and, my personal favorite: South Brooklyn!"

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 12:53 PM

At least Brooklyn has managed to keep interesting neighborhood names versus the growing number of acronym or combined-named 'hoods in Manhattan (with the exception of BOCOCA and DUMBO - I'm sure I'm missing some others).

Although a Greenwood Heights/Park Slope combination of GROPE would be fun.

Posted by: Biff Champion at March 19, 2008 12:56 PM

Having seen enough of these inane neighborhood boundary debates, I think I am now firmly in the camp of "who-gives-a-shit-what-the-unofficial-neighborhood-boundary-is-as-long-as-I-can-sell-my-condo-like-it-was-actually-in-the-higher-priced-one" camp.

For what its worth, that part of 6th Avenue has a few fun places to go now (Kitchen Bar, BBQ Bar), and its nice that Toby's is added to the mix. Increasing amenities in that part of Greenwood Heights/Sunset Park will only increase the likelihood of it seceding to (or being annexed by) the South Slope.

Posted by: Emigre at March 19, 2008 1:38 PM

12.06, can you report what beers are on tap?

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 1:57 PM

Everyone wants to be a part of Park Slope.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 2:01 PM

I see that the border nazis are out in full force today.

Who gives a damn about such petty matters? You people need to get a grip. Some people have real problems.

Toby's sounds great. I'll have to head over there this weekend.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 2:44 PM

The fact that this neighborhood has name/border problems is indicative of the fact that people are moving there, and it's becoming a hot neighborhood. Keep arguing- that's great.

By the way, Park Slope itself was made up at some point. The East Village was an expansion and takeover of the 'Village' brand to the lower east side. Cobble Hill is totally made up- as is Boerum hill. Greenwood might be the oldest real name in the long list of gentrified nabes. Prospect Heights is a relatviely new coinage. Most of Park slope was 'downtown' and across flatbush was crown heights. Most of what is now crown heights used to be bed stuy.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:19 PM

I live over there, and wish that people would let me call it sunset park, but everyone always corrects me and says- you live in the south slope.

Who really calls it greenwood heights? No one except that guy who runs the 'concerned citizens of greenwood heights' webpage. When the city recently rezoned the area, they call it the South Park Slope rezoning. Not the sunset park or greenwood heights rezoning.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:22 PM

How about calling it "Slope-anus"

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:23 PM

it's been changed to greenwood heights up above.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:33 PM

That's dumb. Change it to Sunset Park.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:36 PM

someone should throw a stroller through their window

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:39 PM

The name argument is silly. The condos are all empty.

Beers on tap include (I can't recall the whole list)
Guinness, Kronenbourg 1664, Old Speckled Hen, a hefeweizen, Sierra Nevada and I forget.

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 4:59 PM

We went to Toby's Saturday night. They did a great job with the interior - tile, woodwork, tin ceiling etc. The truffle oil pizza was delicious but it was 18 bucks, not sure how often I'm gonna want to spend that much on pizza.

Also re that stretch of 6th ave - the store that used to be a salon (fifa i think?) on SW corner of 19th and 6th is going to be a cafe. We nosed our way over when the new tenants were there and they said they would try to open in 3 weeks.

Posted by: greenwood slope at March 19, 2008 5:31 PM

my 90 year old neighbor a stone's throw from Toby's says the neighborhood has been called Greenwood forever. His daughter agreed.

Went to Toby's this weekend. It is a tad over priced and I wish they has more than just pizzas and a few salads, but is it a good bar option in the area and they ar going to have outside tables when the weather's warm

Posted by: guest at March 19, 2008 8:21 PM

Move back to Connecticut.

Asshats.

Posted by: guest at March 20, 2008 11:01 AM

I'd rather live in Stamford or Norwalk than Greenwood Heights.

Posted by: Polemicist at March 20, 2008 11:30 AM

"I'd rather live in Stamford or Norwalk than Greenwood Heights."

Sorry at my delay, by Mr. P FINALLY has let the cat out of the bag...he's a broker who lives in Rowayton or SONO. He's never live in Norwalk with the "element."

Thank goodness that has been cleared :)

BTW, it's Greenwood Hts. Old name, newish discovered neighborhood.

Posted by: Action Jackson at March 25, 2008 8:11 PM

"I'd rather live in Stamford or Norwalk than Greenwood Heights."

Sorry at my delay, by Mr. P FINALLY has let the cat out of the bag...he's a broker who lives in Rowayton or SONO. He's never live in Norwalk with the "element."

Thank goodness that has been cleared :)

BTW, it's Greenwood Hts. Old name, newish discovered neighborhood.

Posted by: Action Jackson at March 25, 2008 8:13 PM

"I'd rather live in Stamford or Norwalk than Greenwood Heights."

Sorry at my delay, by Mr. P FINALLY has let the cat out of the bag...he's a broker who lives in Rowayton or SONO. He's never live in Norwalk near the "element."

Thank goodness that has been cleared :)

BTW, it's Greenwood Hts. Old name, newish discovered neighborhood.

Posted by: Action Jackson at March 25, 2008 8:14 PM

Post a comment

Please be patient while your comment is published. It may take a moment.

Latest Restaurant Additions