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“Buttermilk Channel”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	New American	Brooklyn	Moderate	Good

hunks of bacon ($4). These are essential, especially since the restaurant’s bread service is rather unclear. One night we were served a duo of overdone popovers and another night, nothing at all. But truthfully, bread is not really necessary in the face of maple-roasted almonds with bacon. Though, I have to say, the absence of buttermilk biscuits on this menu does still trouble me.

While most of what the kitchen turns out is good, someone back there has a heavy hand with salt, which was an issue with the impressively tender lamb kebabs (hunks of lamb, rather than ground lamb, $5), and a generous salad of a curious combination of endive and kale topped with a soft-boiled egg (that was more like medium-boiled) and anchovy dressing ($8).

Salt was not an issue with the delicate squash tart, but sweetness was. While the tart was definitely something that appealed to me on a cold winter night, the sweetness of the natural caramelization of the squash coupled with the brown butter sauce had me looking for a contrasting flavor—some form of spice or heat or perhaps some bitter greens? But the hake need not make a single apology. From seasoning to texture and presentation, this dish is a winner. Crusted in herbs, a silken filet of hake so moist it’s practically plumped, rests in a stew of cranberry beans, kale and linguica sausage (well, if I’m going to be honest, maybe the kitchen could spare a few extra hunks of sausage). Whiskers of fresh dill adorn the fish and perfumed the broth.

Desserts (all $7) are fun crowd pleasers, made to put a smile on the faces of kids and adults alike. We’ve not been able to resist Doug’s Pecan Pie Sundae, a diet-busting sundae glass filled to the rim with sliced up chunks of pecan pie with Blue Marble ice cream and freshly whipped cream (someone in that kitchen must have a sore forearm from all that whipping). Warm freshly fried apple cider cake donuts are also hard to resist. Those who prefer to end a meal with cheese can do so as the chef offers a plate of local cheeses ($10 for three).

There’s an appeal to Buttermilk Channel that’s inviting and endearing if not exactly unique—it’s a derivative of other similar gastro-bistro haunts like the Redhead, JoeDoe, Resto, even the Spotted Pig to a certain extent, but it’s a simple and honest formula that works perfectly for a Brooklyn neighborhood, if not your own. When you visit, be s ... [more, click below]

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Posted: January 5, 2009

Other restaurants in Brooklyn :
+ Chickenbone Cafe-- Closed   + Pier 116-- Closed   + Chestnut   + Lunch at Peter Luger's   + 360   + Palo Santo   + The Good Fork   + Porchetta-- Closed Now   + Bocca Lupo   + Flatbush Farm   + DuMont Burger   + Dressler   + Farm on Adderley   + The Grocery   + Saul   + Black Mountain Wine House   + The General Greene   + Char No. 4   + James   + Chestnut   + No. 7   + Vinegar Hill House   + Motorino   + Buttermilk Channel   + Buttermilk Channel   + Vutera   + Watty & Meg    + Prime Meats   + Aqualis Grill   + Jack the Horse Tavern   + Roman's   + Fatty 'Cue   + Thistle Hill Tavern   + Broken English   + Trix, by Dara Pollak   + An Ode to New Orleans in Williamsburg: Maison Premiere, By Dara Pollak   + Brooklyn Wok Shop by Dara Pollak   + Arthur on Smith   + La Vara   + Gran Electrica   + Pok Pok Ny   + Ganso    + Reynard   

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