Park Slope
On Friday night, I met up with a friend from Germany and his girlfriend to check out the wonders of Park Slope. I didn’t end up living in Park Slope because I thought the vibe wasn’t right and it was too far away from work. But it does seem like a fun area that I am excited to continue exploring.
Stop number one was The Chip Shop (383 Fifth Ave. at 6th St.) for some fish and, well, chips:-) The restaurant itself was great—bright yellow walls and lots of pictures and news clips of all things British. Matt had Dandelion & Burdock soda, which he said was gross, but other than that, everything was delicious. The cod and fries, served with tartar sauce and malt vinegar were crispy. I also had a side of British-style Heinz baked beans, which have more of a tomato sauce than American style baked beans. Trifle, spotted dick and the like were on the dessert menu, but we opted for something that has got to be uniquely American: fried candy bars! The restaurant fries Snickers, Twinkies, Twix, Mounds, and Bounty, but we chose to split two Reeces Peanut Butter Cups. What did it taste like? Well, like a battered and fried peanut butter cup--a warm, deliciously gooey peanut buttery gut bomb!
The second stop was The Tea Lounge, where the jazz group Waking Vision was performing. I was impressed with the lounge’s beverage selection but not the crowd. There were way too many tiny boppers posing as hipsters…and real hipsters, who I also found to be annoying. The guys cuddling on the couch, the two playing a never-ending game of chess and the laptop toting-intellectuals interspersed for good measure added to the strange mix. I can see myself going back on a Sunday morning with a newspaper(before hipsters are awake) but as evening hangout location, I think not. Also ranking high on my annoyance meter was the server who referred to everyone as “friend.” (okay, enough whining.)
Waking Vision is definitely a group to be heard! Though they had a clear jazz feel, they were also mellow like Nickel Creek but not quite as folksy. (That’s a strange and confusing description. Have a listen to the songs on each group’s website and see what you think.)
Stop number one was The Chip Shop (383 Fifth Ave. at 6th St.) for some fish and, well, chips:-) The restaurant itself was great—bright yellow walls and lots of pictures and news clips of all things British. Matt had Dandelion & Burdock soda, which he said was gross, but other than that, everything was delicious. The cod and fries, served with tartar sauce and malt vinegar were crispy. I also had a side of British-style Heinz baked beans, which have more of a tomato sauce than American style baked beans. Trifle, spotted dick and the like were on the dessert menu, but we opted for something that has got to be uniquely American: fried candy bars! The restaurant fries Snickers, Twinkies, Twix, Mounds, and Bounty, but we chose to split two Reeces Peanut Butter Cups. What did it taste like? Well, like a battered and fried peanut butter cup--a warm, deliciously gooey peanut buttery gut bomb!
The second stop was The Tea Lounge, where the jazz group Waking Vision was performing. I was impressed with the lounge’s beverage selection but not the crowd. There were way too many tiny boppers posing as hipsters…and real hipsters, who I also found to be annoying. The guys cuddling on the couch, the two playing a never-ending game of chess and the laptop toting-intellectuals interspersed for good measure added to the strange mix. I can see myself going back on a Sunday morning with a newspaper(before hipsters are awake) but as evening hangout location, I think not. Also ranking high on my annoyance meter was the server who referred to everyone as “friend.” (okay, enough whining.)
Waking Vision is definitely a group to be heard! Though they had a clear jazz feel, they were also mellow like Nickel Creek but not quite as folksy. (That’s a strange and confusing description. Have a listen to the songs on each group’s website and see what you think.)
posted by Erin at 5:01 PM
4 Comments:
Was it THE Matt from Germany? If so, tell him I said "hello!" next time you see him. If you're annoyed by hipsters, you're going to LOVE the scene in Midtown. Hipsters, wanna-be-hipsters, anti-hipster-hipsters, and post-hipster-hipsters abound.
FYI, there's another Chip Shop... In Brooklyn Heights! It's on Atlantic, between Henry and Hicks -- just a ten minute walk from your place. And there's a Tea Lounge in Cobble Hill as well. On Court St maybe 6 or 7 blocks South of Atlantic.
Funny that you chose two places in Park Slope that are, in fact, not unique to Park Slope. ;)
Indeed I was out with BUKA Matt. As luck would have it, he landed a job in Brooklyn Heights when he came back from Halle.
When are you coming to hipster-watch in midtown with me?
heh elevator buddy, are you teasing me?! :-) As I understand it, the Tea Lounge in Cobble Hill and Chip Shop on Atlantic are outposts of the orginal Park Slope locations. Interestingly, I just saw that the Brooklyn Heights Blog (www.brooklynheightsblog.com) wrote about the Chip Shop on Monday.
Do you have any restaurant recs that are unique to Park Slope?
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