Mike (Almost) Eats Wingnut

Post has been updated below.

IT'S NOT SO much that I narrowly escaped losing my teeth to chomping down on this little guy as is was head-shaking to have found it where I did: buried in an order of Brooklyn Label french fries. And while it's far from the most unsanitary thing I could have found hiding my food, it's also, you know, a freaking wingnut in my french fries.

I've made four or five visits to Brooklyn Label (180 Franklin St, Greenpoint, Bklyn; 718-389-2806) over the past two moths, each to some degree of disappointment. There was the unlabeled, uneatable hot sauce. The tempeh ruben just isn't what it used to be. No more onion rings or mac n' cheese. The menu is half its previous size and scope. BL's brunch seems to still draw a sizable crowd, but I can't bring myself to pay for another halfhearted meal just to find out if its worth the trip.

The elusive Wingnuti brooklynlabelus in its natural habitat.

The wignut fiasco has closed the door for me. I'm not refusing to eat there ever again, but I've no reason to seek it out. There are just too many other options around, ones that make the same stuff just as well, and certainly ones with kitchens that take the time to keep hardware out of the fries.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: Probably not.

Note: Attempting to check the address for this post I stopped by BL's website. Yeah, when I talked about a 'halfhearted' effort, that's exactly what I was talking about. It's the little things, people.

Update, 7/23: BL has offered it apologies for the incident and weighed in on the website malfunction over on the comments page. I've also been informed that BL's new menu has been released, so despite my ambivalence, perhaps you should, in the words of the sage LaVar Burton, "don't take my word for it" and check out the new goods anyway.

News: Bklyn Label Chef Bows Out

Chef Cody Utzman, previously of Brooklyn Label fame (note: "previously"), posted the following comment in the annals of Mike [Ate] Food on March 4, 2008:

To my Loyal customers and fans: On Feb 1st 2008, I resigned my position as Founder/Head Chef/Owner of Brooklyn Label, due to un-reconcilable differences with Financial business partners. Since then I have noticed numerous comments on quality and service throughout blogs and web reviews and want to let my loyal customers, friends and neighbors know that I have left the trust of your favorite neighborhood café in the hands of my ex partners and crew, and I wish them the best and most success possible. As many of you know I was a regular feature behind the counter or in the kitchen making sure all your needs where met and your food was “excellent” every time. I fully intend to complete my mission statement of bringing the most “excellent” products, services, coffee, and neighborhood business improvements to Greenpoint. I am currently working on a really exciting project that should be open summer of 2008. Thank you again for all your support, rave reviews, and friendship in the past year. I look forward to welcoming everyone to my new place that will be the very best you’ve seen yet!!

I am creating a mailing list to notify you all of my future projects. If you would like to join, send an email with “Brooklyn” in the subject to chefutzman@gmail.com
Please feel free to repost.

Sincerely,
Cody Utzman

I've only paid one visit to BL (and one unaware of this development at the time) since Utzman's February 1 step-down, and I should say that the only remarkable difference I found was that the hashbrowns were of unusually large quantity. Perhaps Utzman believed in more modest portions and he will be outraged to have heard of it, but, it's true, the hashbrowns were huge.

Nevertheless, all best to the good Chef, and Mike [Ate] Food promises to stop by whatever future venture Utzman has in the works.

Old Mac, New at Brooklyn Label

Brooklyn Label
180 Franklin Street
Brooklyn, NY 11222
(718) 389-2806
brooklynlabel.com

Okay, so it's been on the menu for a couple months now, but this is the first I've had of it so it's new to me. The Basil Mac, of course, was entirely satisfactory, so I harbored no illusions that the Old Mac wouldn't follow suit. Indeed, gruyere, cheddar and parmesan cheeses compose the dish nicely. This is comfort food, simple enough.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: You'd think we could take this for granted by now.

Dinnertime, Now at Brooklyn Label

HAVE I POSTED about Brooklyn Label yet? Oh, right.

Anyhow, this little update is merited: The TONY Award-nominated spot, since its humble brunch beginnings, has expanded on its sandwich and breakfast menu to include a dinner menu with hot dogs, burgers, roasted chicken, mussels, and everybody's favorite: mac and cheese. The Basil Mac, a pile of gooey pesto-green spirals with fresh tomatoes and basil, lives up to expectation. (There's a new website too.)

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: Of course--there's classic Old Mac to be had.

