Closing Bell: The Backlash of the Brooklyn Hype
Is the mystique of Brooklyn finally getting squelched? Not long after Brian Williams poked fun at the New York Time’s obsession with Brooklyn, food writer Mimi Sheraton shares these choice words with Capital New York: I’m from Brooklyn, but it would take a lot to get me there for dinner. When Lundy’s was Lundy’s, I’d…
Is the mystique of Brooklyn finally getting squelched? Not long after Brian Williams poked fun at the New York Time’s obsession with Brooklyn, food writer Mimi Sheraton shares these choice words with Capital New York:
I’m from Brooklyn, but it would take a lot to get me there for dinner. When Lundy’s was Lundy’s, I’d be there. When Gargiulo’s was Gargiulo’s, I went. I certainly went to Gage and Tollner. There were one-of-a-kind things there, but so far anywhere I’ve been to there has not been worth the trip from Manhattan. I haven’t been to Al di la, because you have to wait on line, and I’m not going to Brooklyn to wait on line. Not when there are 10 good Italian restaurants in Greenwich Village. The Times has certainly been very exaggerated in its Brooklyn coverage, because most of them live there. They begin to see it as being better than it is because it’s so close to them. I would go to Brooklyn if it were exceptional.
Chow Time: Mimi Sheraton on What’s Changed Since Lutece [Capital via Eater NY]
Photo by kathyylchan
she’s just mad because she can’t get her jello mold desserts here anymore.
A couple of other comments I agree with..
Yes, the service is far more pleasant and almost 100% without attitude in Brooklyn.
Yes, Brooklyn restaurants are not loud like most inManhattan adnthat’s a good thing.
No, you are not likely to be stuck sitting next to some loud Wall St douchebags in Brooklyn
I’ve found some incredible meals in brooklyn that are not done as well as ALMOSTanywhere else..
The steak tartare at Jolie (only Les Halles is better)…plus the $1.00 oysters on Wednesdays
The short rib at Scopello
Blue fish ragout with pasta at Saraghina
Meatloaf at Peaches Hot House
Something no brooklyn restaurant will spend the money on to get top quality….Toro at a sushi place.
The reason for the Times to cover a lot of Brooklyn restaurants is not just that its writers live there, it’s that a lot of its readers now live there. If I lived in Manhattan, I probably would not travel to Brooklyn for many (if any) restaurants, but living in Brooklyn, there are only a handful of restaurants I would travel to Manhattan for. So it makes sense for the NYT to cover Manhattan and Brooklyn extensively.
Sheraton is guilty of the assumption that the Times is written for a certain class of almost exclusively Manhattan residents, which is as dated as her ’70s references.
Of course it’s not (or seldom) worthwhile for a Manhattan resident to go to Brooklyn specifically for a restaurant, especially if they have to wait on line (a perfectly acceptable regional variation DIBS). The big change, in recent years, is that the same thing is now true for us Brooklyn residents regarding Manhattan restaurants. That change is something I really like.
I just clicked on the link and saw the picture, and thought it was some sort of joke- like a sketch comedy guy dressed up in drag to look like a 1980s lady.
jonser i have to check fornino out! i haven’t been in ps in awhile. to get my italian fix i’ve been going to cafe e vino.
Sounds good to me if she wants to stay in Greenwich Village.
Al Di La is seriously overrated. I prefer Fornino, for the space and the food
Oh, I wasn’t saying she didn’t sound like a total beeatch!
Of course the fact that I’m a vegetarian cuts out about 75% of the restaurants and 90% of the menu choices for me.