Good restaurants to cry in
Welcome back to Five Things I Ate! It’s like Instagram, but with no photos. If you’re new, check out past posts here, which contain fewer tears than this week’s post, and please forward it to someone you like.
Giuseppina's Brick Oven Pizza
691 6th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Giuseppina’s is a dark and cozy pizza place in South Slope, the brother restaurant of the extremely popular Lucali’s in Carroll Gardens. With Sinatra playing on the speakers, little candles flickering everywhere, and mosaic tabletops, it’s a great place for a romantic date. It is also, I learned, a great place to cry, an honor I do not bestow lightly upon an establishment. (There is a surprising amount of overlap between the two categories.) The pizza, thin-crust and perfectly chewy, is delicious; there is plenty of red wine on the list, and the serving staff is patient and did not seem unnerved by my presence. There’s not too much fuss, the place is dimly-lit, and the couples-to-family ratio is pretty even, so you don’t feel self-conscious about tanking someone’s first Tinder date. Get a restaurant that can do you both.
Macrobiotic plate at Souen Soho
210 6th Ave, New York, NY 10014
You can’t get this dish for much longer, because Souen, a macrobiotic mainstay in Soho, is closing. You also maybe don’t want this dish, which is composed of steamed brown rice, unseasoned vegetables, boiled beans, and a little tuft of hijiki seaweed, yet somehow clocks in at a little over 10 dollars (if you ask for extra dressing, which you’ll want). The macro plate has a cult following among models in New York, and the wood-furnished restaurant is one of the last places in Soho that you can still find artists inside. It tastes like health food from the 80s (which it is), my Mom’s kitchen when she was going through her hippie phase, and the remnants of an eating disorder. I sort of love it, and will definitely miss this place when it’s gone.
Hot spiked cider at Pete’s Candy Store
709 Lorimer St, Brooklyn, NY 11211
Williamsburg is the worst, but Pete’s Candy Store is the best. This snug little bar nestled near the Brooklyn Queens Expressway has free live music almost every day of the week. Pete’s is always a good time, but it’s especially nice on a dreary winter day during the afternoon. Grab a mug of hot spiked cider at the bar (which was, thankfully, served piping hot and not lukewarm), and make your way past 30-somethings playing board games in the front to the intimate train-car shaped backroom. On Saturday, when I went, a fantastic country-music duo was performing, and the smell of buttery grilled cheese sandwiches (the only thing on the menu, aside from potato chips) magically wafted through the air.
Portobello sandwich at One Stop Beer Shop
134 Kingsland Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222
One Stop Beer Shop is pretty much the only bar in close walking distance of Brooklyn Steel — so if you’re going to see a show there, which I was, it’s the de facto option for a pregame drink. Thankfully, One Stop Beer Shop is also a great bar. It has a neighborhood vibe, a bookshelf on one wall, and feels blissfully free of pretense. There’s a lot of interesting beers on tap, and pretty decent sandwiches. I got the Portobello Sandwich, which had nice meaty slices of mushroom, a slice of melted swiss, and a slight hint of truffle.
Smashed Meyer lemon margarita at my apartment
Wherever drinks can be made
I used to think that margaritas were reserved for special occasions — Summer Fridays, vacation, and tequila bars — until I learned that a simple margarita is no more difficult to make at home than an old fashioned (in fact, even easier!). And a simple margarita is undeniably the best margarita (no sour mix, please!). I love using Meyer lemons in mine, which are sweeter than lemons and limes, and have a lovely herbal taste, reminiscent of bergamot or thyme. My recipe is pared down and nontraditional, but it’s delicious just the same. Just wash a small Meyer lemon, cut it into quarters, and squeeze the slices into a rocks glass, straining out the seeds. Add a spoonful of agave nectar, and smash the lemon slices, juice, and nectar together with the back of a wooden spoon. Add a shot (or two) of good clear tequila (or mezcal — I like Unión brand), two to three large ice cubes, stir, and serve.
Welcome to the long weekend! You’ve made it through my newsletter. Now go make yourself a drink.
— Soph