The Grocery

I've been meaning to come here for years, and can't believe it took me this long! Definitely one of the best restaurants in Brooklyn. Outstanding food, attentive but casual service, and a charming little space. Feels like you are in someone's living room, and the staff and patrons are unpretentious and mellow.

We lucked out by getting a last-minute reservation on a Friday night, and there were even a couple tables open which I was shocked by. The owners were very hands-on and the food just got better and better, with the pork chop and the crispy squid as total standouts.

They call it tapas-style food meant to be shared, and we ordered five dishes between the two of us which was definitely enough food. We would've been just fine with four plates. Good-sized portions for the price point, and not a cheap meal but worth every penny.

Great spot for a special occasion!

Best slow rendered duck ever. We come from Texas and stop in every chance we get. Must go!

I've often wondered how, in my ongoing quest to eat at every spot on Smith Street,* I've managed to pass up such a highly regarded restaurant such as The Grocery. Having stepped inside, I realize it's because this place is absolutely tiny, and as such, easy to miss. There are maybe 30 seats, and since they keep the curtains closed, no peering in from the outside world. It is quite literally like dining in someone's oddly undecorated apartment.

The Grocery is not the most affordable of places, with only a couple bottles of wine coming in under $40, appetizers starting at $13, and entrees at $27. However, everything is excellent, and with a surprising number of staff members for such a small space, you are treated quite well. We were started off nice varieties of bread and a parsnip soup amuse, along with a mini-potato croquette that was so rich and perfect that I found myself getting angrier and angrier at the couple to my right who didn't even bother to try theirs.

Off the menu, we shared three plates. The first was the roasted beets with goat cheese ravioli. It was a tasty twist on a common combination, and the toasted pinenuts and fried shallots were an excellent accompaniment.

A meaty man myself, I was unable to resist the slow rendered duck breast. Thinly sliced, each tender, rare bite was surrounded by an edge of fatty, salty skin. The meat was served alongside garlicky broccoli rabe and mini-turnips, and a potato puree unlike any I've ever had. It was thicker than most, and tasted almost cheesy. It paired very well with the duck, and with the red wine sauce as well. Everything was executed well, but in all honesty, paled in comparison to the crispy farro cake appetizer she chose as her entree.

We incorrectly assumed that the cake itself would contain the mushrooms, roasted cauliflower, onions and bacon mentioned in the description. On the contrary, the crunchy, caramelized cake was surrounded by a generous portion of it all, and thank goodness. The charred onions covered in reduced balsamic and the thick-cut little cubes of bacon combined added up to indescribable deliciousness. I would've eaten an entire bowl of the onions on their own.

Although we declined dessert, we were each given a trio of sorbets that were a lovely palate cleanser and a perfect end to a nice meal. Overall, dinner is a bit pricey and the small space gets quite hot, but the food is well worth a visit.
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*http://www.yelp.com/list/spots-on-smith-street-brooklyn

This place has good, solid food but there's some inconsistency and the presentation is slightly amateurish. This place also loses some points because the owner/chef is a pompous... and has issues if a diner speaks up about her food not being properly cooked.

Last time I commented that my duck breast wasn't cooked well enough, he laid his bare finger on it and told me he thought it was "okay" according to him. This was very patronizing and disgusting. Pretty much ruined my meal.

On to the food though. I went to The Grocery with a party of 6 for a birthday dinner. One of the guys I went w/ "knew" the chef so we got a sort of a tasting menu. They started us off with a complimentary "shot" of their chilled split-pea soup. Simply put, it tasted like salt water. Next, we had the roasted beets salad with goat cheese ravioli, fried shallots and toasted pine nuts which was very good. The beets were sweet as usual, and they were a great contrast to the more salty cheese and fried shallots. The appetizer was also plated beautifully and I was grateful that they put so much beet in the dish--the ratio was good.

