c/o Blackbook Mag

124 Bedford Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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347.799.2743

Cuisine: American Nouveau
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Cards: All Major
Price: Moderately Priced
Hours: Tue–Sun 5pm–3:30am
Booze: Full Bar
Subway: L to Bedford Ave.
Delivery: Yes
Time Out New York says:

Chef-owner Nate Smith, who earned his gastropub stripes at the Spotted Pig, breaks out on his own with this laid-back Williamsburg tavern. The 47-seat space is done up with a reclaimed pine bar, vintage wallpaper in different patterns and brass-hunting-horn chandeliers with matching sconces. Choose from chefly bar grub (like smoked-trout spread or spicy pork-stuffed pastry rounds); heartier dishes (such as roasted lamb or shellfish stew); and greens (including a chicory salad with figs and pomegranate). The drinks list takes a locavore slant with small-production wines and craft beers on tap, plus a selection of market-driven cocktails.

The New York Times says:

With its half-timbered facade, this place would suit an English village. The chef, Nate Smith, formerly of the Spotted Pig, understands the gastropub genre. Much of the food is seasonal and inspired by the euro zone (sardines with sea salt, pork chop with chestnut spaetzle and onions). But it’s clear that Mr. Smith also picked up a British accent, with potted pork, corned beef and cabbage pie, malt-pickled onions, lamb-liver toast with marmalade, and gentleman’s relish (in other words, anchovies). A communal table can be reserved for groups of 8 to 12. “That’s where I’ll serve family-style dinners,” Mr. Smith said

c/o Flickr

179 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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718.599.4550

Cuisine: Pizza
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★★
Cards: Cash Only
Price: $
Hours: Sun-Thurs 11am-11pm; Fri-Sat 11am-2am
Booze: None
Subway: L to Bedford Ave.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: Yes
New York Mag says:

For Williamsburg hipsters who are slowly being priced out of their hood, Anna Maria’s provides a taste of the old days when thing were still cheap and authentic under the L train. Two dollars will buy a thickish slab of cheese pizza–slightly oily but better than average, and large enough to keep a hipster’s jeans safely around his hips. $3.50 will buy some more vitamins, in the form of a specialty slice topped with a veggie and/or meat combo. A soggy $4 calzone is worth it only if you need to fulfill your RDA of grease, but 8 smackers will buy a bona fide hot meal, like chicken cutlets or tortelloni, albeit on a disposable plate. All of this affordable nourishment is available late into the night, so starving artists, as well as crowds of drunken bar-goers, can fuel up whenever inspiration strikes.

Metromix says:

When the bars on Bedford Ave. let out, finding a post-debauchery nosh can be somewhat difficult. Enter Anna Maria Pizza, open until 2 a.m. on the weekends and 11 p.m. during the week. Heavy on the toppings and convenient to the L train, Anna Maria is difficult to refuse. For your more sober moments, try their hot lunch specials.

c/o NY Mag

20 Skillman Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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718.218.7272

Cuisine: Comfort food
Our Rating: ★ ★
Cards: All Major
Price: $
Hours: Sun-Thurs 4pm-2am; Fri-Sat 4pm-5am
Booze: Full Bar
Subway: L to Graham Ave.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: Yes
Citysearch says:

On the same stretch of blocks as Galapagos, Northsix and Sweet Water Tavern, Anytime appeases streams of bargoers with its round-the-clock eats. Its small industrial space is painted in white, gray and orange, and holds a takeout counter with a couple of suspended wooden-beam tables. The best thing about the space, though, is skipping it and getting snacks delivered to your door.Grilled sandwiches, soups and toasts (such as smoked mozzarella and roasted peppers) provide the primary sustenance, along with appetizers in the jalapeno popper/buffalo wing family. The eight-ounce burger arrives well-done on a shiny bun–comforting stuff, especially when accompanied by tater tots. Potato leek and scallion soup is green and flavorful, and the balanced fruit yogurt shake satisfies. Anytime’s menu shifts with the seasons, offering chilled soups and sophisticated salads in the summer.

