Teresa's - Brooklyn Heights

Teresa's at 80 Montague Street is a classic diner joint in the midst of Brooklyn Heights. Teresa's features sufficient outdoor seating but we decided to sit inside Our table was cozy, maybe a bit too cozy as we both were slammed against the wall. Maybe I should just use the word cramped. There were plenty of empty tables yet somehow we were lucky enough to have a table that had a wall on 3 sides.

After waiting for a while, we finally flagged down our waiter. The menu was extensive with brunch classics, sandwiches, and Eastern European specials like piergoies and blintzes. Justin got the special, some sort of strange dish called Pesto Florentine. The plate itself was interesting with eggs atop ham atop a hash brown with a creamy pesto sauce. A bunch of things that don’t usually go together and maybe really shouldn’t.

I got a lox and onion omelet with kasha. The omelet had nothing else besides the lox and onion so it had a hearty portion of lox and onion inside it. The omelet looked pretty but wasn’t particularly tasty. The kasha was a great side dish instead of the typical hash browns or home fries. I liked the combination of traditional brunch food with an Eastern European flare but unfortunately, the execution didn’t add up.

Lastly, I got pumpernickel bread along with the omelet. The bread was overly toasted and unexpectedly hard. After asking for butter, I got a large plate of butter and jellies. The butter was frozen. Not just cold but actually frozen. We had to warm the butter up with our hands before I could even stick my knife into it. Disgusting.

Verdict: Teresa’s has some appealing ideas but doesn’t measure up to the other brunch places in this area of Brooklyn.

Dino - Fort Greene

Dino, a newish spot on DeKalb (222 DeKalb), boasts a decently priced brunch/lunch menu and a dinner menu. While the restaurant describes itself as Italian, I would call it more American fusion Italian. If you are looking for old school pasta dishes like Tony Soprano eats - this place is not it. Though we ate dinner at this place, I did a quick glance at the brunch menu and saw that it was quite similar, just a bit cheaper in price.

First off, the place is tiny with tables crammed into every nook and cranny. They also have a bar but it's more for ambiance since there is no possible way a group could sit at the bar and have a group eating at the table behind them without a severe attack of claustrophobia. With the exception of 3 tables in the back, the other tables are literally next to each other. It's not the sort of place you want to have a deeply personal conversation unless you don't mind you neighbors hearing your play by play of what’s going with you life. With the exception of the cramp quarters, the place is very cute with soft lighting, simple but refreshing decor, and an attentive wait staff.

Now to the food....

Interesting menu with a host of pasta options though only a handful of meat dishes. For appetizers, we chose an avocado crostini, off the specials, and calamari. The crostini was good with just the right amount of avocado spread though the bread could have been crustier. The calamari was sautéed, not fried, which I loved. It tasted fresh and just the right amount of spicy and chewy. This was my favorite dish of the night!

For my main meal, I chose the orecchiette pasta, which was pasta with a pistachio arugula pesto sauce. The sauce had only a slight hint of pesto with an overpowering taste of argula. Now, I like the taste of arugula so I was very pleasantly surprised but the sauce does not resemble any sort of pesto sauce I’ve ever tasted. The dish was exceptionally hearty with lots of vegetables throughout the dish including potatoes, peppers, and green beans. Overall, I was pleased with my dish. Justin got the bucatini, which was pasta with pancetta, tomato, and a whole bunch of spices. However the dish turned out to be much more similar to spaghetti and tomato sauce with a little bit of meat thrown in. Nothing particularly special.

Because of some logistical moves during the course of our meal, we ended up getting a free dessert. We picked the tiramisu. The tiramisu was delicious and was a great end to the meal yet not the best tiramisu I ever had. That sums about how I felt about Dino – good food and ambiance but not the best ever.

Cafe LULUc - Carroll Gardens

After giving up on Tom's, we decided to hop a bus to try and Cafe LULUc, a French bistro joint in the middle of restaurant row on Smith Street. Unlike Tom's, we walked in and got a table immediately, even though it was prime brunch time (12 pm). They have a nice shaded garden in the back of the restaurant, which we sat in. The menu is more standard brunch faire with omelets, eggs, and pancakes. They also have a wide variety of salads, soups, sandwiches, steaks, and pastas. The wait staff was efficient and my coffee refills came like clockwork. The prices were very reasonable with most dishes in the $6-9 range.

Because of the huge menu, I struggled with what to order. I ended up settling on a spinach and goat cheese quiche which came with a small mesculin salad. The piece of quiche was on the small side but was quite filling and tasted great. The salad wasn’t anything special but it was nice to have a healthy side for brunch. The other dish was a cheesesteak sandwich that had a very tasty caramelized onion sauce. The steak sandwich was good, though nothing too exciting.

The real draw of this place is the outdoor garden, good prices, expansive menu, and good tasting food.

Tom's Restaurant - Prospect Heights

One of the better-known Brooklyn brunch spots is Tom's Restaurant at 782 Washington Street (at Sterling Place) in Prospect Heights. After a few recommendations, I decided that it was time to experience it for myself.

After an almost 4 mile walk, we got to Tom's located on the corner of Washington & Sterling. There were a bunch of people already outside so I knew the wait was going to be pretty long. With deck chairs set out around the place, the line snaked around the corner. The staff kept coming out and providing free cookies and coffee to all who were waiting yet the wait was up to an hour plus and it was only 11 AM! For that reason, we put Tom's aside for another day.

The next day we returned to Tom's earlier during the day (9:30 AM) for a second try. This time the line was only 20-30 minutes so we gave it a shot. The place itself is filled with kitschy artwork and is reminiscent of a time gone by. Tom’s opened in the 1930s and the music and décor is completely 30’s chic. The place itself is filled with a great cross section of people from cops to families with babies to young couples to old couples.

Once you sit down, the staff is eager (understatement) to take your order. Once you order, the food comes super fast. They know what they are doing and they get you in and out fast. If you are looking for a place to enjoy a leisurely brunch, this place is not it. They gave us the check before I’d eaten one bite of my food. However if you are looking for good brunch food like scrambled eggs and omelet’s, this is your kind of place. We had sides of the standard brunch faire – bacon and eggs – and they were cooked fast and well.

Further they have some interesting menu options including: crab cakes florentine, pumpkin walnut pancakes, and lemon ricotta waffles. We had the first two, which proved to be delicious. The pumpkin walnut pancakes were soft and flakey, different than usual diner pancakes, and they gave me a very good-sized portion. The crab cakes florentine came with home fries to give you a whole lot of food – very tasty and yummy.

All in all – a very successful brunch. Is it worth an hour plus wait? Probably not but see for yourself!