Brooklyn in Love Read online

  It was, not surprisingly, a pasta that caught my and Andrew’s attention on a BP night at the bar. What was surprising was that it was mushroom lasagna, as I’m not a big mushroom fan. But it sounded so amazing: layers of mascarpone, mushrooms, and béchamel, accented with thyme. “It’s an exercise in aesthetics more than the recipe,” the chef claims of the dish. He created it in the winter of 2007/08 in collaboration with his then-sous-chef Nick Anderer, who has since gone on to Maialino and Marta, two other Danny Meyer restaurants. The flat sheaves of house-made pasta are cut by hand and layered with the cheese and mushrooms, creating a rich, earthy, and divine flavor. What’s more, the texture is pitch-perfect. The unctuousness of the filling contrasts with the crispy, charred pasta that gets singed and smoky in the eight-hundred-degree oven. “It’s a true iconic American dish,” Michael agrees.

  That day when we went to Gramercy for my birthday, the menu didn’t have lasagna on it. And so, appropriately AP, we moved on to a new favorite: the flatbread appetizer.

  The flatbread arrived on the restaurant’s menu in a totally different fashion than the lasagna. Whereas Michael specifically developed the pasta program to make the noodles in-house for dishes like the lasagna, the flatbread was inspired from an outside source. “I fell in love with a North African flatbread,” he says of the m’smen baked at Hot Bread Kitchen, a thriving bakery incubator in East Harlem. “It lit our imaginations up.” The savory, hand-stretched bread is like a blank canvas, one that Michael and his kitchen crew top in countless ways, from clam, celery root, and salsa verde to corn, green tomatoes, and lamb sausage to pickled peppers and mushrooms. “I love that it’s shareable and just about as informal as you can imagine,” the chef says.

  Andrew and I shared everything that day, as we always do, including the chocolate pudding cake that the bartender presented with a candle because she overheard us talking about my birthday. That’s the kind of restaurant it is. That is why it is so beloved by not just me and Andrew, but also the entire city. As Michael says, “Ten years after working at Gramercy Tavern, people are more in love with that restaurant than ever before.”

  • • •

  For all of my bellyaching about being old, afraid, out of touch, chronically tired, and culturally stunted, there is so much to love about this phase of my life—my act two. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have pangs of missing my earlier carefree adventures, both solo and with Andrew. But there are new joys: retrieving the peanut from her crib in the morning and relishing how happy she is to see me in that moment as I scoop her in my arms. Hearing her laugh, a true, unselfconscious belly laugh. And there is the simple pleasure of loving someone so deeply and completely.

  The love runs just as deep with Andrew. He has proven to be everything I could want: affectionate, fun, sincere, devoted, and a true partner when it comes to dull tasks such as changing diapers and creating savings plans. I think he’s even more handsome today than when we met at Park Bar five years ago, and he still surprises me with his knowledge, sensitivity, compassion, and lust for life. The two of us still laugh about the fact that we met online and still have a great time just parking it on the couch with Netflix and a pint of Ample Hills or, on special occasions, Levain cookies.

  And then there is Brooklyn. As each passing month accumulates into years, I begin to feel more at home. It’s neither the idealized bohemian utopia nor the suburban trap I believed it to be at earlier points on the journey. I see it now in a new and fairer light. I know it’s perfect for where I am in my life. We spend summer evenings picnicking in Prospect Park, Andrew and I sipping wine while the peanut runs around the great lawn, surrounded by other families of all different nationalities and backgrounds. We can go to a bar with the peanut and no one bats an eye—because there are always at least a few other couples with babies there. Restaurants are tolerant of a little one sitting in my lap, spilling crumbs all over the floor (though, for the record, I always pick that mess up before we leave, amen). And there are strollers absolutely everywhere.

  I stand by the idea that Andrew and I would have had a wonderful, fulfilling life if it were just the two of us. And yet, now that the peanut is here, I can’t imagine it any other way. After years of alternately priding myself on being single and independent and wondering if and when I would ever fall in love again and have a baby; after living a fantasy, achieving my dream, and not knowing where to go from there, I finally found my way home. As foreign as it all seemed at the beginning, this is it. Exactly where I’m meant to be.