New York Mag says:

Can a late-night restaurant with offerings that run the gamut from low-brow mozzarella sticks to ambitious pan-seared salmon actually be any good? Yes. And happily, this establishment on Williamsburg’s North Side succeeds in being most things to most people. Your image-conscious friends will dig its hipness: banquets swathed in nubby orange upholstery cradle Diesel- and Seven-sheathed behinds on a regular basis. Cash-strapped pals will appreciate the excellent value. After a couple of drinks, even you’ll be pleased with the availability of cheap, greasy tater tots and chicken fingers at post-last call hours. And once you’ve sobered up enough to have your culinary wits about you, try the silky and tangy hummus with a garlicky bite—a point of pride with the Israeli owner.

Arancini Bros.

940 Flushing Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11206
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718.418.6347

Cuisine: Italian
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Price: $
Cards: Cash Only
Booze: None
Subway: L to Morgan Ave.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: No
Time Out New York says:

Boozehounds at the Bushwick bar the Wreck Room can quell drunk hunger pangs at this adjacent arancini counter. The tiny, late-night storefront is run by former music techs David Campaniello and Will Levatino; the pair met on tour, bonded over fried risotto balls and gained local fame for their crispy, creamy orbs at the Hester Street Fair. Their first brick-and-mortar shop offers a rotating selection of six Sicilian-style rice balls in traditional (meat ragù), creative (mushroom and Taleggio) and sweet (Nutella) varieties.

c/o Eater

131 Grand St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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718.384.7273

Cuisine: American
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★
Price: $$
Hours: Open 24 Hours
Cards: All Major
Booze: BYOB
Subway: L to Bedford Ave.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: Yes
Time Out New York says:

Williamsburg night owls in search ofa 3am breakfast have a new option with the arrival of this 24-hour diner. In addition to the standard omelettes, there are a few wacky creations, like BBQ-shrimp pancakes and the Machete plate (mac and cheese with eggs). The massive menu is also vegan- and vegetarian-friendly—look for meatless burgers and meatballs made with spiced beets.

c/o Brownstoner

204 Grand Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211
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718.599.6599

Cuisine: Italian/Gourmet Pizza
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Cards: All Major
Price: $$$
Hours: Mon-Thurs 12pm-4pm (Lunch), 5pm-Midnight (Dinner); Sat 12pm-4pm (Lunch), 5pm-1am (Dinner); Sun 12pm-4pm (Lunch), 5pm-Midnight (Dinner)
Booze: Full Bar
Subway: L to Bedford Ave.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: Yes
Time Out New York says:

Though its name means “hugs and kisses” in Italian, Baci & Abbracci carefully balances its grandma-style Italian rusticity with a Euro-chic sensibility. Subtle architectural touches, like saucer-shaped light fixtures and a chrome-furniture-filled back garden, lend the casual eatery a modern, space-age look. The old-world influences pop up in the kitchen. The bulging wood-burning oven (imported from Naples) evokes the homeland, and Sorrento native Francesco Mastellone tosses the pies. In addition to pizzas, the menu includes classic dishes like sauteed calamari and veal milanese. We especially liked the polpa e patate appetizer, meaty hunks of octopus and boiled potato slices tossed with slivers of zesty raw garlic, olive oil and plenty of parsley. We also enjoyed a sauceless pizza topped with chewy smoked mozzarella, strips of mild pancetta and caramelized onions. Unfortunately, the crust lacked the crispness of a perfect thin-crust pie. A dessert, torta di nonna, with custardy sabayon, chocolate-cream piping, and crushed, toasted pine nuts and pecans, was named for — you guessed it — grandma.

NY Magazine says:

Patrons of this casual, low-fanfare eatery can bank on a warm welcome, if not the kisses and hugs promised in the restaurant’s name. The decor is inviting, too, with rustic tables, a wood-burning pizza oven, marble countertops, and Italian tilework. Balancing confident panache with unpretentious ease, B&A isn’t edgy or superhip and doesn’t strive to be. The kitchen favors solid, well-crafted renditions of antipasto, pasta, and pizza, including the welcome familiars linguini with clam sauce and four-cheese pie (quattro formaggi). Antipasti, served in generous, easy-to-share portions, focus on fresh vegetables and shellfish, and set off richer sauced dishes like pasta with fennel in cream sauce and the visually ravishing violette di Parma, jewel-toned red beet gnocchi in cheese sauce. But pizza is the high point here: With crusts that are tender, chewy, and crispy in all the right places, these pies boast decision-defying toppings like smoked mozzarella, pancetta, and caramelized onions, and fresh bufala mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and arugula. Lucky locals say that this newcomer is sure to give the now-established Fornino, which opened in 2005, a hearty run for its well-beloved pie. Mangia bene, Williamsburg. Weekend brunch features frittatas and eggs Benedict along with eggs to order and a breakfast pizza, topped with tomato, mozzarella, egg, and diner’s choice of ham, sausage, or smoky pancetta. Recommended Dishes: Lattuga alla Trentina salad, $9; Baci & Abbraci pizza , $13; verdure ripiene, $11

