Category: Hot Picks

A lot of the cooler bars in Park Slope are clustered in the North end, but with Commonwealth on their side, South Slopers can proudly lay claim to one of the best. Even Manhattanites, with all the options available to them on that most accommodating of isles, will cross the bridge for a night of debauchery, Commonwealth-style.

Why, you may ask, does Commonwealth continue to draw in tipplers from around the five boroughs? For one thing, the patio is awesome, with its giant umbrella which has to be seen to be believed. Smokers congregate out there and engage in intense conversations that often end up sucking in nearby tables, and a unique community atmosphere is born. Or perhaps it’s the unusually excellent jukebox, or the endlessly entertaining “Brutally Honest Personal Ads,” which allow angry young hipsters to vent their frustrations in clever satires on the standard personal ad, all under the watchful eye of a weirdly appropriate mugshot of a disheveled Nick Nolte. Some of the constantly changing ads are real calls for guff-free romance, and some are just for entertainment and/or enlightenment, but all are good for a laugh.

Another thing that keeps people coming back is the interesting selection of specialty mixed drinks (all worth a taste), though I am more of a beer person, and I have no complaints as far as the draft selection goes. I dropped in with my boyfriend the other night, as we often do on date nights, due to both the closeness of the bar and the comfortable atmosphere. Unlike many Park Slope bars, it doesn’t get so loud you resort to screaming your voice away just to order a drink, and you can usually snag a table if you are willing to hover over a departing party for ten minutes or so. We managed to pounce on a tiny table in the back of the bar, and while we tipped back a few rounds of Sierra Nevadas (our mutual favorite), we were again reminded of all the reasons we like this bar.

You can order a drink without getting attitude back from the bartender or the clientele (sadly, rare in a lot of hipper Brooklyn bars), take your time drinking it without being hassled, you won’t be hit on by skeezy greasy guys or drunken club girls, and most importantly, when you overhear the conversations of the tables next to you, they’re often interesting and intelligent. Part of this is due to the fact that Commonwealth attracts a fairly diverse crowd: old and young, rich and poor, professors and busboys all share tables and cigarettes here. It’s not unusual to come in on a weekday afternoon and find the bartender deeply in conversation with middle-aged, well-off regulars and authors scribbling away at their poems and manuscripts. It’s this old world, university bar sort of feeling that I feel when I’m on my third drink, feeling half-cheesed, and delighting in a snippet of overheard debate on the merits of Proust or Ionesco. Call it pretension if you must, but sometimes you need a little PBS in your diet.

As it is, at its most basic level, an unapologetic sports bar, Park Slope's 200 Fifth is ideal for nights when it’s just the guys, or anytime you’re with a big group of friends and need someplace that does double duty as a bar and eatery. The moment you walk in, you’re greeted by just scads of TVs blaring a constant rotation of sporting events. Like any good sports bar, they’re always willing to change the channel on the TV nearest you to your favorite team’s game, barring any objections from dissidents. The bar and restaurant are separated so as not to annoy each other, which is a plus when you were expecting a quiet dinner and unexpectedly showed up on a big game night, complete with roaring feedback from the bar crowd.

Standard bar fare is 200 Fifth’s bread and butter, so to speak, with ten (yes, ten) ounce burgers, fresh seafood and decent wings making up the majority of the dishes I saw flying off the line. But Chef Mendy’s menu includes some unique dishes that offer a bit more variety than yet another bar burger, however capably crafted. I recommend you start with the Saffron Mussel Ragout, which is topped with a crispy risotto cake, or the 200 Fifth Clams, which are a favorite of regulars. Entrées include everything from authentic, slow-smoked barbeque to pasta and more excellent seafood. Try the Trout Du Jour (I love that there’s a whole daily menu devoted to trout) or go all out and indulge in the 14 ounce New York steak. 200 Fifth’s brunch menu offers a pretty typical assortment of egg dishes and the like, but I feel strongly about pairing good brunch with good cocktails, and where better to ensure you’ll get a quality Bloody Mary than a freaking bar?