  ALL ABOUT THE HOSPITALITY

  Danny Meyer has based his entire career on making his employees, customers, and business partners feel happy and well taken care of—which all comes through in the experience of dining at his restaurants. Each one of them is delicious and memorable. Here is a select list of his establishments, in order of ascending fanciness.

  Shake Shack—The now multinational, publically traded fast-food chain was inspired by the roadside burger stands from Danny’s youth in the Midwest and serves burgers, dogs, and concretes—frozen custard blended with mix-ins, including Mast Brothers chocolate and Four & Twenty Blackbirds pie, depending on the location.

  Blue Smoke—Another nod to Danny’s upbringing in the Midwest, this Murray Hill barbecue joint features all manner of pit from chargrilled oysters to fried chicken to seven-pepper brisket, along with a jazz club in the basement.

  Maialino—This warm and rustic Roman-style trattoria with its garganelli and braised rabbit and suckling pig with rosemary potatoes is the antidote to the fancy-pants Gramercy Park Hotel, in which it resides.

  Untitled—When the Whitney Museum moved from the Upper East Side to the Meatpacking District, the in-house coffee shop was reincarnated as a fine dining restaurant, with none other than Chef Michael Anthony running the kitchen, serving the likes of duck liver paté, parsnip and potato chowder, and a triple chocolate chunk cookie served with a shot of milk.

  Union Square Café—As of late 2016, this New York classic has a new home on Park Avenue South. But it has the same style, soul, and classic menu—Anson Mills polenta, ricotta gnocchi, New York strip steak—as it first did when Danny opened the restaurant back in 1985.

  The Modern—Overlooking the Miró, Matisse, and Picasso sculptures in MoMA’s Sculpture Garden, the dishes here are appropriately refined and artistic. Think cauliflower roasted in crab butter, sautéed foie gras, and crispy Long Island duck.

  List of Eateries

  Brooklyn

  al di la Trattoria

  248 Fifth Avenue (Park Slope)

  aldilatrattoria.com

  Ample Hills

  623 Vanderbilt Avenue (Prospect Heights)

  305 Nevins Street (Gowanus)

  445 Albee Square (Downtown)

  amplehills.com

  Baked

  359 Van Brunt Street (Red Hook)

  bakednyc.com

  Blue Sky Bakery

  53 Fifth Avenue (Park Slope)

  blueskybakery.org

  Buttermilk Channel

  524 Court Street (Carroll Gardens)

  buttermilkchannelnyc.com

  Cacao Prieto

  218 Conover Street (Red Hook)

  cacaoprieto.com

  Dough

  448 Lafayette Aveneue (Bed-Stuy)

  doughdoughnuts.com

  Eric Kayser

  57 Court Street (Brooklyn Heights)

  maison-kayser-usa.com

  The Farm on Adderly

  1108 Cortelyou Road (Ditmas Park)

  thefarmonadderley.com

  Fort Defiance

  365 Van Brunt Street (Red Hook)

  fortdefiancebrooklyn.com

  Four & Twenty Blackbirds

  439 Third Avenue (Gowanus)

  634 Dean Street (Prospect Heights)

  birdsblack.com

  Frankies 457 Spun
tino

  457 Court Street (Carroll Gardens)

  frankiesspuntino.com

  The Good Fork

  391 Van Brunt Street (Red Hook)

  goodfork.com

  Henry Public

  329 Henry Street (Cobble Hill)

  henrypublic.com

  Home/Made

  293 Van Brunt Street (Red Hook)

  homemadebklyn.com

  Jack the Horse Tavern

  66 Hicks Street (Brooklyn Heights)

  jackthehorse.com

  Jacques Torres

  66 Water Street (DUMBO)

  mrchocolate.com

  James

  605 Carlton Avenue (Prospect Heights)

  jamesrestaurantny.com

  Lavender Lake

  383 Carroll Street (Gowanus)

  lavenderlake.com

  Locanda Vini e Olii

  129 Gates Avenue (Clinton Hill)

  locandany.com

  Maman

  80 Kent Street (Greenpoint)

  mamannyc.com

  Mast Brothers Factory

  111 North Third Street (Williamsburg)

  mastbrothers.com

  Milk Bar

  360 Smith Street (Carroll Gardens)

  382 Metropolitan Avenue (Williamsburg)

  milkbarstore.com

  Oddfellows Ice Cream Co.