Veggie Gravy Biscuits & Jalapeno Cheddar Ice Cream

IF FEZZIK'S HAPPY, everybody's happy. And so Roxie and I happily waited for a table on Brooklyn Label's patio, a.k.a Franklin Street, on a gorgeous Saturday afternoon. We didn't have to wait long (the brunch crowd tends to fritter out by, oh, 4 p.m.) and as always the wait was well worth the while. Haven't had a chance to try out BL's new dinner menu yet, but biscuits with veggie gravy were good enough for today.

The real flavor rush was at Barometer, the Chinatown HQ of Anna Studebaker and Jenna Wainwright, where "deathelss bric-a-brac" and "one-of-one" jewelry combine in a most addictive and well-composed gallery setting. Today: The Ice Cream Show, featuring ice cream-themed works by Ms. Anna and Ms. Jenna, as well as artists including one A. Hitchcock. "Good-bye, Sprinkles" is sold, so I've heard, but you can still snap up "Lose Lips a Lifetime on the Hips."

Oh, and did I mention Barometer's rum and ice cream floats? Delicious. And the jalapeno cheddar ice cream? Interesting. Here's hoping for a Hot Chocolate Show this winter!

Early Breakfast, Late Dinner (Happy Birthday Kat!)

Brooklyn Label
180 Franklin Street
Brooklyn, NY 11222
(718) 389-2806
www.brooklynlabel.com

Ollie's
1991 Broadway
New York, NY 10023
(212) 595-8181

TIME FOR CONFESSION: it's true, yes, that I arrived at work a little before 11:00 a.m. today on account of breakfast. I'm sorry? Well, no, I'm not at all, really--it was damn delicious.

Mint's work schedule usually grants her either Saturday or Sunday off-work, though this week the schedule Gods (Mitch and Nick, admittedly, not being names normally befitting of deities) conspired to give her neither, offering Tuesday in trade. So, with the prospect of having no free time together for the rest of the week, I decided that I was in absolutely no hurry to get to work myself. Breakfast at Brooklyn Label was in order.

Not surprisingly, the normally- packed weekend brunch spot was nearly empty at 9:00 on a weekday morning, save for a trickling crowd of coffee counter customers grabbing morning cups to-go. We grabbed a table in the corner and the service was, needless to say, quite attentive. The kitchen, too, was in its prime, being frequently subdued in both quickness and quality on a busy Sunday morning. Mint's eggs were a perfect accomplishment of over-medium, and mine, soft-scrambled with tomato, basil and aged cheddar, showcased all of their flavors with notable perfection. We were also happily offered home fries, made at the whim of the kitchen, not normally residing on the menu, which were deliciously just too crisp and served with BL's house label "Chef's Revenge" ketchup and hot sauces.

Oh, so delicious--just be careful if you bring one home...

Fast-forward eight hours. After meeting up post-work with Mint and killing a few hours with Steph (drinking, wrapping gifts for Kat, and playing Photohunt at Dive 75, then drinking and grabbing a snack at City Grill's bar) we continued wandering south through the Upper West Side, down to meet Kat & Co. at Ollie's Noodle Shop just above Lincoln Center for dinner and birthday festivities.

Now, Ollie's is many things to many people; sitting smack across the street from the Sony Lincoln Square movie theater it's a go-to spot for pre-movie munchies. Blessed with unusually large amounts of space for little more than a glorified Chinese takeout joint (including a covered public atrium with tables for those who want to forgo formalities and order from the counter), it's one of the few cheap places in this city large enough to house a dozen people at one table:

The St. Marks kids are alright; the tofu has been better

The food is what you expect, rarely much more--the lo mein is competent, the red bean buns steaming and stuffed with, yes, red bean paste, the scallion pancakes somewhat larger than elsewhere. The "sizzling" tofu platter managed to disappoint by being bland and not at all sizzling. The service is usually poor; tonight, a male waiter stalked our table as we pieced together the check. I cannot express how much I dislike that type of treatment.

But the service and the food is a footnote to Kat's birthday, her twenty-first, and an opportunity for Mint to buy her a 22-ounce can of Sapporo along with assorted Hello Kitty trinkets and a bottle of glucosamine (hey, everyone knows that arthritis really kicks in at twenty-one). And anytime a double-digited number of friends show up to celebrate your birthday, it's bound to be good time.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: Brooklyn Label should (finally) be announcing its new summer/debut dinner menu soon; you're better off grabbing take-out and sitting in the "outdoor" atrium rather than braving Ollie's similarly backwards idea of "service."