Speaking of booze (and I often am), I haven’t even gotten to the best part about 200 Fifth. They have not ten, not fifteen, but 40, count ‘em, 40 beers on tap. And with a deal offering a sampler of six 4.5-ounce beers on the menu, you can afford to experiment. Among the 40 draft beers, all available at the very reasonable price of $3.50 a pint, are Arrogant Bastard Ale (California), Monty Python's Holy grAIL (England), Victory Hop Devil (Pennsylvania), and one of my very favorites, Six Point Sweet Action (Brooklyn, NY). Call it Brooklyn pride or an affinity for the racy indie magazine of the same name, but I likes me some Sweet Action.

So whether you’re looking for a place to while away a few hours with your buddies after work, or planning a lengthy night of eating and drinking, you can’t really go wrong with a place like 200 Fifth. Sure, it’s generic, and you could find the same type of atmosphere at a TGI Friday’s if you were really desperate. But all of the things that people hate about big chains (impersonal service, high prices, obnoxious families everywhere), 200 Fifth avoids for the most part. If you’re looking for a precious hole in the wall that screams local character and would make your foodie friends jealous, this ain’t it. But if you’re just looking for some wings, some cheap beers and a few hours of reversion to your college days, look no further.

It was last summer, on one of those balmy evenings that makes you glad you live in a pedestrian town. I was walking up Fifth Avenue in Brooklyn, probably running an errand or going on a torta run at nearby Girasol Bakery, when what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a new bar, right in my neighborhood! A neat-looking logo announced the place as Quarter Bar, and a quick glance in the window confirmed that the place was a classy new joint, the likes of which you’d find in Williamsburg or Manhattan. With the exception of a few newish places like Living Room, the bar options in my neighborhood are usually limited to the Tabern Salvadoreño down the street and a perpetually empty sports bar, so this was welcome news.

I gathered up my posse and headed over to Quarter Bar the next chance I got. The first thing we noticed is the remodeled interior, which is warm and wood-paneled, with tasteful antique accents lending an old timey feeling. That combined with the meat pies listed on the menu next to the pints give you the distinct sensation you’ve stepped into olde time London by mistake. The skillful bartender in residence seems to be the only person running the place, and on the rare occasions that I’ve seen someone else tending bar, he’s been sitting right across from them, having a drink. Now that’s dedication. But beyond dedication, it’s his craftsmanship that’s gained him fans and followers. The specialty drinks are the real draw at Quarter Bar for this reason, and the fact that they are made with quality ingredients (the Hot Buttered Rum doesn’t skimp on the real butter) and eschew the sickly-sweet, unlike a great number of bars. However, the above-average beer selection is a godsend for someone like me, for whom mixed drinks, although delicious, are basically a hangover in a glass.

We migrated to the back patio, which seems to usually be where the party is. Wooden benches, tables and chairs surround an oddly appropriate bathtub planter under the watchful eye of some poor neighbor’s back porch. The community atmosphere really gets going once the second round of 2-for-1 Happy Hour drinks sets in. People start bumming cigarettes, joining in each others’ conversations, sharing drunken advice and newspapers. One time a girl who was leaving even gave me her second drink, a towering Hefeweizen, which I was happy to accept. After the second beer or so, pies start appearing on the patrons’ tables. These small empanada-like delicacies are crafted with care by local baker Dub Pies, and are made in the style of New Zealand’s and Australia’s hugely popular bar food. I have to admit, I can’t think of a much better accompaniment to a cold beer.

After four beers and a couple trips to the jukebox, we left the bar with pockets still jingling, half-cheesed and ready for whatever the night had in store for us. What more can you ask from happy hour?

With more and more New Yorkers going vegetarian and vegan, you would think the city would be just bursting with restaurants catering to the herbivore crowd. Unfortunately, that is not yet the case. That isn’t to say, of course, that vegetarians should throw up their hands in defeat. If you know where to look, there are a handful of fantastic eateries scattered throughout the five boroughs that combine vegetarian eating with the comforting flavors you know and crave, and one of those is The V Spot.

