Diner

Although I am a Manhattanite, I find myself migrating more and more towards Brooklyn for many things culinary. Brooklyn has a lot going for it. Young, unafraid pioneers, cheaper rents and a hip, captive audience. Diner in Williamsburg is a pioneer, having opened their doors almost 11 years ago. To this day the joint is jumpin with youngish hipsters who line up to dine on sustainable, local, well prepared food in a cool funky atmosphere.

The restaurant is housed in an 1920's Kullman diner. It shows its age and at the same time shows that it is ageless. It is a quite dark and somewhat cramped space, especially if you sit in one of the booths up front. People must have been a lot skinnier in the roaring 20's! Probably all that dancing!!

The food is strictly of the 21st century, that is, sustainable, local and often organic. The wine list changes often and has some cool progressive wine makers represented. Currently, many are naturally made wines from the Loire Valley and some delicious Gamay, especially the La Souteronne from Herve Souhaut in the Ardeche department of France. Souhaut's Gamay is made from 60-80 year old vines planted in Granite soils. There is no new wood used and very little sulphur added. In other words it is made as naturally as possibly. It has a great smoky quality which one would typically associate with Syrah being made in the Ardeche, but it also has the great earthy fruit tones and minerality that one would associate with the best Cru Beaujolais. An interesting mix and an excellent food wine.

We started by sharing a salad of Spinach, shaved Apple and Radish Salad with Caraway Vinaigrette, the Grilled Flatbread w Quince Paste, Prosciutto, Shallots and Fontina, and the Parmesan Broth with Poached Egg, Bitter Greens, Crushed Fingerling Potato's and Croutons. All three were excellent. The salad was super fresh and the vinaigrette had the perfect balance of salt, acidity and oil. The ingredients on the flatbread played well off each other, the Prosciutto adding a slight salty element which melded with the slightly sweet/sour of the Quince paste, the deep sweetness of the Caramelized Shallot all tied together with the nutty Fontina. The soup was a nice combination of light Parmesan Broth with the crispy rustic croutons, greens, and potato's adding a lovely texture and flavor.

As a mid course the three of us shared Risotto with Broccoli, house-made Italian Sausage, Fontina and Parmesan. The meatiness of the sausage melded well with the broccoli. The rice was cooked just beyond al dente and the texture was creamy. Grated parmesan tied the dish together well, adding a bit of salt and acidity to the creamy rice.

For the main courses we shared 1/2 Roasted Chicken with Brown Buttered Napa Cabbage and a Caraway Sherry Vinaigrette. The chicken was cut into thigh, leg and breast, all moist meat and crisp skin. The accompaniments were very flavorful and a great foil for the chicken. We also ordered the Burger which is one the best burgers in New York. The meat is very tender and extremely flavorful, the fries perfectly crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. It probably helps that Diner also owns a fantastic butcher shop down the street called Marlow and Daughters. The butcher shop provides sustainable meat and poultry, mostly from local farms, for the groups two current restaurants, Diner and Marlow and Sons, which is next door.

The three desserts were all excellent. The Flourless Chocolate Cake is a staple on the menu. The cake is served room temperature with whipped cream. It is deceptively simple but to my mind the perfect chocolate cake. Very light, almost flaky and rich with the flavor of what seems like a high quality circa 70% chocolate. We also very much enjoyed a Pumpkin Spice Cake with Caramel Buttercream and Candied Pepitas. The cake was light, moist and the buttercream was not very sweet or at all cloying. Apple and Persimmon Tatin was also a standout. Beautiful light pastry, excellent fruit flavor and great caramelization.

Diner
85 Broadway Brooklyn, NY 11211
Phone: (718) 486-3077
Subways: JMZ to Marcy or L to Bedford
Open Daily 11am until 2am
Lunch Mon - Fri 11am - 5pm
Brunch Sat & Sun 11am - 4pm
Dinner Sun- Thrs 6pm - 12am
Dinner Fri & Sat 6pm - 1am
Owners: Mark Firth & Andrew Tarlow
Executive Chef: Sean Rembold
No reservations