Brunch, more than any other meal, celebrates abundance. We don’t want one pancake when we go to brunch, we want a stack of glistening, syrup-coated chocolate-stuffed pancakes. Yet one pancake–a solitary, singular pancake–is one of the peculiarities you’ll find on the brunch menu at Flatbush Farm, a lovely neighborhood gastropub in Park Slope.
I learned of Flatbush Farm in New York Magazine’s essential Cheap Eats issue. Diana thought we had the Park Slope brunch scene covered–Miriam? Check; Rose Water? Done that; Stone Park Cafe? So over it–and yet here was a celebrated brunch spot we’d never heard of and it was right around the corner!
So today was Mission Flatbush Farm. Diana had been there for drinks and, once we got there, I realized I had too. I’d stumbled in there one night with Craig and his friend Sasie and didn’t realize that it was, according to New York Magazine, a “latter-day Brooklyn Gastropub.”
Considering that the brunch was just featured on the List, you’d think the place would be packed but it was fairly empty. The genial hostess asked us if we wanted to eat inside or out and we opted for outside. The outside is surprisingly spacious; an oasis of calm that reminds one of why one lives in Brooklyn and why one refers to oneself as one.
Ok, so let me let the cat out of the bag: while we liked the environment, and thought the service was sweet and friendly, the food–while expertly prepared–did not meet the mandatory brunch abundance standard articulated in paragraph one. The food was sparse and not very filling.
Diana’s was ok:
That’s Toad In A Hole–yes, like dad used to make (or at least my dad)–a piece of toast with the hole cut out and an egg cooked inside. The presentation, as you can see, is clever and charming: that’s the cut out hole resting on top. It was just enough food, but surely not a celebration of abundance. Luckily, Diana wasn’t celebrating abundance today.
Me, on the other hand: I always celebrate abundance. So imagine my disappointment when my smoked salmon with black toast arrived and it looked like this:
The camera magnifies it a bit, so you’ll have to take my word: this was not enough food for brunch. It was two tiny pieces of toast with creme fraiche on top and then about three or four slivers of curled up smoked salmon. I ate the whole thing in one bite and, naturally, I was still ravenously hungry.
“I need more food,” I said to Diana.
“So order something else,” she suggested.
The waitress came over and I asked her if they had any muffins or breakfast pastries. “I could have the pastry chef make you a blueberry muffin,” she said. “They’re so good.”
I said “sure” and here’s where the story gets happy. I waited the requisite few minutes and then this arrived:
It was the best blueberry muffin I’ve ever had. I really mean that. It was crusty on the outside, light as a feather on the inside, and the fact that it was made with mostly brown sugar (I asked) gave it a depth of flavor unlike any muffin I’ve ever had in my life.
So the moral of the story is: Flatbush Farm is a nice place to eat brunch but they don’t give you enough food, especially if you order the smoked salmon, in which case you should order a blueberry muffin which will be the best blueberry muffin you will ever have in your entire life. Thank you.
Hi, the blog itself is very delicious with such mouth watering images…
cheers,
suma
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http://www.gourmet-chocolates.org/
If you want a decadent Brooklyn brunch, Panino’teca over on Smith Street really hits the spot and they’ve recently revamped their brunch menu. They start you off with a complimentary Balthazar bread basket and the smoked salmon platter with all the trimmings is amazing (and plentiful).
Also great for brunch on Smith- Chestnut! Can’t recommend that place highly enough.
What beautiful dishes. There’s nothing quite like a well-executed breakfast.
Somehow I could tell that blueberry muffin would be delicious, even before you addressed its deliciousness. I’m glad the muffin was enough to satisfy your need for abundance, I can relate! I hate small portions! Heh.
Well you learn something new everyday. I never knew that what we call ‘sunshine toast’ = ‘Toad In The Hole’ in the US.
For Brits toad in the hole is sausage cooked in yorkshire pudding batter. It’s more delicious than it sounds :-)
http://www.sunshinerecipes.com/toadinahole.shtml
Wonder if they would give you the recipe for that
muffin? If so, would you share it with us? Thanks!
Awwww…. I’m glad that story had a happy ending.
I love the large English breakfasts in London – but I’m waiting for the day when brunch will catch on throughout the city. Until then I will drool over here!
B
Hand to Mouth
What’s ‘black toast’? That looks too dark to be pumpernickel… and i doubt there’s burnt toast on the menu…
suck it up, man, and go to a diner for over-abundance. flatbush farm makes a nice indulgent brunch that satisfies most.
go to any fine restaurant, pay for your $18-25 entree and take notice of the portion. never over-abundant, but usually just enough. i think there’s much more skill in preparing just enough.
bah. i had brunch at flatbush farm and while the eggs were cooked to perfection, they were bland, bland, bland. and they were supposed to come with goat cheese; the tiniest dollop (if something so small can qualify as a “dollop”) i have ever seen rested on top.
most boring brunch ever.
You are not right.