Brooklyn’s Park Slope has long been a haven for healthy eating, with its many coops and natural food stores feeding the locals since the neighborhood’s gentrification. Any neighborhood known for its artists and poets is bound to play home to a vegetarian or two sooner or later, and so came the need for restaurants like The V Spot. You won’t find any plates of colorless gruel here, though; vegan food has come a long way in the last decade or so. Nowadays, you can feast upon all of your diner favorites, sans guilt. Start with an appetizer of meatless Buffalo Chicken ($9), served with spicy BBQ sauce and sesame garlic blue cheese dressing, which is, like everything else on the menu, 100% vegan. You’ll completely forget you’re not eating chicken as you toast your microbrews, feeling more like you’re at a sports bar than a vegan restaurant (if you ignore the lack of TV’s blaring sports, of course). Then take your pick from one of the restaurant’s many sandwiches, entrées and pasta dishes. My favorite is the Classic Veggie Burger ($6), which is prepared with lentils, black beans, veggies and secret seasonings (top it with soy cheese or tempeh bacon to add some flavor). Other standouts include the Sesame Seitan ($16), which beats greasy Chinese takeout any day, and the Penne with Vodka Sauce ($10), which, like many of the other pasta dishes, utilizes the restaurant’s uncanny soy-based heavy cream in its sauce.

Check out The V Spot’s website to keep abreast of wine specials and other events, and don’t forget to stop by for brunch. If vegan restaurants are rare in the city, vegan brunch is even rarer, and it would be a shame for anyone to miss a New York tradition as venerated as weekend brunch. Here you can chow down on some meatless steak and tofu scramble, and show your non-vegan friends that you don’t have to eat meat to be a foodie. See, you can win friend with salad.

Brunch is a beautiful thing – there are multiple courses, you can choose between breakfast and lunch items, and of course, you can get sloshed before noon without looking like a borderline alcoholic. New Yorkers love their brunch for these reasons and more, so it’s not hard to find a decent place in the city to get your Eggs Benedict fix. However, if you’re looking for something a little different, you might want to make a trip to Park Slope, where Sette Enoteca e Cucina serves up brunch, Italian style.

Sette is a neighborhood mainstay serving light and innovative Italian fare in an elegant but unassuming setting. The dining room is dominated by an open kitchen, while the expansive outdoor patio (which is covered during colder months) offers diners a view of bustling Seventh Avenue and Park Slope’s ongoing parade of interesting personalities. Sette’s wait staff is always helpful and friendly, and they certainly keep the drinks flowing, which is one of the reasons my friends and I return time and again. We like our mimosas and we like them filled up often.

The $16 Prix Fixe brunch menu includes an antipasti and secondi course, as well as coffee, tea, fresh bread, and of course, unlimited Bloody Marys and sparkling wine cocktails. The attention to quality ingredients and simplicity of preparation make for some phenomenal dishes here. Appetizers like Ricotta Fritters with fruit puree, and Roasted Beet Salad with hazelnuts and goat cheese, are nearly a meal in themselves, but save room for the amazing entrées. My favorite is the Egg, Fennel Sausage, and Caciocavallo Cheese Panini, but other standouts include the Uovo al Forno (an oven-baked egg over polenta, baked with tomato sauce and ricotta), and Amy’s Semolina Raisin Bread French Toast, which puts a sweet twist on a classic dish. If you are ready for something more substantial, the Secondi menu also includes such dinner favorites as Pizza al Pomodoro e Mozzarella, Baked Lasagna with Tomato and Meat Ragu, and Braised Chicken with Fried Polenta.

So if the thought of eating yet another Belgian waffle at yet another overpriced Manhattan bistro leaves you less than enthused, give Sette a try. By the third Bloody Mary, you’ll wonder why you ever went anywhere else.

When married entrepreneurs Liat Cohen and Yaniv Reeis opened their tiny storefront in Park Slope, a neighborhood known for overpriced restaurants and stiff competition for fledgling businesses, the odds were against them. The neighborhood was already home to several successful cafés, including Tea Lounge, Ozzie’s, and Gorilla Coffee. And although nowadays you can’t throw a bagel in this town without hitting a gourmet chocolaterie, a few years ago, the concept of a chocolate bar was a tad alien to most people. Cocoa Bar, with its triple focus on chocolate, wine, and coffee, didn’t seem to fit into a category. Was it a bar? A café? A bakery?