The grilled squid with white beans appetizer was slightly disappointing. I wasn't too impressed with how the squid was cooked and seasoned; it was pretty plain. But I loved the combination of the squid with the white beans. It definitely has potential. We also had the crispy squash blossom, another creative dish, but had a little too much fried batter and not enough squash. It was crispy, juicy (from the squash and oil), and the feta cheese was a compliment to the squash. But like I said, a little too much fried tempura-like stuff.

Next we had the grass-fed skirt steak which was surprisingly one of the best appetizers we had that night. The steak was served with tomato stewed string beans (I love tomato stewed haricot verts--Oliva on Houston St. has a tapas dish that does this superbly), portobello mushrooms, a little fried ginger and shoestring potatoes. I know it sounds like a lot, but all the ingredients work well together and the steak was prepared just right. The other delicious appetizer we had that night was the fried artichokes with radicchio, parmesan and toasted breadcrumbs. The ingredients in this dish did a great job of masking the usually (sour) taste of artichoke. And you can't go wrong with breadcrumbs and parmesan--this appetizer was good.

As a treat, the chef also prepared a special peking-duck dumpling appetizer (off the menu) that was amazing.

For my entrée, I had the slow rendered duck breast (as many people have recommended). It was very good. The duck came with kasha, roasted market veggies and caramelized red wine. I think the pearl onions and greens (maybe ramps?) that were caramelized in the red wine made a perfect sauce for the strong tasting duck. My only gripe with this dish was that the reduction was too salty and also slightly runny.

I also tried the striped bass which was very fresh and flakey. The pan-seared pork chop entrée was also very good. Honestly, they did a fantastic job retaining the juices in that piece of meat. The pork chop was also very large and the fingerling potatoes, collards, smoked bacon and charred balsamic onions were great compliments to the pork.

For dessert, we had the the warm apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream, gingerbread steamed pudding, the chocolate fig cake, the vanilla panna cotta and their homemade ice cream. I was disappointed with their chocolate fig cake (which I had high expectations for). It was very rich and plain, although I did enjoy the crunchy fig seeds in the cake. Thought it was baked well and the texture was nice, but the taste was just a little too simple and I would have appreciated a bit more fig. The warm apple cobbler was standard but good, and the gingerbread pudding was excellent. It was very moist and the taste of ginger was subtle. The pistachio ice-cream was also good, but very standard. It had a hint of that artificial, cherry flavor.

Overall, the dining experience was good and I left absolutely stuffed. Minus the chef and the execution on some of their dishes (too much batter on deep fried foods, being overly salty, runny liquid, etc.), The Grocery has great food and lots of potential. I like that they use such fresh ingredients. The space is also adorable--tiny and intimate. Details such as the dark curtains, simple off-white walls and ceiling fan make you feel like you're in someone's dining room. I would go back.

The name does not match the vibe this restaurant gives off. Exclusive with no signs out front, most people would miss it walking pass by. Yet around 6 pm you will see a line of fancy cars pulling up front and small groups stepping into this " no name restaurant"

You know what?
I visited this restaurant twice to get a good sense of the overall service and quality of the food at the Grocery.

Did The grocery live up to its name? Yes and No. I can appreciate a restaurant that really takes their food seriously and goes out of their way to ensure that all ingredients are bought fresh from the organic farmers market.

Service ? It was on point but a bit snotty if you would ask me.
I recommend dining here when the weather is warmer because I stronger preferred sitting outside in the back garden over sitting inside the cramped dining room with only about 8 tables.

Dishes I remembered trying:
1) Duck - they are well known for that
2) Baked Apricot Cobbler
3) Beet salad
4) Flavored sorbets and gelatos ( delightful surprise)

I'll come back one day, I just don't know when. There are many more places I would like to try in the area. Till then.......

Good for : Small groups
Romantic Date
Royalty ( the service matches)

Not good for :
Young crowd

The meal here leads to perfect satiety. I didn't feel bloated and I didn't feel slighted.

