The Williamsburg Nerd

The first thing that impressed me was the decor. The space has a nice open feeling to it and features some nice splashes of color, making it feel slightly upscale - but not so over the top that you don't feel at comfortable.

Next the food was a real pleasure to eat, and the menu had a nice wide range of choices. I also appreciated that fact that their menu was very vegetarian friendly, which makes a real difference for me. In my book you always get extra points when there are not one, but several items that a veggie can order - and Taco Chulo passes with flying colors.

Taco Chulo is the kind of place where you can go on your own or take a party of friends to hang out on a Sunday (did I mention they have a fully stocked bar?). The service was pretty fast and friendly, yet not too in your face which is very good if you're hanging out with friends. And last but not lest the pricing was very reasonable.

The Williamsburg Nerd rates Taco Chulo:

Brunchworthy!
+ Bonus Points for being Veggie Friendly

Taco Chulo
318 Grand Street (btwn Havemeyer & Marcy)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
Phone 718-302-CHULO (2485)

PLANET THAILAND 212 or "PT212" as it will become known, is pleased to announce its official opening in New York City at the end of May 2006, after a decade of successful business in its first and original location in Williamsburg. Planet Thailand ranks #1 as Brooklyn's most popular Thai eatery and hotspot. The Manhattan outpost, PLANET THAILAND 212, is located at 30 West 24th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, New York 10010, standing apart as a distinct and colourful, new enterprise with a history, within the rapidly redeveloping, landmark environs of Madison Square Park and the Flatiron.

Paramount to the dining experience at PT212, will be affordable sushi and Thai delights in abundance. The PT212 menu is nicely edited with all-time (Pad) Thai and sushi favourites, but allows for the chef team's daily inventiveness via a daily-evolving "East Meets West" Specials Entrée Menu, and a dedicated sushi bar seating six.

Requisite exotic cocktails are served at a large concrete bar in artful glassware or a simple coconut shell, and may be enjoyed while listening to pleasant sounds of a live DJ spinning nightly, and at a tasteful decibel level. All elements of cuisine, comfort, style and function have been well conceived to serve the needs of the city's most discerning revellers.

Ventilation is state of the art, which can be a concern in any large Asian eatery, but here creates the perfect balance. The Bissazza-tiled, gold-leaf and chandeliered, unisex loo facilities are not to be missed, as they are conveniently located both up and downstairs.

It's funny, not being an insider I never quite looked for ventilation as being such an important factor - but I can see their point...

Coffee makes us more likely to say 'Yes'

If you're looking for a way to make someone say 'yes', coffee can help. Moderate amounts of caffeine can have an impact on the extent to which we can be persuaded, finds research published today in the European Journal of Social Psychology.

The Australian researchers from the University of Queensland found that with caffeine consumption we are more likely to attend to, and agree with, persuasive arguments.

The experiments involved asking people their attitudes about voluntary euthanasia before and after reading persuasive arguments against their initial beliefs. Prior to reading the arguments, the participants consumed orange juice with either caffeine (equivalent to two cups of coffee) or no caffeine (placebo).

The level of 'systematic processing of the message' was found to be increased by caffeine as shown by increased agreement with the arguments, greater message-related thinking and better argument recall.

So maybe it's a better idea to meet a date for coffee rather than at a bar?

read more | digg story

Now even though Zocalo uses the term "TexMex fast food" that's a bit of an unfair description. Not only did the food taste great, but if you sit down the presentation is nice (real plates!) and the service is very warm and friendly. The have all the standard items that you would expect to see like burritos and nachos - but there are a few neat items on the menu that you wont see at most other places. For example the "Zocalo Burrito" features eggs mexican style and onions. The prices are very reasonable too, about $5 to $7.50 for a range of burritos - although budget minded hipsters can go for $2 tacos. There are only a few vegetarian items on the menu, but the ones that are there taste great and they seem to be willing to alter the ingrediens for you.

If your local train stop is the Marcy J line this place is perfect for grabbing dinner before heading home. Zocalo also does take-out and delivery and arre open up from around 11am to 10pm every day.

Zocalo TexMex
295 Broadway
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 388-2161

P.S. So for all of you wondering what Zocalo is a reference to, it seems to be a great square in Mexico City that pays tribute to the native Mexican culture:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zócalo

I just read a review of Capone's at 221 North 9th Street, this place sounds good:

Free Pizza Renders Leaving Bar Pointless

"It never hurts to have a gimmick, and that's especially true when you're running a joint on the bar-infested streets of Williamsburg, Brooklyn. One place to have confronted this problem head-on is Capone's, which hands out free 10-inch or so cheese pizzas the way most places serve bar napkins -- one per drink. Made fresh and with a good, chewy crust, the pies easily surpass many of the often plasticky slices sold for $1.75 in this fair city. (If you want a topping, they'll charge you $2 for the first one, and $1 after that.)"

Here is the official website:

http://www.caponesbar.com

It looks very hipster friendly too:

Forget Con Ed, Time Warner Cable, and Verizon — the one true monopoly in Williamsburg is the Kellogg's Diner. It's the only place for miles around that's open 24 hours a day seven days a week. Being a night owl the diner has always been a guilty pleasure of mine, it's never been about the food but being able to escape an apartment at 4:30 am. It's also a great place to people watch and it's the spot for hipsters to hang out after clubbing.

So I'm sitting there today and I notice that the entire deli wing of the establishment has been walled off — it seems the diner is planning some renovations to upgrade the place (including the quality of the food from what I understand). What scares me is that there is suppose to be a short period of time (I was told maybe February) when they'll close for a while and gut the interior. The only thing that makes me nervous about this is that sometimes an establishment can go under, so I'll be keeping my fingers crossed. I also hope that when they come back they stay open 24/7. In the meantime if you want to see their vintage bicentennial decor while enjoying the most greasy onion rings in all of Brooklyn you better get over there.

Photo found via the chomper.

Up until now for Mexican in Williamsburg I've always had to walk west over the BQE to get good Mexican (places like Zocalo, Buffalo Cantina and Taco Chulo) so I was very happy to discover Taco Bite which just opened on Rodney by South 4th just a block from my apartment on Keap Street.

The first thing that hits you is that the food is authentic and tastes great. My "regular" on the menu is their vegetarian burrito which always includes fresh veggies in addition to the usual rice and beans and always includes some chips and a very sharp salsa. I haven't tried it yet but they also have fried ice cream on the menu which looks amazing. In addition to the usual Jarritos they also have margaritas and espresso too. The decoration and service is nice, so you wouldn't mind hanging out there with your friends for a relaxing afternoon.

I haven't checked it out yet but they also offer a breakfast menu which includes non-Mexican treats like waffles and pancakes (they open at 7am if you're an early bird). Most nights they're also open late until 10pm, and on Friday and the weekend they're open until 11pm — although on Mondays they're closed. If you like to order in they have free delivery for orders over $10 (and they accept credit cards):

Taco Bite Restaurant
310 South 4th Street (by Rodney)
Brooklyn, New York 11211
(718) 302-1117