The Brick Cafe

            

December 5, 2008

The Brick Cafe

30-95 33rd Street

Astoria, NY 11102

The Setup: My mom, my sister and I went to NYC for the weekend to visit my brother and his girlfriend. We spent most of the first day of our trip in Manhattan visiting the Met and of course, finishing up some Christmas shopping! We left the house around 10:30 AM and after having only a light lunch at The Met, we had all worked up pretty hefty appetites by the time we got back to my brother's apartment in Queens around 6:00 PM. My brother and his girlfriend had already picked a place for us to have dinner: The Brick Cafe. 

The Experience: The Brick Cafe is a local restaurant in Astoria that my brother and his girlfriend like to frequent. Our party of 5 arrived around 6:30 PM on Friday night and although the restaurant had a good crowd, we were able to get a table right away.  The decor in The Brick Cafe is very rustic and homey and its menu, which is Italian inspired, has the same feel. Cold anitpasto, caprese salad and lobster ravioli are just a few of the menu selections. The only negative I have about our experience was the fact that our table was directly next to the door, which meant that every time someone came in or out of the restaurant, we got quite a draft! Although a little uncomfortable, it wasn't enough to spoil our dinner and once our drinks arrived we warmed right up!

The Food: Five of us went out to dinner - My mom, my sister, my brother and his girlfriend, and me. We each ordered a drink -

Mom and George - Blue Moon ($2.50 each)

Alex - Absolute Martini ($9.00)

Kate - Glass of Pinot Grigio ($6.00)

Me - Glass of Chianti ($7.00)

On my brother's recommendation, we got one appetizer to share - the Cheese Plate ($12.00). The cheese plate consisted of brie, goat cheese, manchego and smoked gouda, and was accompanied by grapes and a fig jam. We also had plenty of complimentary warm bread and olive tapenade which they were happy to refill for us once we had devoured the first basket!

For our meals -

Mom ordered one of the daily specials, lobster ravioli ($18.00). The portion looked small compared to everyone else's, but Mom said it filled her up and was delicious!

George also went with a daily special - the shrimp rissoto with champagne sauce ($17.00). The portion was large enough for him to have leftovers!

Kate decided on the Penne alla Vodka ($13.00). It was a simple dish which she enjoyed. Kate also had leftovers, which she happily ate for breakfast the next morning!

Alex had the disappointing dish of the night - Black linguine with shrimp, clams and mussels ($17.00). The seafood, especially the mussels, were extremely fishy tasting and inedible for her. She was able to eat around them, but even one bad mussel is definitely enough to ruin a whole meal. 

Lastly is my pick - The homemade gnocchi with pesto sauce ( $16.00). This pasta came with a choice of sauces and if I could do it over again I would have chosen the gorgonzola cheese sauce over the pesto. It's not that I didn't enjoy the pesto, but in hindsight, the gorgonzola would have been a better accompaniment to the gnocchi. 

(Note: I also had leftovers of my meal, which I took home and ate as a late night snack the next day. I have to admit - it was better the second time around! After sitting in the 'fridge overnight, the pesto gave the gnocchi a much more intense flavor than it had at the restaurant).

The Verdict: A. With the exception of the mussels from my sister's meal, we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at The Brick Cafe. The cheese plate was a great way to start off the meal, and they did have a nice dessert selection -- had we saved the appetite for it! I would definitely go to this restaurant again next time I visit Astoria - if for no other reason than to try that gorgonzola sauce that I should have chosen the first time! But there is another reason:  We took our time eating, drinking, and enjoying each other's company without ever feeling rushed or hurried along like you can feel in some restaurants. The Brick Cafe lent itself perfectly to our relaxing, cozy family dinner in the city. 

(Photo courtesy of www. brickcafe.com)