  175 Kent Avenue (Williamsburg)

  oddfellowsnyc.com

  Rucola

  190 Dean Street (Boerum Hill)

  rucolabrooklyn.com

  Sharlene’s

  353 Flatbush Avenue (Prospect Heights)

  Speedy Romeo

  376 Classon Avenue (Clinton Hill)

  speedyromeo.com

  Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pie

  185 Van Dyke Street (Red Hook)

  Sugar Shop

  254 Baltic Street (Cobble Hill)

  sugarshopbrooklyn.com

  Vinegar Hill House

  72 Hudson Avenue (DUMBO)

  vinegarhillhouse.com

  Manhattan

  Ample Hills

  Inside Gotham West Market (Midtown West)

  600 Eleventh Avenue

  At Bubby’s High Line

  73 Gansevoort Street (Meatpacking)

  amplehills.com

  Arturo’s

  106 West Houston Street (Greenwich Village)

  Barbuto

  775 Washington Street (West Village)

  barbutonyc.com

  Bemelmans Bar at The Carlyle

  25 East Seventy-Sixth Street (Upper East Side)

  Big Gay Ice Cream

  125 East Seventh Street (East Village)

  61 Grove Street (West Village)

  biggayicecream.com

  Billy’s Bakery

  184 Ninth Avenue (Chelsea)

  75 Franklin Street (Tribeca)

  billys-bakery.myshopify.com

  Birdbath Bakery

  160 Prince Street (SoHo)

  45 Spring Street (Nolita)

  140 East Forty-Fifth Street (Midtown)

  2244 Broadway (Upper West Side)

  Blue Hill

  75 Washington Place (Greenwich Village)

  bluehillfarm.com

  Blue Smoke

  116 East Twenty-Seventh Street (Gramercy)

  255 Vesey Street (Battery Park)

  bluesmoke.com

  Bosie Tea Parlor

  10 Morton Street (West Village)

  bosieteaparlor.com

  Butter Lane

  123 East Seventh Street (East Village)

  butterlane.com

  Buvette

  42 Grove Street (West Village)

  buvette.com

  City Bakery

  3 West Eighteenth Street (Flatiron)

  thecitybakery.com

  City Cakes

  251 West Eighteenth Street (Chelsea)

  citycakes.com

  The Crosby Bar at the Crosby Street Hotel

  79 Crosby Street (SoHo)

  Dessert Club, ChikaLicious

  204 East Tenth Street (East Village)

  dessertclubnyc.com

  Dominique Ansel

  189 Spring Street (SoHo)

  dominiqueansel.com

  Dough

  14 West Nineteenth Street (Flatiron)

  doughdoughnuts.com

  Eleven Madison Park

  11 Madison Avenue (Madison Park)

  elevenmadisonpark.com

  Eric Kayser

  355 Greenwich Street (Tribeca)

  326 Bleecker Street (West Village)

  841 Broadway (Union Square)

  921 Broadway (Flatiron)

  8 West Fortieth Street (Midtown)

  400 Fifth Avenue (Midtown)

  1377 Sixth Avenue (Midtown)

  1800 Broadway (Upper West Side)

  2161 Broadway (Upper West Side)

  1294 Third Avenue (Upper East Side)

  1535 Third Avenue (Upper East Side)

  maison-kayser-usa.com

  Gramercy Tavern

  42 East Twentieth Street (Gramery)

  gramercytavern.com

  The Half King

  505 West Twenty-Third Street (Chelsea)

  thehalfking.com

  Il Buco

  47 Bond Street (NoHo)

  ilbuco.com

  Il Buco Alimentari e Vineria

  53 Great Jones Street (NoHo)

  ilbucovineria.com

  Il Cantinori

  32 East Tenth Street (Greenwich Village)

  ilcantinori.com

  Ice & Vice