c/o Thrillist

594 Union Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11211
view map
347.529.4906

Cuisine: American Nouveau
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★
Cards: All major
Price: Fairly Expensive
Hours: Daily 5pm-2am
Booze: Full Bar
Subway: L to Lorimer St.
Delivery: No
Menu: Click Here
Time Out New York says:

Josh Cohen and Blair Papagni—the husband-and-wife team behind Anella, Calyer and Saint Vitus—expand their North Brooklyn holdings with this fifth venue. Teak Danish modern tables and upholstered teal banquettes decorate the 100-seat eatery, which also doubles as a late-night DJ lounge. In the evening, diners can order off the eclectic New American menu featuring raw-bar platters and dishes like baby artichokes with picholine olives and bottarga, tripe mole poblano with cracklings, and a BBQ black bass with cherry-tomato jam. Later at night, local DJs, like No Ordinary Monkey, take over decks, spinning a mix of roots, reggae, house and disco.

Thrillist says:

As you know from virtually every chips commercial ever, if your party spread sucks, your guests will harshly ditch you for whichever of your otherwise pathetic neighbors was thoughtful enough to stock Bugles. For a hard-partying place with optimal eats, get to The Bellwether, soft-opening this weekend, aiming to get hard on the 14th.

From the team behind Anella and Saint Vitus, Bellwether is aiming to be part restaurant, part successor to McCarren Park Pool Parties, a dual mission manifested in a “big, nice bar” that plays host to both iced bivalves and a DJ station (they feel compelled to tell you that the DJs will be clothed, but there’ll surely be oyster wardrobe malfunctions). Other locally purveyed nosh hits on NY’s various cultural flavors, and stretches from crackling-sided tripe mole poblano, to BBQ’d, cherry tomato-jammed black bass, a far more manageable meal than the white Baas’ 312lbs. Assisted by a booming back room, bashes kick off this weekend with Sat’s friends/family starring No Ordinary Monkey — whose promo materials involving sharks, rainbows, asses, and other asses make regular monkeys look even less cool — and Sun’s open Save Us Williamsburg shindig, the first of a bi-monthly which this time’ll feature Ron Like Hell & Ryan Smith’s mellow dinner tunes, followed by dancing and “Balearic Sunday jams”.

You’ll get fueled by “natural wines”, micro- and “uniquely brewed” suds, and the Sierra Nevada Righteous Rye/Dickel house boilermaker, because if anybody knows how to lay out an effective spread, it’s… Joe Tiller!

c/o NY Mag

197 Bedford Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
view map
718.599.2707

Cuisine: Coffee/Tea/Sandwiches/Wine Bar
Cards: All Major
Price: $
Hours: Mon-Fri 8am-2am; Sat, Sun 10am-3am*
Booze: Beer and wine
Subway: L to Bedford Ave
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: No
NY Mag says:

Evangelos Roumeliotis of Oleput and Sparrow in Queens planned to open a dive bar in Brooklyn before he came across this corner space on Bedford’s main drag, which he knew “had to be a café.” Furnished with mostly found wood pieces like a massive oak mechanic’s desk that now displays wine bottles, and otherwise built from similarly worn, recycled wood by partner Tom Fade, Blackbird feels like an old-world European coffeehouse. Italy’s Danesi espresso spikes cappuccinos and lattes (with soy and skim substitutions nodding to the hood), treats are sophisticated like eggier-than-usual brioche baked by Manhattan’s Tisserie, and dainty nubs of ground walnut and honey melomakarouna cookies from Artopolis bakery in Astoria (all delivered daily). Meats for a small platoon of panini come from the best purveyors in town; jambon is D’artagnan and chorizo, Despaña. Come nightfall, France and Spain are tapped again for a wine list that focuses on small, mostly unrecognizable vintners, so young, squatting writers (and readers) can spoon up the last of their awesome root beer floats and switch to pinot in the evening.

