The Downtown Brooklyn Thread

(i do miss it, but i want to live closer to friends)

where should i take my mom for dinner in prospect heights or the surrounding environs? she will probably not want sushi or jamaican.

Queens.

Just kidding. Franny's Pizza?

Amorina Cucina Rustica at Vanderbilt and Prospect is a good bet

http://www.menupages.com/restaurantdetails.asp?areaid=0&restaurantid=37865&neighborhoodid=0&cuisineid=50

if not sushi then I'm guessing Korean's no good either but you could do Noo Na at Vandy and Dean(?) (or Bergen, can't remember)

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/3/35792/Brooklyn/Prospect-Heights/Noo-Na.html

franny's is tasty but also overrated, super crowded, and pricey

but if your mom is someone who would rather go to someplace that got 2 stars in the Times then hit Franny's for sure

i've been wanting to try noo na! but maybe not with my mom. has anyone tried dinner at beast or sorrel on carlton?

i think sorrel is same owners as 360? or something. i've gone to 360 with my mom before and she loved it.

and they have a $25 prix fixe

Sorrel is awesome, been there 3 times. but I heard it might be closed ... ? I would check it out beforehand or have a backup in mind.

beast is probably better for sunday brunch than for dinner. food can be pretty good but if you're in the front room its more like a bar. and the service can be inconsistent. a lot of noize board people swear by it for the brunch .... I've had good and bad meals there.

similar to Beast, I really love Alchemy at 5th Av and Bergen but that is getting pretty far afield from your place. it's a gastro-pub, the room's a little nicer than Beast and (imo) the food's better.

Does anyone ever eat at the Garden Cafe on Vbilt and uh...St Marks? Or whatever the cross street is -- it's been there for like eight years but never seems open. I had a prix fixe dinner there once but don't remember anything about it.

oh noes. is there anything similar you would recommend? park slope is ok...
beast's dinner menu looks kinda lame. i've had brunch there three times and it is great though!

yeah i've never seen the garden cafe open.

me neither!

I don't know for sure that Sorrel closed but the person that first recommended it to us, we saw her two weeks ago and she said "I heard it closed"

we meant to walk by and check it out but haven't done it yet

check out this menu and see what you think
http://www.alchemybrooklyn.com/

I think I had the hangar steak last time

You guys Flatbush Farm is apparently really good, too -- some of my Bklyn foodie friends eat there semi-regularly.

Sort of far from Bell, though, I guess.

al di la!

i went there once .... it's okay.

Al Di La in park slope is v. good but I don't know how much money you're looking to spend

xpost!

the "just ok" was about flatbush farm

That was goign to be my next suggestion, Lauren! My upstairs neighbor used to work at Al di la.

yah flatbush farm is good yer mom will like it

http://www.rosewaterrestaurant.com/menudinner.html - see late summer market menu

hmm the alchemy menu sounds a little pubby.
flatbush farm is at 6th ave and st. marks? that's not too far!

it's high-end pubby but flatbush farm is a better suggestion

so al di la is pretty pricey?

http://www.aldilatrattoria.com/

probably not that much more than FF depending what you get

i think the mains top out around $22, with pasta more like mid/upper teens...?

yeah it's not so bad. now that I think about it our bill was high mostly because of wine and dessert. I've only been once.

i feel like al di la will be so crowded friday night...i may try it if we are shot down on sorrel and flatbush farm though!

related: is there a single good thai restaurant in park slope?

JOY

kind of a trendy room (often has a dj playing Brazilian lounge chillout beatz) but real spacious and serves good cheap Americanized thai. as in, I would never get the pad thai at Sripraphai but at Joy it's super tasty

oops I mean SONG thai

Joy is in Carrol Gardens, same owners

there are many good restaurants of 5th ave

is there a single good thai restaurant in park slope?

how's Long Tan?

thai sky, thai cafe, and some other one were all not so memorable. i like joya in cg tho.

yes Song is by the Joya peoples

I was getting mixed up w/ the Indian restaurant Joy on Flatbush

Lemongrass = also not very memorable

lemongrass is a chain, right?

Mmmm Joy Indian make Laurel happy.

Oh shit now I want a korma.

you ppl have money left over for records after all the fine dining?

morbs, i ate a can of chickpeas for dinner last night. i just like to fantasize.

Joy is the indian place on Flatbush, Joya is the terrible thai place on Court.

The pad thai at Sripraphai is really good.

lemongrass is a local chain, i think. in any case, it's not good. we went to arunee (in qns) over the weekend, and i'm going to be "controversial" and say that it was as good as anything i've had at sri.

I've heard good things about it and been meaning to check it out. There's always debate about that place, Zabb and SPP. Nothing beats the duck salad at Zabb, even at Zabb City, the one on 13th st btw 2nd and 3rd.

The pad thai at Sripraphai is really good.

I wasn't comparing them quality-wise, there's no comparison. I would just never get pad thai at Sri b/c they have so much more interesting stuff

i've never had the pad thai at sripraphai, but the broad noodle dishes are underwhelming. arunee is in jackson heights, right? i think i've been there. and zabb too. queens has ruined me for all other thai food (except maybe, like, in thailand. i guess.)

is zabb city related to queens zabb?

Yeah, same people.