River Styx, Dinner

by Brightgirl, posted in Brooklyn, Dinner, Restaurants

So ten years ago my little sister went off to college. Ten years later, she’s moving back to her college town.  She really fell in love with it, although being back in Brooklyn was helpful to her career, it was never home again. To celebrate, going out to eat was the only option. We had no real clue where to go, we did want to keep it local.  I told her to Google the menu for River Styx, she saw oysters and was immediately thrilled. They had a few interesting drinks on the cocktail menu, we started with that. I had a tequila based, she had a rum based. Mine was super strong, one and done. She went on to have a second cocktail of a different background, it had ginger in it.  Oysters and a kale salad to start. I probably could have stopped after the salad. It was so good, it had a soft smoked cheese on the bottom, it was amazing. I also ordered nachos with chicken.  The chicken was really good, it was moist, it must have been roasted. I only ate half,  the salad was so filling. She had a pasta dish with mussels.  They change the menu, daily, call ahead if you’re looking for a particular dish. Definitely would go back. It’s right on the water, beautiful views outside.

 

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Birthday dinner at Bourbon Street Bar and Grille

by Brightgirl, posted in Desserts, Dinner, Drinks, Restaurants, The City

So I love birthdays, anyone’s. They are your special day. One of my classmates turned homegirl celebrated her birthday here. She had been before, knew and loved the menu and atmosphere. She was right.  We sat at a pub style table, on one side of the room, perfect for our party size.  We ordered drinks, they had definitely had a good variety. I ordered a rum punch, it was tasty. I ordered from the pre fixe menu. I probably could have skipped it and ordered an entrée. We had so many appetizers, I was basically full by the time my main dish came.  Potato skins, mozzarella sticks, nachos grande, hush puppies (amazing) and chicken tenders.  My meal came with a caesar salad. My main came without my request, I sent it back.  It was delicious, it was carbonara.  I had the brownie for dessert, it was huge. Served with vanilla ice cream. I will definitely go back. 

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Toms, breakfast all day

by Brightgirl, posted in Brooklyn, Brunch, Restaurants

Once in a while, I want a diner style full breakfast, I go to Tom’s on Washington.  There’s always a wait, it’s usually not that long. I have never been disappointed.  The pancakes are great, I love a good pancake.  My son gets the belgian waffle, it’s cooked perfectly. Definitely a great regular spot to go to. The price is right too.

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Fuku, the chicken sandwich

by Brightgirl, posted in Dinner, Fried chicken, Restaurants, Snacks, The City

We have many options in New York for fried chicken sandwiches. I’m in search of at least three really great ones.  What I like about Fuku, the sandwich, fingers and fries is all they do. They make a few sides that change, but the fried items remain the same. I was a little hesitant because I’m used to the breast, when fried and seasoned well, amazing. This fried thigh was seasoned well and fried well. Watching them make it, is a nice touch, it was served piping hot.  It was juicy, crispy the spread and pickles were the perfect addition. We added a touch of hot sauce, the bun was soft and so tasty, you wanted more. I was honestly surprised that I didn’t want something cool, like lettuce.   They offer a slaw, pickled radish I wanted to try the classic sandwich as they sell it. It needed nothing else.  We ordered a combo, it came with fries and a can soda. We also had the fingers and smoky slaw.  The fries were lightly dusted with a light seasoning that had a slight kick of heat to it.  Everything was great, definitely going back.

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Red Stixs, birthday dinner and pre fixe lunch

by Brightgirl, posted in Dinner, Restaurants, The City

To celebrate my birthday this year, dinner at Red Stixs. My son was jealous so I took him for lunch, day before Thanksgiving. We ended up having a pre fixe for both meals, lunch and dinner.  For dinner there was calamari, vegetable lettuce wraps, spring rolls, pancakes, three different wontons and chicken satay. Lunch was chicken satay and duck spring rolls. Main course for dinner was crispy beef, chicken and green prawns, vegetable, chicken and white rice. We also had a whole duck, which was sliced to order right in front of us. It was crispy and full of flavor. The duck was the highlight for me.  Lunch mains, kung po chicken and black prawns and white rice.  The portions for both meals was spot on, we did have a few leftovers from dinner.  My son took the rest of my chicken,  he ate all his prawns.  The sauce the black prawns was in was really good.  I had a margarita with dinner and prossecco with lunch.  The manager/owner Jerry was there at lunch, he was very nice.  I will continue to go there. They have a dj some nights and happy hour too. 

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The Nugget Spot, after work snack

by Brightgirl, posted in Dinner, Restaurants, Snacks, The City

I had a small window of time and was deciding between ice cream and chicken nuggets.  The nuggets were closer, so they won.  I’m glad, they were all white meat chicken and more like chunks then nuggets.  They are served hot in a paper bag, crispy and moist. The sauce was the perfect amount of cool.  I ordered a sweet treat instead of fries.  Csb’s fried chocolate and vanilla cookie dough with a pretzel crust. It wasn’t doughy enough for me, the frying melted it too much for my liking.  I would go with fries next time.  Definitely going back, the variety of nuggets was too much to tackle in one sitting.

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Wingbar, Saturday night

by Brightgirl, posted in Brooklyn, Drinks

Over the past few years, I have become slightly obsessed with finding great wings.  I usually find the best wings at non wing specific restaurants. Now this place has great wings.  They are fried and tossed to order.  They were crispy, hot and the flavor was just right.  I had buffalo and bbq, they were both really good.  I ordered fried pickles, they had a little too much dough for me. The pickles themselves were good.  I had two margaritas, that’s what I drink. It was the typical bar atmosphere, they had college football on.  Cold drinks, hot food, great time.

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Wings and drinks, Taproom 307

by Brightgirl, posted in Happy Hour, Restaurants, The City

We were looking for something easy after work. I gave my homegirl three choices, this is where she chose.  I started with tequila and pineapple, ended with a margarita.  Nothing like guacamole and chips to accompany drinks and girl talk.  There were so many food choices, I stuck to my usual wings. We had three different types, fries and tater tots! I love those.  The buffalo wings were okay, the bbq were better, the asian ones were the best.  The ginger, the crispness the whole combo was good.  The other wings could have been cooked longer for me.  The drinks were drinks, happy hour always makes drinks taste better.  I’m not a beer drinks but the had a ton of beers, bottled and on tap.  The tables are all high ones, even the booths, I really liked that. I will be going back, there was some other menu items I would like to try.

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Restaurant week, Grotto Azzurra

by Brightgirl, posted in Desserts, Dinner, Drinks, Restaurants, The City

Stepped outside my usual and went for Italian. I was pleasantly pleased with the food.  I ordered a tequila based drink, it was refreshing.  They didn’t have the pumpkin ravioli, I was a little disappointed. I got the spinach salad which was really good.  It was served in a cheese bowl, yum!  My homegirl ordered the salmon crostini for an app.  It was served on thick french bread, way bigger than the usual crostini. She could only eat two.  For our mains, salmon and a shrimp pasta dish both had a brandy based sauces. The salmon was cooked well, it had a grain mustard sauce, it was delightful. The sides were good.  I’m not a fan of shrimp, although her dish was well seasoned.  Dessert, now I skipped over the tartufo only because I saw creme brulee. Now when I saw the tartufo I was shocked. It was a chocolate shell, with ice cream in the middle.  It looked amazing. The first order came out with berries and my homegirl is deathly allergic. The second one was a different flavor, it was fine but she wanted the first flavor minus the berries. There seemed to be a loss in translation at that point.  My dessert was great. I would definitely get two desserts next time.

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