Bay Ridge is the form of neck of the woods that citizenry from Manhattan might consider “ quaint , ” or “ untouched . ” Longtime residents would tend to agree – but they ’d also be pretty content to never have their Brooklyn neighborhood become the next Williamsburg . In addition to waterfront views , compound home , and a total lack of flower child , Bay Ridge offers a dynamic food scene that ’s root in the culture of the workings - social class class that have call in the Ridge home for generations . Italian , Greek , and Middle Eastern mom - and - pappa eateries rule the roost , many of which err on the traditional side . If you have n’t yet made a trip out to strike Bay Ridge , it ’s likely because you do n’t think there ’s a dear enough cause to put up with the R wagon train any longer than you have to . Here are all the reason you require .
< h2 > good place to bring a engagement : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venue / eat / new - House of York / eating place / elia - restauran … ; target="_blank”>Elia
While there are plentifulness of splendid casual Greek spots in the Ridge , Elia stand above the repose with more or less more upscale interpretation of your favored Mediterranean foods in a space that was much made for a escort ( think blank - washed brick walls , dim firing , and cloth napkins ) . The flare saganaki is theatrical , the Beta vulgaris salad is far more elegant than a Beta vulgaris salad needs to be , and main courses like milk - fed veal chop shot or the whole grill Pisces the Fishes ( for communion ) are enough to make even the worst Tinder date tolerable .
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
< h2 > Best brunch : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / locale / tope / new - york / stripe / Cebu City - prevention - bistro" ; target="_blank”>Cebu
Since you belike left your credit circuit board at Cebu the former nighttime , it only makes sense to stay for brunch when you go to beak it up . While creative cocktail and small plates draw a lively gang any night of the hebdomad , Cebu is best at helping you cull up the pieces the next morning with its satisfying brunch computer menu . Hangover staples like French goner with fresh berry and steak & amp ; egg abound , but you ’re here for the casual spread out brunch special , like crispy chicken & amp ; waffles or soft polenta with poach egg . Yes … in Bay Ridge you may get brunch every damn solar day , not just on the weekend .
< h2 > Best pub food : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venues / eat / new - york / restaurant / terrible - monk&qu … ; target="_blank”>The Wicked Monk
Elia Restaurant
gin mill polish is unassailable among Ridgies . We take our watering yap and our “ piddle ” very seriously , and ca n’t repose peacefully at the end of the week until we “ scrutinize ” multiple joints to ensure they ’re still pouring right . Of course , we need some intellectual nourishment to keep us going on a firm crawl . That ’s where The Wicked Monk , an Irish public house built with parts of an existent Irish monastery and staffed with only the friendliest locals , come in . The Monk has been in the neighborhood for more than 20 class , but only really arrest serious about its food when it move to its current localization , which is about twice the size of it of the original , four years ago . The Reuben outflow rolls are a must - order ( be advised , you only get two , so project accordingly for your party size ) , but mac & amp ; cheese is also its own nutrient group at Wicked Monk , with several menu pillar and a nightly special ( like Viscount St. Albans , ranch , and cheddar mac & amp ; high mallow with chicken ) .
< h2 > Best Italian : < a href=“https://www.thrillist.com / venues / rust / new - york / eating house / ginos - restaur … ; target="_blank”>Gino’s
Monday in Bay Ridge are so much worse than Mondays in the rest of the city , and that ’s because on Mondays , Gino ’s is closed . This long - stick out , family - owned , polish - yet - casual institution is a triple threat : you’re able to walk in and get a bang-up piece / pie to go , sit down to have a great meal , or have them cater your next political party ( in the eating place or out ) . The crispy - crust Grandma Proto-Indo European , a rooter favourite , comes top with a perfectly mellifluous tomato sauce and the impudent mozzarella . The gnocchi is sluttish , fluffy , and generously coated in a tomato St. Basil the Great sauce made even more rich by the same fresh mozzarella . The chicken Parm is by far the just in the borough . If it was n’t already apparent , Gino ’s could probably put its sauce and mozzarella on a composition board boxful and it would be enceinte .
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
< h2 > Best office to get a lump of beef : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / locale / eat / new - House of York / restaurants / embers" ; target="_blank”>Embers Steakhouse
Imagine get a dry - cured filet , costa - center , or porterhouse without having to put on a case or make a booking four months in advance . Embers is a suitable competition to any of the top chophouse in the urban center , only much more affordable and in no way pretentious . ember also turns the traditional chophouse on its headland with atypical appetizers like an antipasto platter and sides like potato Proto-Indo European with prosciutto and mozzarella . Also , every cut of core on the menu occur directly from the the butcher workshop next door . This is a true neck of the woods steakhouse joint , and one that ’s punishing to find elsewhere in New York .
< h2 > Best coffee tree shop for writers : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venues / consume / new - york / restaurants / coffee - rx" ; target="_blank”>Coffee Rx ( Coffee Lab)
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
Whether you ’re writing your memoir or reading Thrillist while trying to think about what precisely in your life has been memoir - worthy , keep yourself caffeinated and link up to Wi - Fi at this laid - back coffee shop known for its modern Interior , favorable faculty , and a small thing call the Nutella Monster , which basically come to a frappuccino with an enormous Georgia home boy of Nutella in it . People hazard parking slate to stop in and get one to - go .
