Abistro
Brooklyn, NY 11205
Phone: (718) 855-9455
07/10/2007 Posted by drewpatroopa
I don't get out. I work at home. The eateries I'm forced to frequent serve things between bread, or are more open faced and triangular, maybe with peppers. Fortunately, I've got a lot of family around the city. They like to visit, see a show, do some touristy stuff, and go to a really, really, well reviewed restaurant. I am only too happy to engage in the free eats. Often the dishes are nicely prepared, but the service is slow, the atmosphere is pretentious, and the bills, well the bills get real big real quick. Suffice to say, almost all of these meals take place in Manhattan, and at the end of each one while my family is promising to come to Brooklyn sometime, I tell them about this great little restaurant. I tell them the food is Senegalese. I tell them the atmosphere is intimate and charming. I tell them it's tiny. I tell them it's owned and operated by a really nice, gracious couple, and they treat you like family, but unobtrusively (sounds impossible doesn't it?) in warm relaxed fashion. I tell them I've had almost everything on the menu, and everything is not only delicious, but smart. It's surprising and comforting, spicy but tranquil. I tell them it's a combination of African and French done so flawlessly the you really cant tell where one ends and the other begins. I tell them the apps are delightful, and well portioned, I tell them it's affordable (half portions available on most entrees, but go for the full size for 15 to 20 bucks. You'll want it later, just leave room for the bread pudding). I tell them that all my friends go there for their small celebrations. I tell them it's the best meal for my money I've had in NY so far, and then they start listening. If Im spending my own money on a nice meal, they listen, but they still won't come to Brooklyn.
Pros: Great value, interesting fare, extremely intimate.
Cons: Intimacy also means little seating. Don't bring the friends you only kind of like.
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