Have We Discussed Brooklyn Label?

AT THIS POINT, pledging my undying love for Brooklyn Label comes as no surprise. We've discussed their brunch, their unbelievably delicious (and dangerous) ketchup, and even dropped a mention of their rich hot cocoa. How about lunch? With Roxie moving back up to the 'Point this week and specifically requesting a new venue for eats, how could I resit a trip to the Label? I couldn't, that's how.

Roxie also plans on snagging a few of my basil plants when I thin them out,
which, as you can see, are currently only wee l'il sprouts

On this trip I finally managed to resist the pull of the breakfast menu, opting instead for a tempeh reuben sandwich. (Ironic, right, one day after declaring tempeh sandwiches unworthy of elaboration? Go figure.) The vegan/vegetarian friendly reuben rivals even that of Hana Foods, a whole, thick slice of tempeh grilled and joined on toasted bread with sauerkraut, sweet dressing, and the tangy touch of Label's house ketchup.

Roxie chose The Egg sandwich, a veritable three-egg spinach omelet between slices of Balthazar bread. Throw in an order of onion rings, tomato-basil bisque, and two orders of hot chili-spiced Mayan cocoa and you'll understand why I needed no dinner. I love Brooklyn Label, that's why. In fact, I'm certain I could eat my every breakfast, brunch and lunch there and never get tired of it. As for dinner, methinks a trip to Paloma is in order...

Why the Hell Am I Back in Poughkeepsie?

AFTER A DELICIOUS brunch yesterday, I was wandering over to Elissa and Kevin's place to watch a movie when I got a phone call just as we were stepping into Brooklyn Label to grab some hot cocoa. I tell you this because it explains how the hell I ended up back in Poughkeepsie, though it only starts to explain why I ate a bag of pretzels and a couple Nutri-Grain bars for dinner last night.

As I'm sure you all remember, a few days ago we discussed a lobotomy reenactment. Well, that was happening today on the second floor of the Church Building in Poughkeepsie and, as you may or may not know, the equipment needed to stage a lobotomy reenactment is very, very heavy. Thus, the brute force and sheer strength that my muscles provide* was needed upstate, and yesterday's phone call was to request just this service. In a flash, I was packed and headed to Park Slope to meet the director and set off up I-87. We arrived late. The only option for food was the hotel lobby where I found pretzels and cereal bars, ate them, and went to sleep dreaming of tomorrow and the promise of better food.

Dr. Walter J. Freeman examines his handiwork

In my previous Poughkeepsie post, I did declare my intention to dine at the Apple Pie Bakery Cafe if was ever up this way again. The Apple Pie Bakery Cafe, however, lied to us about being open on the Monday after Easter, and so the Market on Main came to the plate and hit us a home run with its wide array of Boar's Head meats and proudly-brewed Starbucks coffee. I'll have the espresso blend, please!

Since the lobotomy ran a little late the Market also provided me a sandwich for the road home--a sandwich, Vitamin Water and one of Noni's world-famous chocolate biscotti. It's not Famous Amos, but it'll do.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: I'm not going to tempt the gods.

* When used in conjunction with two or three other strong individuals.

Mint and the Exploding Ketchup

Anytime
93 N. 6th Street
(b/t Berry & Wythe Sts.)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 218-7272

FIRST OF ALL it should be noted that Anytime is not really available at any time. During the week, Anytime is only open from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. (or to 4 a.m. on Thurs-Sat), and on Saturday and Sunday it's open at 11 a.m., but closes from 4-6 p.m., and then on Sunday closes at 2 a.m. Confused? Try this method: save the number in your phone. Call when you want food. If no one answers, it's closed.

[06/07: A recent peek at Anytime's website lists these restaurant hours: Sun-Thurs, 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Fri-Sat, 6 p.m. to 4 a.m.; and delivery is apparently available Mon-Sun, 4 p.m. to 5 a.m. Good luck with that.]

I came home late last night after a shoot. Mint had taken the luxury of ordering us dinner, which was fantastic. A plain hamburger for her, a veggie burger for me (which, yes, makes two in two days for me, if you were keeping score at home), and perfect opportunities to use that Brooklyn Label ketchup we talked about a few posts back.

The bottle threatens.

So, imagine if you can the two of us sitting on a couch. I'm sitting to Mint's right, both of us with burgers on our laps, me enjoying my side order of mac n' cheese and Mint grabbing onto the bottle of ketchup... twisting the cap, and...