  221 East Broadway (Lower East Side)

  iceandvice.com

  Jacques Torres

  350 Hudson Street (SoHo)

  285 Amsterdam Avenue (Upper West Side)

  30 Rockefeller Plaza (Midtown)

  110 East Fifty-Seventh Street (Midtown)

  327 Lafayette Street (NoHo)

  mrchocolate.com

  The King Cole Bar at the St. Regis

  2 East Fifty-Fifth Street (Midtown)

  stregisnewyork.com

  Ladurée

  864 Madison Avenue (Upper East Side)

  398 West Broadway (SoHo)

  laduree.com

  Levain Bakery

  167 West Seventy-Fourth Street (Upper West Side)

  351 Amsterdam Avenue (Upper West Side)

  2167 Frederick Douglass Boulevard (Harlem)

  levainbakery.com

  The Lobby Lounge at the Mandarin Oriental

  80 Columbus Circle (Upper West Side)

  Maialino in the Gramercy Hotel

  2 Lexington Avenue (Gramercy)

  maialinonyc.com

  Maman

  239 Centre Street (SoHo)

  211 West Broadway (Tribeca)

  mamannyc.com

  Milk Bar

  251 East Thirteenth Street (East Village)

  15 West Fifty-Sixth Street (Midtown)

  561 Broadway (Upper West Side)

  220 Eighth Avenue (Chelsea)

  246 Mott Street (Nolita)

  74 Christopher Street (West Village)

  milkbarstore.com

  Minetta Tavern

  113 Macdougal Street (Greenwich Village)

  minettatavernny.com

  The Modern at the Museum of Modern Art

  9 West Fifty-Third Street (Midtown)

  themodernnyc.com

  Morgenstern’s Finest Ice Cream

  2 Rivington Street (Bowery)

  morgensternsnyc
.com

  The Musket Room

  265 Elizabeth Street (Nolita)

  musketroom.com

  OddFellows Ice Cream Co.

  75 East Fourth Street (East Village)

  oddfellowsnyc.com

  Park Bar

  15 East Fifteenth Street (Union Square)

  parkbarnyc.com

  Piora

  430 Hudson Street (West Village)

  pioranyc.com

  Rebelle

  218 Bowery (Bowery)

  rebellenyc.com

  Salon de Ning at the Peninsula

  700 Fifth Avenue (Midtown)

  The Smile to Go

  22 Howard Street (SoHo)

  thesmilenyc.com

  Sugar Sweet Sunshine

  128 Rivington Street (Lower East Side)

  sugarsweetsunshine.com

  Sweet Revenge

  62 Carmine Street (West Village)

  sweetrevengenyc.com

  Tom & Jerry’s

  288 Elizabeth Street (NoHo)

  Terroir

  24 Harrison Street (Tribeca)

  wineisterroir.com

  Union Square Café

  101 East Nineteenth Street (Union Square)

  unionsquarecafe.com

  Untitled at the Whitney

  99 Gansevoort Street (Meatpacking)

  untitledatthewhitney.com

  Von

  3 Bleecker Street (NoHo)

  vonbar.com

  Paris

  Bistrot Paul Bert

  18, Rue Paul Bert (11e)

  lepaulbert.fr

  Boulangerie Julien

  75, Rue Saint Honoré (1er)

  1, Rue de Provence (9e)

  boulangeriejulien.com

  Chez l’Ami Jean

  27, Rue Malar (7e)

  lamijean.fr/en

  Du Pain et Des Idées

  34, Rue Yves Toudic (10e)

  dupainetdesidees.com/en

  The Hemingway Bar at The Ritz

  15, Place Vendome (1er)

  ritzparis.com/en-GB/fine-dining-paris/bar-hemingway

  About the Author

  Photo by Lindsey Tramuta.

  Amy Thomas is a Brooklyn-based writer, creative director, mother, and wife.

  Thank you for reading!