Bakeri

Discovered Bakeri while galavanting through Williamsburg this past weekend. A charming blast from the past. I could have sat there all day had there been a fan in sight. Instead, I grabbed a business card and took my iced coffee to go.

Mast Brothers Chocolate

Café Colette

"Babe, I'm gonna take you out!" Words that I love to hear. On tonight's adventure, Sara decided to take me to Café Colette, which is just across the river in Williamsburg. As soon as we rolled down Berry Street, I discovered my new found love for Brooklyn.

We arrived at Café Colette and the vintage charms won us over right away. With its green bead board walls, globe light fixtures, large mirrors and checkerboard tile, we felt welcomed back to an older era.

The drinks were well planned. I had a tequila based cocktail infused with pepper syrup, which was small, but outstanding. For starters, we ordered the fried corn (YES), which was covered in lime aioli, cilantro and crumbled cotija cheese, resembling Mexican street food. After thoroughly licking our fingers we started on the grilled sardines, which was the knockout dish of the evening. The sardines were marinated in lemon and salt, char-grilled, and coupled with the roasted vegetables. For the main course, we shared the brick chicken set on top of chorizo hash and potatoes. Needless to say, it was slamming. We finished the meal with peach crumble à la mode, which was large enough for us to share. Overall, an incredible experience, and one we would like to repeat again soon.

Smorgasburg.

Today we went to Williamsburg to check out Smorgasburg, a Brooklyn Flea food market.We were so happy to be outside in the warm weather that we didn't mind waiting in line at Porchetta for the slow roasted pork sandwich, marinated in herbs & spices and served on a crusty cibatta roll.

After that, in need of something cool and refreshing we mosied over to the People's Pops for a red-plum shaved ice. So good. Still feeling peckish we waited in line at Nana's for a frozen banana dipped in chocolate and rolled in shredded coconut.

Finally, we couldn't escape the market without grabbing a wedge of Dorset cheese from Consider Bardwell Farm.

JULiETTE

This past Sunday we went to Williamsburg to see Kristen run in the NYC Marathon. We cheered her on from Bedford Avenue, and spotting her among the thousands of runners felt like an accomplishment in and of itself. As she approached us there were mutual squeals of excitement, and even after she continued on, we couldn't shake the pride we felt from her amazing achievement.


All that cheering made us hungry so we decided to eat lunch in the neighborhood. We happened upon JULiETTE, a quintessential french bistro filled with red flea market chairs, vintage metal signs and Ricard Pernod bottles. How could we resist? There was a bit of a wait, but after one sip of their deliciously spicy Bloody Mary we were pacified. We ordered the Banana Stuffed French toast, and while it was good, it just couldn't stand up to our favorite recipe. We also had the Omelette of the Day, filled with kale & jack cheese. The crispy potatoes cooked in extra virgin olive oil were the highlight of that dish... Oh and another highlight, they served Stumptown coffee.

Hello Fada

Ron and I went to The Renegade Craft Fair on Sunday in Williamsburg. We met up with Jenny, Erik, & ellis and when our stomachs started growling we worked our way over to the charming French bistro, Fada, located on the north end of Driggs Avenue. I recalled having been there before many years ago when Jenny was still living on Bedford Avenue (circa 2002). It was nice to see that not much had changed.

Even though it was very hot out (with a chance of tornado), we opted to sit outside in the garden. We were happy that Jess and Matthew joined us there later after having missed each other at the fair.

The menu was simple, with standard french fare-- croque monsieur, moules, salade nicoise... We were too hot for anything warm so Ron and I split the caprese sandwich and grilled chicken salad. Tasty, but really the atmosphere surpassed the food: chipped enamel tables, worn flea market chairs, painted beams in a provencal cornflower blue... It was a mini-trip to Marseille just before the rain began to fall.

All Dressler'd Up

Searching for a restaurant in Williamsburg is no easy task. The different layers of options, from price ranges, to cuisine, to motif presents a palate of diverse options. We wanted to choose something special to top off our amazing day in Brooklyn.

The menu and reviews of Dressler drew us in. Its proximity to a few of the nightspots we wanted to try made it an easy choice. The restaurant's mirrored halls gave space and depth to the narrow venue. The decor felt slightly more trendy than our usual taste, and the service was spotty, making us wait over 20 minutes for our bread and water which definitely brought out the beast in both of us.

Eventually, the food tamed our growling with its simple, hearty, American fare. To start, we had the diver scallops fixed with sunchokes, cauliflower and bacon... finished with wild striped bass, leeks, chanterelles, and truffled sherry vinagrette. Beautiful menu options that were decently executed, in a nice setting. Felt like Manhattan transfixed in Brooklyn, which left us slightly longing for a more authentic experience, either way.... The highlight: dancing off the food at nearby Bembe, a hot latin bongo-drumming nightspot just two blocks away...

Whats up Doc

Sometimes, the best things in life just pop up on you, and you just fall in... such was the case when we fell into Rabbit Hole, a quaint Williamsburg fixture set deep in the heart of Bedford Street.

The table runners were affixed to the kitchen service window which set the entire space a sizzle. The scarves, jackets and sweaters were flying off, but the feeling remained warm and serene. The restaurant valued vintage relics and ascetic purpose: small soda bottles, classic sandwiches, set against unfinished brick.

The inattentive service tried our patience, but we were immediately pacified when our burger and reuben finally arrived. The reuben had juicy, thick cut corned beef and the burger had a homemade taste. The vintage floors of tarnished mahogany squeaked under our foot steps and the garden outside looked inviting. The feeling was classic Brooklyn, and it was a perfect lunch stop for Williamsburg day-goers to hole up and rest their paws....