FSSSSSPPPTHHHHHHHH!

I'm not sure which I noticed first--the blur of red that flashed everywhere in front of me or the sensation of ketchup splattering against my entire body. I kept my head down for a second. I guess I figured shrapnel was likely to come next. When I did lift my head, Mint was starting at me with unblinking eyes at which point we proceeded from stunned silence to laughter.

I have to figure that if someone had been shot in the face and spun around in a circle on my couch, it would have to look fairly similar to what we were now seeing save, of course, for the absence of someone who had been just shot in the face. Ketchup was everywhere. On our shirts, jeans, faces, hair; on the couch, the walls, the floors, the television, pillows and blankets. I've seen Law & Order episodes with cleaner victims than the two of us.

And so I ask Brooklyn Label: what the hell do you put in your ketchup?

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: Yes, just hold the ketchup over the sink and cover it with a towel.

Mike Eats Greenpoint, Volume 3: Brooklyn Label

Brooklyn Label
180 Franklin Street
Brooklyn, NY 11222
(718) 389-2806
www.brooklynlabel.com

THE GREATEST PERK of working as a freelancer in the production industry is free meals. Generally, on a shoot day, you get to wake up and have coffee and a bagel provided for you. Lunch is either bought for you or it's delivered hot. If you're union and you work overtime, you'll even get dinner! Free meals, even when working for them, are pure joy.

So, with freelance gigs lined up with different companies for the next couple weeks, I was assuming breakfast and lunch were going to be all sewn up for a while. Let's just say we didn't get off to a screaming good start.

Today's small shoot with a small crew featured not only zero break for breakfast (I did steal some bites of a bagel and coffee from the cast table), but the director rushed to get done by 3 p.m. and the producer thereupon released us without offering any lunch, stomachs grumbling and blood starting to boil.

To add to the frustration, tomorrow call time is 4 a.m., which is an ungodly hour of the morning to be headed to work. And I've already been warned that it'll be a long day. Which leaves time today for a meal and an early, early bedtime.

Mint and I wandered up Manhattan Avenue looking for something new and exciting, and happily settled for the been-established and still exciting Brooklyn Label. Of course, having had no breakfast or lunch, I skipped dinner and went for breakfast. The curry tofu with potatoes, provolone cheese and broccoli was fantastic, and the hashbrowns again perfect with the homemade ketchup, and this time we bought a bottle (worth it, even for $8) to bring home.

Whereupon I immediately went to sleep (read: took a nap) for tomorrow's shoot. Let's hope someone remembers to bring bagels. At 4 a.m., I'm gonna need 'em.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: The second trip to Brooklyn Label was as good as the first. I see no reason to stop now.

BRUNCH! @ Brooklyn Label

Brooklyn Label
180 Franklin Street
Brooklyn, NY 11222
(718) 389-2806
www.brooklynlabel.com

BREAKFAST IS CLEARLY the best meal of the day. Also, breakfast rates very highly on The List of Life's Greatest Things. In fact, the only thing breakfast has working against it is the simple fact that one must wake up to enjoy it. This is problematic because, returning to our list of life's greatest things, sleeping also rates quite highly. How to solve this dilemma...

A few blocks west of the Greenpoint Avenue G station, Brooklyn Label has the solution. An immediate requirement for north Brooklynites, it ought also be tempting to many in midtown Manhattan. And it's little more than a big, bright room serving a big, awesome brunch.

The buzz has clearly already spread--lined up for tables or take-out were hipsters trekked up from Williamsburg, Greenpoint families with children (kept entertained by gifts of pastries from the staff), and casually dressed neighborhood-ers. This is likely why Brooklyn Label was up for Time Out New York's "Best Bruch" award. A high compliment indeed. Elissa, Kevin and I happily waited twenty minutes for a table with free cups coffee in hand.

Once seated, we were never rushed. Between the three of us, we ordered smoked salmon on a bagel (with all the good stuff--tomato, capers, red onion), an omelet, and the special advertised on a chalkboard outside--"green eggs, no ham"--with spinach and soft-whipped eggs on locally-made challah bread with cilantro pesto.

Everything was amazing, and the service too. When our hashbrowns arrived in meager portions, we were brought out fresh helpings. Hashbrowns, by the way, should be encouraged. They're perfect for trying out the bottles of homemade salsa and ketchup that guard each table.

MIKE EATS NEXT TIME: As soon as possible.