In the end, Cohen and Reeis’ gamble paid off, in the form of a lasting business and brand name, which appears on packaged treats and gifts available for sale in the store. Cocoa Bar’s theme keeps the menu necessarily simple, with hot and cold coffee and chocolate beverages joining a respectable wine list, all of which serves to complement the main event: chocolate. Chocolate is celebrated in all its forms here, from gourmet truffles and bonbons (made specially for Cohen and Reeis by a local chocolatier) to a dizzying variety of decadent baked goods (provided by 9 local bakeries, at last count).

I took one of my girlfriends along on my trip to Cocoa Bar, and the first thing we noticed was the diminutive size of the place. The narrow nature of the brownstone location necessitates two seating areas at either end of the long counter. The back area features comfy couches and a bookshelf full of dog-eared volumes, but as we showed up during the pre-dinner hours, the laptop crowd had already laid dominion over the couches. This is my biggest pet peeve when it comes to cafés. You want to talk and laugh and have a good time, but there’s always some egghead glaring at you over his horn-rimmed glasses as he tries in vain to finish his thesis.

We took a seat by the window and dug into our desserts. The Red Velvet Cake was impossibly moist and cinnamony, and went perfectly with the house Merlot I washed it down with. My friend opted for a mini Chocolate Raspberry Torte, which was rich and satisfying, and paired with the house blend of French Roast coffee, made for a perfect afternoon bite. The owners warn on their website that their offerings release endorphins that make you giddy, and I don’t know if it was the chocolate or the Merlot, but I certainly felt a little lighter coming out of Cocoa Bar than I did coming in.

P.S. Chocoholics who don’t want to make the journey out to Park Slope can get their fix at Cocoa Bar’s new Manhattan location at 21 Clinton Street in the Lower East Side.

A good café is hard to find, and now that Starbucks is invading every nook and cranny of the five boroughs, it’s even harder. The little coffee shops that struggled but managed to get by back in the day are now facing escalating rents that the big chains have no problem paying. So it’s a rare treat when you discover a place in your neighborhood that runs circles around Starbucks and can stay open for more than six months. Café Sutra is such a place.

I’ll admit I’m more of a barfly than a beatnik, and that my idea of a wild Saturday night usually doesn’t include unlimited refills of Jamaican Blue Mountain. And although I fancy myself a girl who can hold her liquor, my best friend Liz puts me to shame. So when I took her to Café Sutra after having just discovered it, I was prepared to have another ho-hum latte and get back to the bar. But that’s when I discovered the best part about Café Sutra…they serve booze! Now that’s my kind of coffee shop! A wide variety of beers, including local favorites like Brooklyn Lager, joins an assortment of wines and mostly frozen cocktails to form a decent drink menu, all the better for when you’ve had your fill of caffeine but still want to savor the atmosphere.

And atmosphere there is. The name Café Sutra, in case your mind is in the gutter, relates to the café’s focus on India and the Hindu religion. This cultural inspiration permeates everything from the names of the specialty mocha and tea drinks to the warm and exotic décor. Though under new ownership, the café has kept its Hindi theme, and for that I’m grateful. The new owners have also introduced live music on Friday and Saturday nights, and their happy hour drink specials keep the place buzzing the rest of the week. During the warmer months, the patio is the place to be, for the night air and, for you smokers out there, a chance to evade the long arm of the indoor smoking ban for a few precious hours.

All of the coffee and tea drinks at Café Sutra are delicious, but I usually order the Earl Grey Skies, a tea drink which is made with real bergamot oil. Liz is more of a strong coffee girl, and she highly approved of the house blend here, which is dark and nutty and generally not for the weak of heart (or ulcer). If you like chocolate, be sure to try one of Café Sutra’s specialty lattes, like the decadent Almond Zen, which contains Ghiradelli chocolate, almond, and coconut. Or if the winter blues have got you down, have a summer flashback with a frozen hot chocolate or frozen lemonade, both of which are like candy in a glass. Speaking of candy, the café offers a rotating selection of desserts that tempt you from their pastry case like chocolaty sirens. They’re perfect for sharing, which we all know girls like to do, because somehow they feel like that negates the calories. I don’t bother to squabble over calories – it’s dessert, it’s supposed to give you chest pains. Luckily, Café Sutra seems to agree; none of their desserts could be described as light.

