cherrypatter nyc
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fort defiance: a food obsession reaches red hook
i know that it seems like all i do is eat at the frankie restaurants (frankies 457, prime meats), and now fort defiance but at least we do it for good reason. in fact, we ate at fort defiance three times in a week for breakfast, lunch and dinner which is pretty much a record for us. we were very very happy with the food for the most part, and we also love the space. situated on a key van brunt corner, (very close to baked, and facing a trio of cute shops including erie basin), fort defiance’s exterior has been painted a great shade of bright blue, and the interior is dominated by the dark wood bar area, and then there are maybe 20 small tables (it is not ideal for a group). the room has lots of light during the day, and old-world charm at night.
first, the coffee was excellent. using counter culture beans, those baristas knew how to brew a very excellent cup of coffee. their skill somewhat made up for the serious attitude toward the kids. this is not a family-friendly spot — at least if you’re not a hipster. maybe if we had some tattoos that would have made up for it but if you can help it i wouldn’t bring anyone here under 16 if you want to feel welcome. we enjoyed ourselves despite the service. for breakfast, we loved the egg and emmenthal sandwich. the pastries were not so exciting (most of them came from trois pommes patisserie), but there were other interesting items like beans on toast and a few other eggy options that seem worth another visit.
lunch is sandwich time. we had the fort defiance blt which was pretty darn good. the muffuletta has been written about quite a bit so that seems worth trying as well as a tuna sandwich served with aioli, red onions and an egg. my caponata which was spilled over perfectly grilled toast and romano cheese was excellent. i don’t usually like eggplant, but the pieces were firm, and the sauce somewhat tangy filled with tomatos and a delicious vinegar. fort defiance also boasts of having the best seltzer in brooklyn with their own specially calibrated machine. they had pineapple soda on one visit, and also sell egg creams.
i think my favorite time to visit fort defiance was for dinner and this was sans kids so maybe that made all the difference. the evening menu is super limited, and changes daily. j. had the braised pork shank (of unusual size) with red cabbage and bacon, and i got the grilled bratwurst with spaetzle and mustard sauce. we were two very happy meat-eating creatures. my bratwurst was bursting and firm, and the spaetzle made me feel like we were back in berlin. we also tried their incredible salad of butternut squash, frisee and goat cheese with a mushroom vinaigrette. the mixture of textures, and bracing flavors were perfectly paired with that sweet, slightly carmelized squash. dessert, not surprising given the pastry issue, was not as exciting at fort defiance. we had the made-in-house apple strudel mit schlag but it was no competition for the the ethereal stuff at café sabarksy.
but i think what i really loved about fort defiance was that it is an excellent bar with old-fashioned delicious drinks. i went a little loopy (which never happens these days) on a mix of jack rose apple brandy, lime and homemade grenadine. j’s cloister gin with grapefruit, lemon and chartreuse was not quite as addictive. however, if i didn’t have little ones waking me up, i definitely would have opted for a mint julep or even a tom collins to end our night. looks like yesterday’s menu featured a pumpkin soup with bacon and kale, “sunday sauce” with a pork and lamb ragu, as well as a rabbit and chorizo hash. hmmmm. maybe we need to get a babysitter for next weekend. fort defiance, 365 van brunt street between sullivan and wolcott streets, brooklyn, new york, .