< h2 > Best dessert smear : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / locale / eat / new - york / restaurants / omonia - cafe&qu … ; target="_blank”>Omonia Cafe
When you ’re in the mood for something honey - report and sprinkled with egg , this is the place to go . Omonia does Greek desserts proud , from the canonic kataifi ( rip up pale yellow with nuts and honey sirup ) to the ekmek kataifi ( the basic , plus two kinds of emollient ) . But it ’s best known for its massive regalia of chocolate quick study patty – some layered with emollient or fudge , others coated in more chocolate than one person should consume in an afternoon . The dessert case can be overwhelming , but if you have an idea of what you need and the patience to learn the menu description or babble out it out with the server , you ’ll be fine ( also , take your sweet time – it ’s exposed ‘ til 3 am during the week and 4 am on weekends ) .
Omonia Cafe
< h2 > expert beefburger : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venues / eat / new - House of York / restaurants / brooklyn - beet- … ; target="_blank”>Brooklyn Beet Company
Brooklyn Beet Company is probably the only place in Bay Ridge to tout local farm - to - table fare , but it ’s also home to the good Warren E. Burger in the neighborhood . The Original Korzo is a beef burger topped with bacon , Emmenthaler , pickles , and mustard wrapped up in a Slovak scratch and fry . Yes , it ’s a deep - fried burger . The house - made cetchup is made with beets ( of course ) and is an earthier - tasting alternative to tomato ketchup that will give unexampled animation to your fries . To go along with it all , there ’s Korzo beer – a special hoppy brew made just for Brooklyn Beet Company across the bridge in Staten Island . Now that ’s local .
< h2 > safe donuts : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venues / feed / new - york / restaurants / mikes - donuts&q … ; target="_blank”>Mike ’s Donuts
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
You ’re not getting any fancy or revolutionary donut flavor at Mike ’s . There ’s no Nutella filling or hibiscus flower petal coated with gold folio – it ’s strictly jelly or glazed , or some other old - school donut miscellany that ’s undoubtedly better than anything for which people delineate up for hours . Every donut at Mike ’s is light , fluffy , not too sweet , and dead complemented by a loving cup of coffee . A no - frills , non - franchise donut shop class does n’t stay in business for more than 30 age ( with a Dunkin ' Donuts right across the street ) without doing something correct .
< h2 > Best place for vegetarians : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / venues / eat / new - york / eatery / shangri - la - veg … ; target="_blank”>Shangri - La Vegetarian
Amidst all of Bay Ridge ’s sushi point , burger joints , and halal restaurants with beehives of pith spinning in the windows stands this oasis for vegetarians that will please even the most unregenerate carnivore . In a neighborhood where Asian food has mediocre representation at best , Shangri - La is a welcome find , with substantial and flavorful stunner like soba or udon noodle soup with seaweed and tofu , an all - vegetable mu - shoo , and the chocolate earthnut butter bomb – a predominate trope that no mere mortal can ( or should ) polish off on his or her own .
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
< h2 > good baklava : < a href=“https://www.thrillist.com / venues / corrode / new - york / restaurants / antepli - bakla … ; target="_blank”>Antepli Baklava
The Turkish city Gaziantep is known for its pistachios , which are used to make the pure baklava . Antep ( which is what the Turks call it ) lay claim to have more than 100 baklava bakery , and some Antep aborigine have get back and brought their baklava - make expertise – and those pistachios – to this no - frills bakehouse . If it is n’t clear by now : get the pistachio nut baklava . Get it by the lbf. or by the truckload . Antepli has trays upon trays of it , and people in the back are always making more . The bakery congratulate itself on using all - rude , preservative - innocent ingredient , and you could savour the custom and purity in each bite .
< h2 > Place to go for a miniskirt - vacation : < a href=“https://www.thrillist.com / venues / eat / new - House of York / restaurants / casa - pepe" ; target="_blank”>Casa Pepe
Cole Saladino/Thrillist
Casa Pepe is a little off the beaten path in Bay Ridge , but it ’s a blocking out from the waterfront and feels like you ’re ill-treat off the street of Brooklyn and into a welcoming casita . The seafood tapas – calamari , gambas , and pulpo – are authentic , and most importantly , completely fill ( a rareness when it comes to tapas ) . If you ’re a magnanimous group , opt for the traditional Paella Valenciana , made with fresh seafood like lolly and mussels and spicy Spanish sausage in gilded rice . Also , do n’t miss the 16 different margarita flavors .
< h2 > Best food worth all the postponement on the R train : < a href=“http://www.thrillist.com / locus / eat / new - york / eatery / tanoreen" ; target="_blank”>Tanoreen
Tanoreen is probably the most beautify restaurant in Bay Ridge ( it ’s made the Michelin Bib Gourmand list , and retain to top lean for the best halfway Eastern food ) and deserves every bite of congratulations . It ’s known for ingest Middle Eastern food to newfangled level by embracing Mediterranean influence , seen in dish like baked Mediterranean eggplant with tanoreen - spiced earth lamb . There ’s also the perfect admixture of mellow and low-spirited here : typical street foods like falafel and kabobs are made with the same caliber and charge as more refined entrees like squash yogurt ( squash stuffed with lamb and served with yogurt - ail sauce ) . But it ’s not just the solid food that keep people coming back – there ’s also something about the way owner Rawia Bishara walk around the dining room in a big businessman courting tattle to every single one of her customers to ensure they ’re happy . Do n’t end a meal without the knafeh for afters , which is a both sweet and cheesy , and will have you call into question whether you ever need chocolate in your living again .
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