Joe's Bar and Grill offers Dinner **Best of Brooklyn** One of the best new concepts in the 'hood, Bob's Bar and Grill takes a rustic theme to a whole new level in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Decorated with black-and-white photos of Americana, brick walls, and a huge bar, the **New York State Wine and Culinary Center,** open during tasting sessions, is a welcome refuge in a busy bar-filled neighborhood. Even better, the restaurant puts the "bistro" in Bob's, serving fresh-caught fish for lunch and dinner and a great bar snack: the Bob's "Tastes Like Chicken" burger. They don't know how to use that kind of good fortune. That's something all Bob's restaurants share. **The Black Tap** Cheese is a big deal in Brooklyn. It's what brings us to the black bar at the end of the long brick tunnel behind the B&H. The Black Tap is a casual cheese emporium with great selections of fresh and creamy, artisanal cheeses, plus a short list of craft beers. It's a hip new choice for those looking for a good cheese without the pretension. We like their pizza; go for the veggie burger. **Best of the Boroughs** Brooklyn is a borough, an independent city in New York State. It's one of the five original counties and is home to the most populated area in the state, the best pizza, and the strongest coffee in New York. And now, there is **The Red Hook Lobster Pound,** one of Brooklyn's best fine-dining restaurants. The "Mama's in Red Hook" lobster dinners are legendary and the lobster pound's take on Brooklyn takes everything you've heard about Brooklyn and puts it in a whole new context. Their lobster roll is like the best chicken-fried steak ever, but the lobster sandwich is the epitome of a lobster roll done right. **Best Restaurant, Brooklyn** A "neighborhood" restaurant is not a restaurant for everyone, which is probably the reason you're reading this chapter on a smartphone instead of reading something substantive. That said, we've tasted about as many good Brooklyn restaurants as we've eaten at Italian, Mexican, French, Thai, and Korean. And, we could give a rat's ass about the fact that we call them neighborhood restaurants. In our book, all restaurants are neighborhood restaurants because they are restaurants serving food in a locale in which that food finds a natural home. That is, a great neighborhood restaurant serves the kinds of foods that people like to eat, at a time when people like to eat. We've found that they also serve consistently good food, at prices you can afford. And we're not saying a place has to be expensive. There are many excellent restaurants with cheap prices, but the point is that the food has to be good. So, the Brooklyn Red Hook Lobster Pound is good. We've had shrimp and grits in Red Hook, and even those that were not memorable would not be memorable in most of the boroughs. So, Red Hook Lobster Pound did not let us down. And we know what a good lobster roll should taste like. It should be tender and flaky and have the proper sauce. It should taste like lobster and salt. And that's all we're looking for. A perfect lobster roll tastes like heaven, but that's not very helpful to us since heaven doesn't exist. ### **Vital statistics** **_Rating_** B&H was founded in 2004 in the old Metropolitan Edison building in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The space was a mess, with an old kitchen and a long, narrow bar. The new owners fixed that, and expanded. And, they fixed everything else. They reorganized the whole thing, added a dining room, took the "Bistro" out of Bob's, a neighborhood tavern, and made it a great neighborhood bistro. They also added what amounts to one of the top restaurants in the city and a great place to have dinner. **Dinner for Two** If the weather permits, we recommend sitting at the rooftop tables on the B&H rooftop terrace. They offer a great view of the sun sinking into the East River. And, oh yeah, they serve fresh New York strip steaks on Friday nights. **Location** Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York, New York 11231 **_Hours_** 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday **_Closed_** Wednesday and Thursday (New Year's Eve). **_Credit Cards_** Visa, MasterCard, American Express **_Eateries_** **Joe's Bar & Grill, The Black Tap, Bob's Bar & Grill, The Red Hook Lobster Pound,** **L &L Pizzeria, Tony's,** **The Pinnacle** **_Ratings_** _Restaurants are assigned the stars shown here based on the year they were founded._ **BAKE SIZE CHOCOLATE CAKE** _Serves 4 to 6_ 3 cups all-purpose flour 3 cups sugar 2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature 1 cup vegetable shortening at room temperature 4 eggs 2 tablespoons vanilla extract ½ teaspoon salt 2 cups buttermilk 4 to 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped **_Apple Cider Doughnuts_** 3 cups all-purpose flour 1½ cups sugar 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature 1 cup shortening 3 to 6 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon nutmeg 1¼ cups apple cider 2 to 4 egg yolks Vegetable shortening for deep-fat frying Chocolate glaze **1.** Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. **2.** Combine the flour and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Cut the butter and shortening into pieces. Add to the flour mixture and, using your fingers or a pastry blender, cut the butter and shortening into the flour. Work until the mixture is crumbly. **3.** In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and salt. Add to the flour mixture and, using a rubber spatula, stir until the dry ingredients are completely moistened and just blended. Stir in the buttermilk. Fold in the chocolate. Pour the batter into the pan. **4.** Bake for about 1 hour. The cake is done when it is golden brown and feels firm to the touch. Remove the cake from the pan and cool on a wire rack. **5.** Meanwhile, make the Apple Cider Doughnuts. Sift together the flour, sugar, and baking powder into a bowl. Add the salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. **6.** In a measuring cup, stir together the cider and enough egg yolks to make 1 cup. Using a whisk, whisk the cider mixture into the flour mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. **7.** Just before frying, whisk the remaining egg yolks. **8.** Using a deep-fryer or stovetop fryer, heat 2 inches of shortening to 375°F. Working in batches, dip the doughnuts into the yolk mixture and then deep-fry for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. Drain on a rack. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired. **9.** Transfer the cake to a serving platter and cool completely. Drizzle with Chocolate Glaze. Serve with an assortment of fresh berries. **11 to 13** **THE TRUCK CAFE** In the 1970s and 1980s, New York's truck farms were a bright spot of optimism in a city that was not exactly at its best. New Yorkers were tired of city life and looking for something different. As a result, upstate New York became a destination, and all kinds of places opened up offering visitors a chance to escape the city and have a good meal. A lot of those places are still around and it's a good idea to eat at a couple if you find yourself outside of Manhattan. This Truck Cafe is one of the originals, dating back to the early 1980s. The Truck is family owned and operated. They are committed to serving good food and are always willing to hear what you like and what you don't like. They also have great New York State wines. **Best of Brooklyn** A great little place run by two Brooklyn natives, the Truck Cafe offers an outdoor courtyard that overlooks the Hudson River. Their beer selection is broad and they pour pretty good beer. During summer months, outdoor seating is often crowded. As an indication of their commitment to the cause of good, healthy, and fair food, they have an in-house restaurant where they serve vegetarian and gluten-free dishes. When we came here, our waitress brought us a good beer and she seemed genuinely interested in helping us find something that would suit our tastes.