Bar Tabac….best brunch in Cobble Hill?
Josh Guttman | May 26, 2007
Who serves up the best brunch in Cobble Hill? Being a connoisseur of the half breakfast / half lunch weekend indulgence, this is a question I’ve mulled over many a Sunday morning. Though more often than not, after flipping through my mental rolodex of choices, I find myself sitting in the quaint French bistro come chic Brooklyn hot spot that is Bar Tabac. While their croque moisseur sans jambon is probably my favorite brunch dish in all of NYC, I would characterize the broader menu as adequate and tasty, though somewhat simple and not outstanding. Other goodies include les frites, french onion soup, and I’m told the french toast is yummy. As you might expect, the coffees and bloody marys are also made very well. It’s the ambience, though, that makes Bar Tabac special. It’s an authentic French bistro experience orchestrated by real Frenchies, most notably the regular Sunday manager, Franck. The architecture and design is warm and comfortable and there is plentiful outdoor seating in the spring, summer and fall, though be prepared to wait up to 45 minutes during peak hours on Saturdays and Sundays. Perhaps best of all, Blue Orchid, a 1940s jazz band (equally authentic I might add) plays a regular gig there every Sunday into the afternoon.
Honorable mention best brunch (and without the long wait) - Patois.
Bar Tabac is located at 128 Smith Street at Dean.
Patois is located at 255 Smith Street at DeGraw.
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5 Comments so far
Respectfully, I need to disagree. Bar Tabac is my regular brunch haunt mainly because of one reason: Eggs Norwegian.
And, Michael Arenella’s ensemble group makes it all the more pleasurable.
Alright Mr. Joshua, I can’t contain myself any longer. The Bococa (I still can’t believe I have actually added this word to my wardrobe) best brunch imbroglio is one of the most important issues facing our neighborhood. It is a conundrum not at all to be taken lightly. We are, after all, not so much a neighborhood of hipsters but of brunchsters. I would even go so far as to say that it is the weekly brunch indulgence which glues this community together. Firstly, no one who lives in our neighborhood goes to Manhattan on the weekends unless they are corporeally required to by someone who obviously doesn’t live here. Secondly, brunch is almost classless, available to the neighborhood masses who cannot afford evenings at Saul or Chestnut. And lastly, we may be in Brooklyn but we’re still in the city, nobody wants to cook if they don’t have to.
I think perhaps you have been a little premature with your decision – even with the insertion of a question mark. I know several people in the neighb who won’t even walk into that place after a series of bad experiences, and honestly, the last time I was there the whole place smelled like a dirty mop – aside from the bathroom which had a bouquet more reminiscent of vomit than gray water. Nevertheless they certainly do have the music, cutie-face Frank, and a not-too-shabby burger and moules-frites. And, of course the authentic ambiance, if you try hard enough there is sure to be a French person willing to be rude or embarrass you!
To untangle what is sure to be an impassioned debate among readers, I propose Bergen Carroll initiate a project of superlatives. We can all remember these from high school right? — the final sentence of our teenaged careers trying to pigeon hole us all into whatever caricatures the most popular kids could come up with (um…different blog post…). But I say; now that we are all the most popular kids in school, let’s subject the local brunch spots to the same good natured scrutiny. There will be different categories of “bests†like: best pancakes (Luluc), best benny, cutest wait-staff, best spot for the morning after (Tabac), best place to bring the kids, etc. Then Bergen Carroll can then let the readers decide.
Miriam and Frankies tie for best brunch in my opinion, hands down.
I love Cafe Luluc on Smith.
Le Petit Cafe on Court St. has a wide selection and a charming covered garden/patio that’s open even during the winter.
Patois also has a brunch special that includes unlimited mimosas for something like $12 or $14 I forget.