Brooklyn’s mix of ethnic groups makes it possible to find any kind of food that your appetite desires. Here are ten diverse restaurants to entice your taste buds.
A fairy tale place on the waterfront and perfect for a romantic evening. A window table gives you an unsurpassable view of the Statue of Liberty, the Brooklyn Bridge, and the Manhattan skyline.
A must is the Brooklyn Bridge dessert, a chocolate replica with a raspberry sorbet. A candle and a “Happy Anniversary” or other appropriate chocolate message can be prearranged.
The River Café
Dumbo - 1 Water St.
(718) 522-5200
Yelp: 4 stars, 597 reviews
It’s a "funky junky" Red Hook bar with a backyard-style beer garden sandwiched between buildings.
No-fuss bar food including burgers. Kick back a cold one and spend all of five bucks for a pair of pulled pork sliders, complete with cheese and bacon, and don't forget the sweet potato fries. And, check out the might-give-you-a-heart-attack frito pies.
Brooklyn Ice House
Red Hook - 318 Van Brunt St.
(718) 222-1865
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 161 reviews
For good southern comfort food head to this hidden gem in Williamsburg. The owner, a transplanted Texan, will make sure you are having a good time.
There is a grandmother biscuit selection, and you can build your own biscuit for your kids to have fun with. If you are a southerner missing your shrimp and grits, this is the place for you.
BeeHive Oven Biscuit Café
Williamsburg - South Side - 182 S 2nd St.
(347) 987-4960
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 325 reviews
The menu is a perfect mix of variety, spice, and love. The Bunna crew are engaging particularly when performing their Ethiopian coffee ceremony, which includes complementary bunna (coffee with cardamom and cloves).
The food comes with injera, a fluffy sourdough flatbread which mates happily with the assorted spiced dishes.
Bunna Café
Bushwick - 1084 Flushing Ave.
(347) 295-2227
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 202 reviews
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A family-owned Brazilian/Argentinian fusion restaurant. Mate is an energy-producing infusion of the steeped dried leaves of the yerba mate plant.
Apart from the quality-cut steak options prepared and cooked to perfection, one of the delights is six different kinds of baked empanadas.
El Mate
Carroll Gardens - 550 Court St.
(718) 222-1102
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 44 reviews
In a city with many expensive restaurants, you can still eat for under $10 in places like Pyza, a no-frills diner with homemade Polish food. It’s popular with the local Polish ethnic community – hence the constant Polish Cable TV.
Main dishes include kielbasa, huge fall-off-the-bone ham hocks, perogies filled with meat or cheese and covered in butter and caramelized onions, stuffed cabbage, and potato pancakes with sour cream.
Pyza
Greenpoint- 118 Nassau Ave.
(718) 349-8829
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 41 reviews
This is the only Brooklyn restaurant to receive Michelin's highest honor. You are provided with a sensory dining experience, not just a meal. You will sit at the same table as the other guests and taste approximately fifteen Japanese-style courses with an optional four-wine pairing.
You come for the genius of Chef Ramirez, who presides over everything. Presentation is an important part of your experience - magnets keep a small bowl of caviar upright, a bite of mackerel is served atop a porcelain pedestal. Each dish melts in your mouth with the barest modicum of chewing.
Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare
Boerum Hill - 200 Schermerhorn St.
(718) 243-0050
Yelp: 4.5 stars, 287 reviews
Brooklyn Farmacy is a charming spot, especially for some insanely delicious sundaes. It’s a well-preserved time capsule with original wood, marble floors, and a Formica bar counter.
Although “normal” food is available, the focus is on ice cream, sundaes, scoops, milkshakes, and soda creams. Sundaes come in many varieties, and you are also allowed to design your own. Fortunately, half sizes are available as full sizes are huge. Sundae varieties include Mr. Potato Head (ice cream and potato chips), and the Sir-Twix-a-Lot, (vanilla ice cream, shortcake crumbles, and drizzled caramel, encased in milk chocolate).
Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain
Carroll Gardens - 513 Henry St.
(718) 522-6260
Yelp: 4 stars, 422 reviews
The place is a setting from an early Quentin Tarantino movie, i.e., unchanged from the 60's and 70's.
Although a regular menu is available, Junior's is famous for making the best New York style cheesecake - rich and delicious. Plain, it’s simple and good. Or you can enjoy it dressed up with strawberries. Other variations include chocolate mousse, red velvet, and apple crumb.
Junior’s
Downtown Brooklyn - 386 Flatbush Ave. Extension
(Cheesecake Corner and Harry Rosen Way)
(718) 852-5257
Yelp: 3.5 stars, 1,079 reviews
Although it’s difficult to choose one cuisine that represents Brooklyn, a nod must be given in the direction of Italy as large sections of Brooklyn are Italian American. Michael’s represents the epitome of Italian-American first-class dining with wall mirrors, muted lighting, and waiters decked out in formal wear making you feel special and catered to.
The food is classic Italian. One representative dish is the Smash Job, a veal chop smashed thin on the bone and lightly fried, covered with fresh handmade mozzarella and Michael’s home made filetto di pomodoro - the veal falls off the bone and it's Michaels famous sauce!
Michael's
Midwood - 2929 Ave. R
(718) 998-7851
Yelp: 4 stars, 101 reviews
