For restaurant-starved Brooklynites living
west of Columbia Street, year-old 2Fifteen Cucina Napoletan is
a haven.
On a recent winter evening, the twinkling white holiday lights
in the window beckoned us in from the cold and snow. We took
a table by the Bay of Naples at sunset, a wall mural painted
by local artist Jerry Calandrea.
The family oriented, rectangular restaurant offers plenty of
room between the plastic tablecloth-covered tables, jukebox playing
Patsy Cline, among other classic crooners, and small bar.
The emphasis at 2Fifteen Cucina is clearly on the affordable
menu, which offers heaping portions. There are daily specials,
too, if the extensive menu can’t vanquish your hunger.
And I mean vanquish.
The portions on the plates at 2Fifteen Cucina could easily feed
the entire cast of "The Sopranos."
Vintage black-and-white photos of South Brooklyn hang by the
entrance, reminders of this neighborhood’s charms before the
invasion of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in 1957 – and before
South Brooklyn was christened with trendy names like Carroll
Gardens and the Columbia Street Waterfront District.
Partners Mike Denaro, of Cobble Hill, and Janet Caccioppoli,
a life-long resident of Carroll Gardens, are Italian-Americans
who rave about their heritage as much as their neighborhood.
And the opening of their restaurant – and nearby Mexican eatery
Alma – are signs of the neighborhood’s renewal.
"We serve Neapolitan cuisine," said Denaro. "That
means no butter, no cream. The chefs [Tony, Piera and Julio]
are not from a culinary institute. They are all from Italy.
"Sometimes, when Tony makes something, I ask him what it’s
called and he says, ’There’s no name. My mom used to make it.’"
On this chilly evening, we ordered familiar-sounding selections
from the list of hot appetizers. The mozzarella in carozza, a
deep-fried mozzarella sandwich with a tempura-like coating, was
served piping hot. Deliciously fluffy and generously cheesy,
there was no need for a dunk in the tomato sauce served on the
side.
The antipasti caldo, an appetizer (really, a platter that could
easily serve two) of warm mushroom caps, shrimp, mussels and
clams generously stuffed with buttery breadcrumbs, teetered on
the brink of a bland abyss, but was saved by the fresh mussels.
The enormous veal chop, stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto,
arrived with a tinfoil-covered bone-handle on a bed of crisp
asparagus with a potato croquette (our guilty pleasure!) The
chop’s tame flavor was much improved by the salty, cured ham.
The vintage croquette was crispy and cheesy – a potato delight
that is more upscale than a Tater Tot but has less cache than
polenta.
The seared black angus shell steak, from the list of specialities
of the house, was indeed special. Served with winy porcini mushrooms,
it is seasoned with generous heaps of roasted garlic.
It would be a disservice not to order a side of super-fresh
sauteed escarole, also pungently flavored with garlic.
2Fifteen Cucina offers a list of soups and pastas – including
homemade ravioli – as well as salads and chicken dishes.
"We have fish deliveries seven days a week," said
Denaro, stressing that the fish dishes on his menu – salmon with
mussels and clams, zuppa di pesce (a soup of mixed fish in a
wine sauce), broiled filet of sole, among others – are fresh.
For dessert, 2Fifteen Cucina offers a list of grappas, ports
and sherries and the Italian specialties you expect. The tartufo
is a delight for the whole family. The large chocolate-and-vanilla
ice cream truffle arrives in a shell of chocolate and is topped
with whip cream. The diner who digs to the center the fastest
is rewarded with a maraschino cherry and almonds.
Homesick Italians and in-the-know neighborhood folk come on
Sundays for Tony’s beef braciola, rolled with egg, cheese and
ham and cooked in oil, white wine and broth. For the rest of
its neighbors, it’s enough to have 2Fifteen’s regular menu offerings
close enough to eat-in, with its view of Naples, or to take-out.
2Fifteen Cucina Napoletan, located
at 215 Columbia St. between Union and Sackett streets in the
Columbia Street Waterfront District, accepts American Express,
Discover, Visa and MasterCard. Entrees: $10.50-$17.95. For reservations
and take-out, call (718) 858-2960.
