Breaking down the best of 45 courses on Grand Street from Feb 18 to March 1
Restaurant Week is back on Grand Street for its 7th Winter Edition from February 18th to March 1st. 15 of the best eats in Williamsburg are offering 3 course prix fixe dinners (5 - 10pm) at discounted rates from $12 to $35 as Brooklyn’s annual answer to Manhattan’s pricier Restaurant Week. All along 6 blocks, it might be difficult to choose where to go or decide where new to try. Well here’s your answer as to why you should visit each participating restaurant on Grand Street and what you can order for the best experience. Each of the following restaurants has special event menus, so just ask for a Restaurant Week menu if you don’t see one.*
As always, take a picture of your dinner and post with #DineonGrand for a chance to win $50 to a Grand Street BID restaurant of your choice.
Follow @grandstreetbid for the most up to date information on the event.
Mainstay Must Experiences
Bahia Restaurant—$25
690 Grand Street — menu
It all starts with pupusas. If you’ve never had one, Bahia owners Luis and Felix say to think of them as like the “tacos of El Salvador”. The prix fixe menu at Bahia starts with 2 pupusas of your choice, a salad, or tamal de pollo. We, of course, recommend some of the best pupusas in NYC. Plenty of options for dinner, but our favorite is the Carne Asada: grilled boneless choice shell steak. You get two sides with the entree of your choice from a few options like mixed vegetables, rice, and roasted potatoes. Flan is for dessert and your meal is paired with a glass of delicious red or white sangria.
A hometown favorite, Bahia has been a dedicated community member of Grand Street for 20 years. In 2019, the restaurant doubled down on their dedication to the neighborhood with a complete interior and exterior renovation in order to stay ahead in a changing Williamsburg market. It’s not just about looks though, Bahia is confident that once you’ve had their pupusas and try a glass of their homemade sangria you are certain to return for more. Photo at top of article.
Los Primos—$25
704 Grand Street — menu
With 31 years of experience cooking on Grand Street, Los Primos has proven they have the chops to remain a hit. Despite their long history on Grand Street, they’re relatively new to our Restaurant Week. On joining, Christian who’s father owns the restaurant said, “being here for a while, it was like, let’s ride along with you guys and join the holiday – join the Grand Street BID in this journey” -Bkylner.
For your starter, go with nachos: chicken, ground beef, or cheese—your choice. Fried pork chops are a best seller and also on the Restaurant Week menu, so we recommend you take advantage. But the steak with onions and pork mofongo are also favorites. Finish the night with cheesecake (but the tres leches and flan are good choices as well).
If you visit on Sunday, take advantage paella deal at Los Primos for $10—offered every week.
Grand Morelos—$20
727 Grand Street — menu
Another Grand Street staple, Grand Morelos has been with the neighborhood day and night for decades—literally. The 24/7 diner & bakery has seen us all at our finest and not-so-fine hours. The Grand Morelos bakery is also one of the better kept secrets of our food scene, so take advantage. Guacamole is our go-to appetizer, but we also recommend the cheese quesadillas if you’re extra hungry. Hanger steak fajitas for your entree will fill you if the app didn’t, but try to save room for the Oreo cheesecake. Impossible chocoflan and tres leches cakes are your other options for Restaurant Week dessert. Once you’ve fallen in love with Grand Morelos stop back in for affordable cookies & doughnuts from the bakery and amazing iced coffee (not just by diner standards) any time you want - literally.
Biggest Discount
Indian Kitchen—$12 to $36
739 Grand Street — menu
Restaurant Week is made for sharing. Indian Kitchen wants you to bring your friends to max out on the deal. With 3 people Indian Kitchen provides a vegetable and meat appetizer, three entrees, two orders of naan, and Kheer (rice pudding) for dessert. On a typical night all of that could cost over $60—so make sure Indian Kitchen is one of your top spots for this event.
Fine Dining Experience
All pasta at Ammazzacaffè is made in-house
Ammazzacaffè—$35
702 Grand Street — menu
Winner of this year’s coveted Bib Gourmand title from Micheline Guide, Ammazzacaffè has already built its reputation for affordable fine dining at its best. Take advantage of Ammazza’s Tartare crostino with sea trout, caponata verde, and umeboshi as an appetizers. For your entree, try the Reginette—pork shoulder ragu—which Michelin called “Italian cuisine in all its glory”. Finish the night with buttermilk pannacotta with cherry and hazelnut for the perfect date or special night out on Grand Street.
If the food isn’t enough, visiting Ammazza offers a bit of historical experience. Their location at 702 Grand Street was the childhood home of Betty Smith, inspiring her classic A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. RSVP.
Best Quick Bite
Churros from Taco Edition
Taco Edition—$19
800 Grand Street — menu
A longtime participant in Restaurant Week, Taco Edition is one of our favorite spots for lunch or a quick afternoon bite. Even though the service is fast and the environment is seat yourself-casual, during Restaurant Week you’ll get a lot more than a 5 minute snack. Start with the jalapeño popper balls, move on to the chilaquiles verde with eggs, and finish with the yummy churros you see to the left.
