Peter's Since 1969
image c/o Village Voice
CUISINE: American comfort
ADDRESS: 168 Bedford Avenue, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
PHONE: 718.388.2811
CARDS: All Major
HOURS: Mon-Fri: 4:00PM - 11:00PM, Sat-Sun: 12:00PM - 11:00PM
SUBWAY: L train to Bedford
SPECIAL FEATURES: Outdoor Seating, Garden
MAP: Click Here
MENU: Click Here
DELIVERY: none
VILLAGE VOICE SAYS: Miss school lunch? Were you one of those kids who sat in morning math class dreaming of steam tables longer than the Queen Mary, behind which stood women clad in white waving giant spoons? Do you prefer your veggies on the mushy side? When you go to Vegas, do you only pretend to gamble, then run off to the buffets? If you can answer 'Yes" to any of these questions, then Peter's is your place. Located on the quintessential block of Bedford just above the first stop on the L, Peter's Since 1969 is the restaurant's proper name, emblazoned across the front in large block letters. It refers, somewhat mournfully, to a butcher shop named Peter's that flourished on this spot for 38 years, which the new restaurant has usurped. The old Peter's was one of two competing butcher shops on the block—one Ukrainian, one Polish—that epitomized the old Williamsburg....Gleaming white tiles and hooks that once suspended kielbasas like giant curving phalluses are the only vestiges of the original shop. Peter himself hung up his apron late last year: According to a friend who's a longtime resident of the block, he decided to take the $8,000 per month he'd been offered as rent and retire to Long Island. His picture smiles down benevolently from a frame by the front counter, one of the neighborhood's secular saints. Behind that counter, one now sees a giant rotisserie churning behind a smeary pane of glass. The chickens are the best part of the new Peter's—big, shambling creatures rubbed with herbs and sloughing moist flesh. You won't need a knife, or even a fork. The price is right, too—one quarter bird plus two sides and "corn bread"is $8.95. A half-chicken is only a dollar more. Peter's calls them French-rotisserie chickens, but there's really nothing French about them except the word "rotisserie." The supposed Frenchness is only one of the culinary mysteries of Peter's Since 1969, which should really be called Peter's Since 2007. Jumbled on the counter, a collection of pretty red Le Creuset casseroles holds the restaurant's other offerings, constituting a steam table in disguise. As the multiply pierced clerk raises the lids in succession, you'll discover decent mashed potatoes and mashed sweet potatoes, leathery sautéed corn, green beans and broccoli oddly cooked together, chopped spinach en casserole, pallid mac and cheese, yellowish stewed okra, and bread-crumbed cauliflower. The selection varies, but most of the sides are united by two qualities, overcooking and underseasoning—perfect pap for invalids and hungry schoolchildren.
image c/o Flickr
Comments
I went there with my girlfriend and we got the short-ribs and a half-chicken. The ribs were tough and greasy, the chicken was not bad but I've had better at the local supermarket for $6. Some sides were good, most just ok, but all really small - especially compared to the huge (and bland) meat portions. As far as the service, the counter-people were pretty indifferent to the customers and didn't seem too happy..
I say - if you want huge overpriced greasy-ness "Peter's Since 1969" is the place for you.
Posted by: dan | November 20, 2008 04:16 AM
My son and I stumbled upon this wonderful restaurant while looking for an inexpensive, yet delicious dinner. Peters serves comfort food which reminds me of growing up in the south. The mac and cheese, the buttery green beans with onions, homemade mashed potatoes with chunks of potatoes, the cornbread, it was all so delicious. They also were serving kielbasa with sourkraut, a lovely beef stew, and other delectable dishes. The prices are so reasonable. I highly recommend Peters and wish it was around the corner from my house!! They also serve to go, have tables in the front and back of the restaurant (including a patio with picnic tables). It's air conditioned and the wait staff is sooo friendly. It doesn't look big from outside, but the food has BIG flavor and feels like mom cooked it for you! I loved the food and the prices!
Posted by: SE | July 16, 2008 04:41 PM
My son and I stumbled upon this wonderful restaurant while looking for an inexpensive, yet delicious dinner. Peters serves comfort food which reminds me of growing up in the south. The mac and cheese, the buttery green beans with onions, homemade mashed potatoes with chunks of potatoes, the cornbread, it was all so delicious. They also were serving kielbasa with sourkraut, a lovely beef stew, and other delectable dishes. The prices are so reasonable. I highly recommend Peters and wish it was around the corner from my house!! They also serve to go, have tables in the front and back of the restaurant (including a patio with picnic tables). It's air conditioned and the wait staff is sooo friendly. It doesn't look big from outside, but the food has BIG flavor and feels like mom cooked it for you! I loved the food and the prices!
Posted by: SE | July 16, 2008 04:40 PM