Metromix New York says:

Cafes and wine bars are as rare in Williamsburg as faux-hawks and sidewalks, but combining the two is a bit more interesting. Hipsters hover here mostly during the day, when the European-style hangout (the owners are Greek) serves dark coffees, loose-leaf teas, grilled cheese and pastries on its central wooden communal table. By night, it gets dimmer and the vino flows.

c/o Brooklyn Bowl

61 Wythe Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11211
view map
718.963.3369
(Bowling Alley with food by Blue Ribbon)

Cuisine: American/Southern
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Cards: All Major
Price: $$$
Hours: Monday – Thursday 6pm-2am; Friday 6pm-4am; Saturday 12pm-4am; Sunday 12pm-2am
Family Days are Saturday and Sunday! Noon-6pm is ALL AGES!
Booze: Full Bar
Subway: L to Bedford
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: No
We say:

A stunning sprawling space, albeit pricey.

The New Yorker says:

We suggest that you eat with your non-bowling hand,” a note on the menu at Brooklyn Bowl states, in a nod, presumably, to both aim and hygiene, if not to the traditional carelessness of ten-frame dining. This converted warehouse at the northern edge of Williamsburg does triple duty as a bowling alley, a music hall, and a grub house. Its kingpin, Peter Shapiro, the former owner of the bygone jam-bandy club Wetlands, has dreamed up an emporium that combines hedonistic excess (deep-end leather couches, spiked milkshakes, brisket, live music) with eco-consciousness (reclaimed-cork floors, no bottled beer, live music). For the eats, he brought in the Bromberg brothers, the creators of Blue Ribbon, to draw up a rebuke to every limpid water dog and fossilized onion ring you’ve ever downed, then regretted, at Wherever Lanes. They tinkered with comfort-food classics, secure in the knowledge that no bowler will ever crave endive. It’s a menu that begs over-ordering, as well as this remark from your waiter, regarding the procedure for delivering the food: “You guys want it as it fits?” “Fits where?” is one reply; the table is bigger than the stomach.

Still, all you have to do, while stuffed, is take a few steps forward and drop a twelve-pound ball on the floor, so there’s no sin in downing the carefully considered greaseballs the Blue Ribbon boys sling your way. Their fried chicken, dipped in matzoh batter, seasoned with Cajun spices, and accompanied by white bread and honey, has Earl Anthony game. The calamari, commingled with fried jalapeño, is the Dick Weber of fried squid. The San Gennaro, loaded with finely ground Italian sausage, is the Johnny Petraglia of French-bread pizzas: crisp outside, fluffy inside, it has all of the virtue, and none of the vice, of Stouffer’s. There are a few gutter balls; some might find the mac and cheese too creamy and the “Really” Sloppy Joe really actually too sweet. But the score sheet shows more X’s than —’s.

On a recent evening, the lanes were busy but not loud; the pins hang on strings, which helps muffle the din. Giant video screens showed montages from raunchy old B-movies like “The Student Nurses” and “Caged Heat.” Around eleven, the Roots took the stage, the dance floor filled up, and a waiter came by with Nutella-bourbon shakes, a convergence that felt like nailing a spare on a four-ten split. (Open weekdays for dinner and weekends for lunch and dinner. Entrées $9-$19.)

c/o NY Mag

593 Lorimer Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211
view map
718-599-9899

Cuisine: Southern, American
Our Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
Cards: All Major
Price: $$$$
Hours: Sat and Sun 11 am to 4 pm., Dinner Everyday 5:00 pm to 2 am
Booze: Beer and Wine
Subway: L to Lorimer St.
Menu: Click Here
Delivery: No
NY Mag says:

After a kitchen fire closed its original location in 2010, the Brooklyn Star is open in the former Lazy Catfish space. Cook Justin Burchill tells us that he and the rest of Joaquin Baca’s team have been working since last August to build the new restaurant. They’ve installed the old tables, chairs, and benches in a space that’s a bit bigger (there are about 75 seats in the dining room) and best of all, in possession of a liquor license. The downside: No woodburning oven, but the core of the menu is the same, with the addition of dishes like roasted veal marrow bones and a chilled grilled lobster tail. The full menu will be served from 5 p.m. till 2 a.m., and there’ll be a list of whiskey-heavy classic and classic-inspired cocktails from bar manager Simon Gibson.