So the next time you’re in Park Slope south, stop in and meditate over a cup of liquid karma. Or, failing that, a frozen sangria.

Head back to the days of jazz and the prohibition at Flatiron Lounge (27 West 19th St). This popular jaunt in the flatiron district has a fantastic menu of cocktails that are each made with lots of tlc. The art deco interior and club room setting made me feel like the Rat Pack would be bursting through the doors at any moment. Don't be intimidated by it's hip décor, you'll fit in and feel at home with the affable staff and great crowd.

Every bartender has their favorite specialty drink – and so do the regulars. My pick? The Metropolis. It tastes like a Granny Smith but it isn't sweet – it's the perfect blend of apple and vodka. The atmosphere is very hip where the young and trendy like to hang out – though the crowd is mixed. For example, Flatiron Lounge is a place where you can take your visiting parents or a cousin who's still in college – and all parties would appreciate its vintage vibe. Bartenders are dressed like it's the roarin' 20's – all in black with dapper ties tucked into their shirts. The rest of the crowd is dressed, well, cool.

Weekends are usually packed but it's never hard to get attention from the bar staff. If you have to wait a few minutes for another drink, they'll let you know – and send you a water to hold you over. An average drink will set you back around $12 – but it's completely worth it. If you're a true martini lover, this place is your dream come true. Sample one of the martini flights where you'll get to try three mini martinis in a common flavor theme. This cocktail lounge should be a must on every visitors (or New Yorker's) list.

You can find a great Italian restaurant in every neighborhood of Manhattan, but in Astoria, Queens where Greek food flows like water, it's often hard to find a really good eggplant parmesan. But skeptics beware, you'll find an authentic Italian dish at the lovely Trattoria L'Incontro (2176 31st St.).

Settled in the hub of a busy intersection of Astoria, this restaurant is a great escape. Chef Rocca Sacramone is behind this gem of a restaurant – and is often seen table hopping to ensure that everyone is enjoying their meal. The theme of the restaurant seems to be bigger is better. The interior and décor is grandiose, wine glasses are the size of your arm, and my knife seemed more suited to carve a turkey rather than cut my lamb chop. Even the menu is large. Our waiter rattled off 32 specials (a fellow diner counted) from appetizers and salads to fish and meat entrees. I felt overwhelmed by all my menu options and wished they would have put a simple insert in the menu – there was no way to remember even half of the specials.

I started off with a calamari salad with cannelloni beans and red onion – which was delicious. My entrée was a stuffed veal chop that was surprisingly small (though the plate was gigantic, of course). Our waiter was a bit stiff and often slow, though not entirely his fault since this restaurant is always packed. You'll rarely find a night where you can just walk in and eat – so calling ahead for reservations is a must. With a packed house comes a lot of noise, making this a great place to go with a big group of people, which they can easily accommodate. Overall I enjoyed my experience, though for all the pomp and grandeur, I wish the food had delivered a bit more, though I think it definitely deserves a few more visits. At least I know I can get a great Italian meal in Astoria without hopping on the N back to Manhattan.

Choice (380 Third Ave) is located in a central spot in energetic Murray Hill. It's a great place to go for beating after work crowds – but not if you're looking for a spectacular meal. Luckily for Choice – their cocktails more than make up for their boring menu.

Best known for their specialty martinis, I always opt for the "choicetini" – pineapple juice, coconut juice, and vodka – it's why I go to Choice in the first place. Though they do offer a typical bar menu of apps and easy entrees, you won't be wowed by the grub. In fact, every time I've gone to Choice, the entrees for the table have been brought out at different times - not exactly a place you'll want to go with a big group that intends on eating together. Wait staff is pleasant enough, but service is slow, even if the restaurant is half empty.

Go to Choice if you've got a friend that likes stiff drinks and isn't picky about food – the exposed brick and mahogany accents lends itself to a very east side vibe. The wine menu isn't bad either, offering over 30 different selections. Plus you can't beat the price. I had a salad entrée and two martinis for $25 on my last outing there – a really great deal for a NYC eatery. My suggestion is to start the night off at Choice with some delicious cocktails – and then head across the street to Rodeo for some pitchers of Margaritas. With so many bar and restaurant options in Murray Hill, cross this one off the top of your list.