Wednesday Food & Drink Round-Up

Now Open: James                                                               Photo: Eater.com
605 Carlton Avenue (the old Sorrel space), Prospect Heights; (718) 942-4255
“As seems to be de rigueur with any halfway ambitious new restaurant these days, James has pressed tin ceilings, exposed brickwork, a sleek dark wooden bar, and some designer chandeliers. As for the food, the owners say it will be a ‘a seasonal-American restaurant with old-world European influences,’ and of course they’re offering an gussied up cocktail list.”
[Eater]

17 Slices of Park Slope Pizza
Slice blogger Adam Kuban has sampled every pizzeria in Park Slope — so you don’t have to. His very thorough round-up names Lenny’s Pizza (594 Fifth Avenue) and Tomato & Basil (226 Fourth Avenue) as his neighborhood favorites.

Neighborhood Newbies: Chocolate and Dumplings
Time Out occasionally jumps the gun with restaurant openings, so we’re not sure if we trust their listing for the newly opened Chocolate Room in Cobble Hill (269 Court between Butler and Douglass; 718-246-2600). It definitely wasn’t open when we walked by the other day, and nobody’s picking up the phone. Time Out is also saying that Chef Eton Chan (of Asiate, the restaurant in Manhattan’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel) has opened a ten-seat dumpling house called Eton in Carroll Gardens (205 Sackett Street at Henry Street, Carroll Garden; no phone). Any confirmation on either of these rumored openings?

After the jump: Comings and goings in Park Slope, dressing for success at the Clover Club, extremely cheap eats, 4th of July catering services, and Dumbo’s bright new mural…

Park Slope Openings & Closings
Only the Blog Knows Brooklyn reports that Black Pearl and kosher chocolate shop The Chocolate Girl have both closed. Red Hot Szechuan closed earlier this year, but Red Hot II will open in its former space on 7th Avenue (near 10th Street) in July. Five Guys Burgers (on 7th Avenue near 6th Street) is also set to open in July, and wine shop Big Nose Full Body is getting ready to open a wine bar.

Another Look Inside Clover Club
On the eGullet forums, this fancy new Smith Street lounge is a big topic of discussion. The highlights of the thread are the photos in post #7 — which shows that the staff is more dressed up than the clientele (what’s up with the kids in baggy shorts?) — and post #13 — which walks you through their intense cocktail menu.

Quick Bites
New York Daily News lists all the best Brooklyn eats for under $5… Grub Street offers a barbecue solution: “Flatbush Farm will cater your Fourth of July BBQ with raw, marinated meat, pasta and potato salads, and ready-to-serve pulled pork, all priced per selection.” …And Green Brooklyn shares photos of the bold new mural outside Pedro’s Spanish American Restaurant in Dumbo.