Five Leaves
"Heath Ledger didn't live to see his planned Greenpoint café, but with funding from his estate, Five Leaves has opened its doors to the public... The bar is shaped like a ship's prow; maritime scenes are etched into marble tabletops; and a gold-leafed porthole marks the WC," says New York magazine. (There are some great interior shots of the space posted on A Test Of Will.)
Oliver Schwaner-Albright for the New York Times writes, " It’s a restaurant that could get by on looks alone... But despite the modest ambitions and reasonable prices... the kitchen, taken over recently by Ken Addington, turns out unexpectedly refined Australian comfort food. Which isn’t so different from New York comfort food: charcuterie ($14), Blue Point oysters ($12 for 6) or, most memorably, fresh ricotta ($9) made daily downstairs.Topped with thyme, sea salt, cracked pepper and a hunk of honeycomb, the ricotta is airy, creamy and enough to share."
BrixPix says, "They offer a burger Australian style with a fried egg, beets, and pineapple with a bun strong enough to mostly hold the delicious mess together." But Chowhound malibu describes the burger as "downright deplorable." Fellow 'Hound wleatherette says, "i enjoyed the burger (just the plain old version, not the special with beet and egg), but the fries were lousy." How would you rate this place?
Reviews (7)
gemini10 wrote a review on April 15, 2009 12:10 PM
OMG! - I just went to this place with some friends for Saturday brunch
UNREAL
We had some Ricotta,toast,honeycomb,thyme dish that was out of this world and ricotta pancakes that were DELISH
one of my friends no joke was 10 months pregnant and they treated us like royalty - really great people who work there
wine lover wrote a review on April 15, 2009 12:23 PM
was just in a meeting and this place was the topic of conversation - everyone seems to love it. i need to go.
dirty_hipster wrote a review on April 15, 2009 1:43 PM
This place was a pleasant surprise when I first tried it, as I had really low expectations. The food is really good, but a little on the pricey side (dinner). The burger is solid and the beet/blood orange salad is freakin amazing. I live very close by, and this is my go-to brunch spot as prices are more reasonable and it doesn't get insanely crowded on Sundays (everyone seems to prefer to wait an hour for a table at Enid's for some strange reason) The decor is beautiful, atmosphere is laid back without the hipster pretention
Eat It Brooklyn wrote a review on April 15, 2009 6:36 PM
I, too, really liked this place when I went for dinner. Great vibe inside, laid-back staff let's you linger at your table (if it's not totally packed) and the ricotta dish is truly amazing. My friend and I had a hodge-podge of small dishes that we shared and loved everything. The Brussel sprouts were divine and the celery root mash was fantastic! There are photos on my blog if you're curious.
iz wrote a review on April 15, 2009 8:56 PM
This place is a parody of the fauxthentic recycled/rusted-iron-everything look that's seized New York (Diner meets Moto at Max Fish and gets photogenically wasted). And it's a shame. The actual space is gorgeous!!!!!!!! You couldn't ask for a more perfect combination of location (McCarren Park hub, Enid's right around the corner, practically screaming HANG) and those sexy bones (grand, handsome, italianate-factory windows with their sinister, slanted light). But it's basically like the Jared Leto of restaurants; extreme L.A., in a shoddy new york disguise. So it's quite ironic that it has Heath Ledger's name attached, however ambiguously, to its existence -- he who of all the bullshit actors out there actually seemed to have a passion for truth and honesty in his work. This restaurant is the opposite of that, precisely for all its efforts to seem "real" but take not a single risk.
The food: blah. I had a salad that was salty and sour to the point wincing; followed by an afternoon where all I wanted was to find a moment, a toothbrush, and a bottle of Dr Bonners soap, so I could lather the taste of garlic from my mouth. The soup I had (some special, I think leek? Potato? Both?) was, well, forgettable. The burger was good except for the meat, which was indifferent. Take a tip from 67 Burger: get the MEAT right first.
The only positive thing I can say is that the staff is very sweet. Kind of LA sweet, which I don't usually like (ostentatiously relaxed and chipper), but in that sense they were the only honest thing about the place.
I guess I gave a lot of thought to this review. Maybe I feel bad about it. I wanted it to be a heart-warmer, because it seems to want to be that too. Maybe time is all they need, and some challenges, and a better chef, to make it the real lived-in brooklyn spot it wanted to be on opening day.
By the way, what's the chef of Paloma's doing now that they are closed (due to a fire, I guess)? Maybe give that person a job here? That restaurant was sensational and is dearly dearly missed.
janelle wrote a review on April 22, 2009 9:15 AM
i've only been a few times - once for dinner, which was great, and another time for brunch, which was a bit of a headache (as brunch often can be) though the food was wonderful. i find this place to be slightly on the pricey side, but worth it for the occasional casual dinner splurge. i love that they are open 8am daily for breakfast (early risers, rejoice!), and the take-away coffee window is wonderful - more cafes should have this! do not miss: fresh ricotta appetizer (share with friends, it's huge).
kat wrote a review on April 22, 2009 5:42 PM
I was very receptive to this restaurant because of all its positive aspects - interesting and quality food, warm decor, good location (for me), the coffee window (!) - but after visiting this place for various reasons more than a handful of times, I find it hard to ignore the treatment both me and my company have received. Between being ignored while seated at the small, half-full bar on multiple occasions, and being on the receiving end of a near hissy-fit from our waitress, I'm certainly not too eager to return. It's a shame because I like its vibe and it's close to my apartment. Maybe I'll try it again in 6 months after there's been some staff turnover.
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