Lots of restaurants conspire this week to make sure we never have to leave our apartments again. Plus, not one but two haute dog destinations are expanding. Read on for all this and more of the tastiest tidbits in restaurants all over Brooklyn:
‘Fifth’ amendment: Freddy’s Bar has finally announced its official grand re-opening, set for Friday, Feb. 4 at the new venue on Fifth Avenue between 17th and 18th streets in the South Slope. It’s a bittersweet reopening for us, of course — Freddy’s original location inside the Atlantic Yards footprint dated back to Prohibition (and looked like it, too!). The project’s construction meant the demise of a great bar. But longtime manager Donald O’Finn is back as one of the owners, so we’re convinced that this joint will remain great.
Doggedly delicious: Mmm. What’s better than an offering of tater-tots, chili cheese fries and deep fried hot dogs? An offering of all three for breakfast, lunch and dinner of course. With hours from 7 am until 2 am (noon to 4 am on weekends) the newly opened Crif Dogs is making sure lucky Williamsburg residents will be feasting on all hot dogs all the time.
Bark and bike: Park Slopers and Prospect Heightsers no longer have to go barking mad trying to get their wiener fix. Our friends from Prospect Heights Patch report that on Jan. 26 the hot dog staple Bark will start delivering on its promise of high-end hot dogs — literally — with bicycle messengers bringing the goods to residents both ’hoods.
’Cue the short ribs: And in other exciting delivery news, the spicy smokey Mexican-themed BBQ joint Mexicue just got a little closer to my heart, and to yours, if you live in the Williamsburg area. The food truck/home kitchen is expanding its reach into living rooms between Division Avenue and N. 14th Street with its newly offered home delivery service. Yum!
Go-go-Gowanus: Gowanus’ indoor farmer’s market in the American Can Factory won’t just be selling you fresh vegetables — it’ll be making your breakfast out of them. Our friends at Brooklyn Based report that the recently reopened vendor venue will be featuring meals for sale made out of the surrounding farm stands’ offerings, cooked up by the husband and wife duo behind Fork and Glass.
Expanding ’ino: What’s the next logical step after conquering multiple Manhattan locations? Why set up shop in Brooklyn, of course. Brooklyn 365 reports the rumor that the team behind the ’inoteca family of restaurants that made truffled egg toast famous will be opening up a new location soon on N. Eighth and Berry streets in Williamsburg.
Williamsburg whiners: Stay away, Miss Muffett, this Tuffett is loaded — with an impressive selection of wines, as well as cheeses, coffee and goods from Amy’s Bread. Zagat blog (yes, Zagat blog) reports that the new Williamsburg wine bar opened on New Year’s Eve, but is already promising locals much better fare than curds and whey.
Sweeter Smith: Everyone’s favorite uncle — Uncle Louie G, Brooklyn’s king of ice cream and Italian ices — is opening a new window at 223 Smith St. this spring. Our friends at Pardon Me For Asking say that the shop, near the corner of Butler Street, will offer the usual abundance of flavors and toppings, as well as something new — soft-serve ice cream.
Back to the grind: Is Fifth Avenue getting over-caffeinated? It might be, with yet another coffee shop opening in the space formerly occupied by Serene Rose. Any more and it’ll be official, Park Slope might just be full of more baristas than baby strollers.
Spotted on Dean: Pig out time! Looks like Dean Street, a new Bistro in Prospect Heights just opened up shop on its namesake, and has a kitchen run by Nate Smith, formerly of the Spotted Pig. Expect dinner lines to wrap around the block in 3-2-1 …
Pie’s the limit: Ready, set, roll! The fourth annual Brooklyn pie contest will be held in Williamsburg on Jan. 23, pitting 50 bakers against each other to see just who makes the borough’s best pie. All proceeds go to benefit growing chefs, the field-to-fork educational program affiliated with Eagle Street Rooftop Farms. But would-be bakers better get there early: this pie contest is first-come, first-serve.
Jumping Juniper: Tom Mak of the Lazy Catfish in Williamsburg may have closed in April, but that doesn’t mean he’s abandoned ship. Instead, he’s opened up a new space, Juniper, at 112 Berry St. between N. Sixth and N. Seventh streets, where he’s serving a full menu of delicious offerings including pulled pork sandwiches and a scrumptious truffle burger.
Up and kicking: What are three foodies to do when they want to start a wine bar and restaurant but don’t quite have the cash? Why, turn to the community-based fundraising tool Kickstarter, of course. And it worked. The threesome successfully raised more than enough funds to install a brand new countertop and state-of-the-art kitchen, and will start serving their seasonal cuisine on Atlantic Avenue soon.
