Tag Archives: Brooklyn Restaurants

Hunter’s in Brooklyn: Part II

So, my first impression on Hunter’s a few weeks ago was a great one. It was so fabulous I had to head back to sample a few more dishes. I was tempted because Hunter’s posts some fabulous photos on their Instagram account and I was drooling over a photograph a friend of mine posted on his own page. He put up a picture of Hunter’s Agnolotti! I knew the second I saw this photo that I HAD to go back to try a few other plates on the menu.

So my partner-in-crime, aka my boyfriend, and I headed back out to Cobble Hill, Brooklyn for dinner. Of course we ordered their Angus Burger — but we had to try out one of Hunter’s specials well as the Agnolotti and a side of the Maple Sweet Potato Mash.

Here’s our verdict:
roasted bone marrow

The bone marrow wasn’t only delicious, but it was a work of art! FYI, when you order roasted bone marrow be cautious when you pick up the bones — you will burn yourself! Even if you pick it up with a napkin you won’t be able to hold it for long. Placed on top of crispy bread, the roasted bone marrow tasted beautiful!
agnolotti with spicy cocoa pumpkin seeds

The Agnolotti was just as spectacular as I imagined. Maybe even better! Of course it was sweet from the winter squash and the sage — but it was surprising to me that the plate also had a spicy kick to it! This was probably the first time I ever ate a sweet plate that was also spicy. The spice came from the spicy cocoa covered pumpkin seeds. I also really enjoyed that the dish had brussels sprouts leaves rather than the entire head of brussels sprouts. It made it much easier to eat and it allowed the green vegetable to complement the main flavors of the dish.

I did face a fork war with my boyfriend over the side of Maple Sweet Potato Mash. OH MY GOSH this was heavenly! We probably should have ordered 2 of these — and I would strongly suggest for everyone to never share this dish with anyone. I am still tempted to go back to ask the chef to at least share what ingredients he/she uses — or maybe I could butter him/her up enough to get the recipe!

Even though this is my second dining experience at Hunter’s — I have decided that venturing off to Brooklyn for this restaurant will always be worth it!

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Hunter’s in Brooklyn

I’m not (and in a way, I am) one of those people who refuses to leave Manhattan. There are specific situations I will willingly leave the island of Manhattan for another borough or NY location, they are: when I am going to the airport, when I am going to a baseball game, when I am visiting my friends Ken & Blaz (and their adorable pup, Little Bear), as well as visiting other special friends and when I head to Long Island to get to Fire Island. Yeah that’s just about the only time I leave Manhattan. But, if you have a good restaurant recommendation for me in a different borough, I will be adventurous enough to check it out.

Going to Cobble Hill isn’t really an “adventure” for me. I have been several times to visit my dearest friends and I really have grown to love the Brooklyn neighborhood. But how easy could this be — I jumped on the F train at 23rd Street, rode the subway for a short time and jumped off at the Bergen Street stop. After climbing out of the subway you’re on Smith Street and only a few steps away you’ll find the restaurant, Hunter’s.

Hunter’s is a gorgeous new restaurant on a popular Cobble Hill street — the interior is brand new and has beautiful furnishings. I met up with my friend Ken for a drink and of course I was hungry too… I kind of had to make sure I came hungry since he had been raving about the burger for so long.

Hunter's Brooklyn

So here I am, ordering the Angus Beef Burger… waiting, impatiently. But at the same time I was enjoying catching up with Ken, he’s getting married in the fall of 2013 in Colorado and I was so excited to hear all about the planning and details!!! Us catching up was lovely, but I did wish that our friend Kelly was going to be there — he works at Hunter’s and is a person that just makes me feel so special in life. Kelly is such a positive person, who wouldn’t want a friend like that? His positivity makes me want to be more like him. Anyways, so, no Kelly. But next time I am coordinating to make sure he is there when I go back for my next Hunter’s Burger.