New Faces on the Block:
Ham & cheese empanadas from Masa
Masa Empanadas—$12
804 Grand Street — menu
Masa Empanadas opened from the same owners of Piccoli to Go—remaining dedicated to the neighborhood and providing quick eats empanadas, salads, and pizza. Masa is offering two combos for deals featuring the range of their menu:
2 dinner empanadas—see options here (spicy crab not included); 1 dessert empanada—banana nutella or apple cinnamon; and a salad—caesar kale or Italian vinaigrette arugula
1 pizza—classic, spicy chorizo, or 4 cheese; a salad; and a drink
Our favorite empanadas are ham & cheese, corn, and apple cinnamon. All three pizza options are good but we tend to stick to the classic and the kale caesar is our salad of choice.
Chongkho—$20
562 Grand Street — menu
Butterfly pea lemonade and Thai iced tea
Chongkho opened in August with an eccentric gate mural by well-known artist JPO and serving Thai home cooking. A family owned restaurant, Chongkho offers a warm dine-in environment with welcoming service.
The chicken curry puffs are an appetizer to die for, followed by either drunken noodles or red curry for the main course. The Thai iced tea is truly a standout and Chongkho is preparing a crêpe specially made for Restaurant Week as an option for dessert.
Bright colored decorations and drinks reflect the up-beat atmosphere in Carneval
Carneval—$25
507 Grand Street — menu
Carneval also opened in August featuring specialty cocktails and Latin-inspired cuisine. Owner Mike Cruz grew up just blocks from the restaurant and has created a go-to spot for Williamsburg natives and newcomers alike. A mural of a carnival-themed festively packed J train along the back wall of the restaurant demonstrates Mike’s inspiration and commemorates the Latin heritage of our neighborhood. Carneval is also regularly host to performances and hosted their own toy drive for the holidays.
Most Filling
Ryujin—$25
513 Grand Street — menu
Something about the ramen from Ryujin leaves us stuffed after every bowl. Now add an appetizer and dessert to the mix to really make the most of a 3 course dinner. Keep it light with your app so go with the Japanese pickles or the fried shishito peppers. You can choose from 8 different options of ramen bowl, but our favorite is the spicy miso bowl. Finally, the meal is paired with either beer, sake, or ice cream. The jury is out here so we’ll leave that choice to you.
Most Controversial
Mad for Chicken—$20
617 Grand Street — menu
Boneless or bone-in? Luckily both genres of wing are on the menu. The chicken at MFC is shipped in daily from a farm in Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania and the wings are coated with a unique sauce of soy, garlic, and various fruits. On the appetizer menu, the standouts are the small crab salad or the truffle/ Parmesan fries. We recommend the 10pc wings (with or without bones—your choice) for entree, but kimchi fried rice and kimchi quesadillas are available for non-wing lovers. For a drink you can choose between any draft beer, a glass of sangria, or a soda on the house.
Favorite Mom & Pop
The Sandwich Shop—$20.75
658 Grand Street — menu
The cozy lunch and dinner spot has brought high-quality deli style sandwiches to Grand Street since 2013. The space also feels like a deli, with just a few stools around the bar to dine-in, so get there before they fill up.
Valued members of the community, the Shop has collected and donated over 200 lbs of food in our annual Holiday Food Drives. You can also find The Sandwich Shop in the Wall Street Journal from our last Restaurant Week. All sandwiches, bowls, and wraps are available—but the best bang for your buck is the turkey double decker sandwich to go along with the combo of a beer and bag of chips.
Best Cocktail
Crystal Lake Brooklyn—$20
647 Grand Street — menu
Antique lounge area at Crystal Lake. Photo courtesy of Crystal Lake Brooklyn & JD Hall Photo
The bar is best known for its antique bar and large back space which regularly hosts comedy shows and similar type events. Teaming up with Tacos Lokos 4Ever, Crystal Lake has the best drink and food combination in the event. The entree is a pair of tacos with the meat of your choice or veggies with a side of rice and beans. The cocktails provide the biggest discount and your choices are a cucumber vodka ricky, rose vodka spritz, watermelon gimlet, or the Zebra-Rita.
Most Options
Thip Osha—$25
795 Grand Street — menu
Roasted duck noodle soup from Thip Osha typically costs $16
A cozy Thai spot nearby the Grand Street L station. You may have already tried Thip Osha at Taste of Williamsburg & Greenpoint this past summer. Altogether, there are exactly 50 options on the prix fixe menu at Thip, so there is surely something that will please everyone from curry to noodles to fried rice. Out of all of those choices, our favorites are the crispy chicken wings with red chili sauce to start, roasted duck noodle soup, and banana sticky rice for dessert.
Best Late Night
Los Tacos-McOndo—$28
502 Grand Street — menu
The chic bar and taqueria is a cool spot for late night dinners, dates, and eats after a night out. Open until 3am on the weekends and at least 1am on every other night, Los Tacos is one of the most high quality late night restaurants in Brooklyn. The nachos are absolute standouts at Los Tacos, and you can choose them either as a starter (mini nachos) or as an entree. We recommend at least one of those in your mix. The queso fundido is also very good, but if you’re limiting carbs you can choose the Mexican steak to go with the nachos. Churros with fruit are for dessert, with mango and chili powder as the primary flavors. Note that Los Tacos is cash only.
*Dine-in meals only. After 5pm and no later than 10pm. Tax and tip not included in price. Price is per person and cannot be shared. Event discounts are in effect from Feb 18 to March 1. Restaurants may be closed any time during the event period at their discretion. Price and participants subject to change. Contact info@grandstreetbk.org with questions.