The waitress are helpful, bright, and gleeful. They are very patient and knowledgeable about the extensive wine list.

I had the duck. It was perfectly cooked, and each ingredient fully complemented the next. The Mrs. had the lamb. It was small portioned, she ended up eating some of my duck, but for its size, it was great.

For dessert, the chocolate fig cake was more than your average chocolate cake. The fig added a whole new dimension. I'm not usually one to mix fruit and chocolate, but like everything else from the night, this was perfect.

This is the perfect place to bring your mother to dinner or have a classy celebration of some sort. The bill was on the high side, but for once I must say, it was worth every penny.

Maybe I'm just over the whole farm to table movement, but I wasn't nearly as impressed by The Grocery as I thought I would be.

This is one of those neighborhood restaurants you save for a special occasion (unless you have $150 to spare for a dinner for two on a regular Thursday night). My husband and I came here to celebrate our 3rd wedding anniversary and while I found the restaurant to be lovely, especially on a beautiful summer night sitting in their garden, nothing really blew me away.

They start you off with an amuse-bouche, I guess to remind you why this place is $$$$. I wasn't a big fan of mine but I guess these things vary by night.

The food came in small portions and some dishes were more delicious than others. I enjoyed my roasted beets ravioli and bass but felt kind of ridiculous eating my french fry salad with a fork (it's french fries with greens). The dessert (bread pudding) was a little too rich for me to finish.

On the plus side, the chef here is very personable. He often comes out of the kitchen and greets the patrons, many of whom seem to be regulars and engage him in conversation. The waitresses on the other hand seemed slightly eager to move us through the meal as the place was filling up.

We left the restaurant glad that we had tried it but not in a hurry to return.

Service was good, food decent but far from the best I have had. You won't have a bad meal here and will enjoy everything but after hearing everyone rave about The Grocery, I expected more

Portion sizes are small but not too bad. For 2 people we ordered 3 dishes which was just right. We had the squash fritters, duck and grouper. Received 2 complimentary amuse and sorbet - service in general was great

Diverse wine list, we had the cheapest half bottle of white and it was great

Will I come back? Prob but won't be rushing to!

Had a fantastic lunch here over the weekend in the idyllic back garden. The food was absolutely delicious. The bbq duck sandwich tasted like a unique play on pulled pork; it was served on soft, perfect bread with well-cooked french fries. The pasta special, spaghetti with eggplant, stewed heirloom tomatoes, green chiles and parmesan, was wonderful too. Not that the portions were stingy, but it was definitely the kind of dish you could have kept on eating and eating until you're obscenely stuffed (but happy!).

We had chocolate fig cake for dessert, which was a real medley of flavors (passionfruit sorbet and coconut ice cream came along with it); very tasty. Given it wasn't that crowded, it was a truly relaxing Saturday lunch with friendly service. We'll definitely try to come back for dinner.

If Helen of Troy was the face that launched a thousand ships, then The Grocery was the restaurant that launched this yelp account.

I have to say, it was honestly one of the most underwhelming meals I've ever had in my life. I'm not sure what happened to The Grocery, but it seems like the glory days are long gone. We looked at the photos online, read some reviews and were expecting to be blown away. Sadly that wasn't the case. The food was trite and the prices inflated, the atmosphere, lackluster to say the least.

At $25, the halibut was the smallest piece of fish to ever grace a plate outside of Manhattan. I would have sent it back but was too embarrassed to make a scene. The tables are right on top of each other and I didn't feel like including the neighbors in my plight. Sadly, I ate the fish, all two bites of him, while wondering what kind of pizza I was going to have for desert.

The bill was $160 including tip. We had 1 beer and 1 glass of wine each.

I also find it suspect that all the negative reviews have been "Not Recommended" by the Yelp moderator (and therefore not factored into the overall rating). Clearly, 30+ people have shared a similar experience but Yelp has silenced them by relegating their opinions to the fine print. Shame on you Yelp.