So here it is — THE BURGER! Made with pickled onions, Vermont cheddar all on a cilantro-jalapeno aioli brioche. In my opinion, brioche = the best bread for a burger. And I’m sure you just read “pickled onions” and said, “say what? pickled onions?” I have to say they are the perfect touch, who would have thought to put pickled onions on top of a savory burger? This ingredient added the most perfect tang and in a way, sweetness, to the condiments of the burger. The chef made my burger EXACTLY how I ordered it — he even came out to the bar where I was eating long enough for me to rave about the burger and chat his ear off on how delish his herb fries are. The french fries were perfectly seasoned but they were nice and potato-ey — meaning they weren’t the crispy type of fries. The best part about these fries was the food-flashback that I had to when I spent time in Amsterdam. The Dutch put mayo on their fries and when I dipped these babies into a dish of creamy mayo — I was in heaven! (Not in the mood for a burger? check out their menu for other dishes that will hit the spot!)

So, I guess I owe my friend Ken a HUGE thank-you for not only getting me out of Manhattan but also for introducing me to the best burger! (Shake Shack, you have some MAJOR competition!!!)

And Friends — follow me on Pinterest and Instagram for some more fun foodie ideas, recipes, and restaurant spottings!

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Al Di La Trattoria in Brooklyn, NY

It’s a very rare happening, me going to Brooklyn, but every time I make my way out to the borough I love every minute I spend there. I’m also lucky enough to have friends that know their way around, so the visit is a pleasant experience. My friend Tim lives in Park Slope and he has been raving about an Italian restaurant ever since I met him. The restaurant is only a few blocks away from his apartment and he willingly admits that he orders from the restaurant all the time. So one Saturday evening I make the quick trek outside of Manhattan and met up with Tim, who then led me along a busy/”happening” street. It seemed as if I misjudged Park Slope. I had always assumed that people lived in the neighborhood but always came into Manhattan for everything else, including restaurants. But no, that’s not the case at all. Those who live in Park Slope manage to have their cake and eat it too. They live in an idyllic neighborhood, they get a “smaller” town vibe, they have Manhattan only a quick subway ride away, and they also eat very very well.

We arrived at Al Di La Trattoria, the Italian restaurant Tim has been raving about. It’s 8:30 p.m. and the place is packed! Tim had put our name on a list about 20 minutes earlier and we still had an hour and forty five minutes of a wait left. So we went out the front door and around the corner to go downstairs to the wine bar that is also connected to the restaurant. We ordered a bottle of red wine and spent some time catching up. Not even 20 minutes later a table in the wine bar opened up and we were offered the table if we wanted to eat downstairs. Of course we said yes… we were about to finish the bottle of wine and there was no food in our stomachs.

The wine bar tables are much more intimate and quiet than the tables upstairs in the main restaurant. If we were to sit upstairs the atmosphere would be completely different — just imagine a loud Italian family, a traditional Italian kitchen, yup that’s what upstairs would have been like. We were just so hungry we would have sat any where!

Even though it was my first time at the restaurant I quickly knew what I wanted to order: the Tortelli, a ravioli stuffed with corn and a sweet cream sauce with a side of potatoes. It’s the first time I have ever had corn as a filling in my ravioli and I’ll admit that I was very hesitant. (Tim assured me it was going to be delicious!) When the food arrived the two of us completely stopped talking, we were too busy stuffing our faces in the nicest way possible. I couldn’t believe it, I managed to eat my entire ravioli dish in under 6 minutes. The corn was subtle but sweet and delicious and the cream sauce was so light and refreshing I hardly knew it was a cream sauce, even my stomach didn’t ache. There was actually sauce left over on my plate so I dumped my potatoes onto the dish and scooped up some sauce for each forkfull of potatoes.

Over all I am not a Brooklyner at heart — I truly enjoy living and dining in Manhattan. But Al Di La was so extraordinarily delicious I will gladly and willingly take another trip back to the borough for another meal. (I’ll also eat at any restaurant my friend Tim recommends because clearly he knows what good food tastes like!)