Illustration by Kikuo Johnson

Applewood
Butter-poached Maine lobster, followed by braised Vermont suckling pig with sautéed leeks, and a chocolate-soufflé cake for dessert. Does this sound like your average Brooklyn menu? Well, it isn’t.

360
Provided you can find it (it’s tucked next to an old funeral parlor in Red Hook), this is a French bistro even the snottiest Manhattan food snob can love. The steak tartare is the best in Red Hook, or anywhere else.

iCi
The proprietor of this restaurant in Fort Greene has worked at Balthazar and Bouley. But you won’t find organic grits like this at either place, or crunchy cauliflower, or bottles of excellent biodynamic wine for $25 or less.

Al Di Là
A mom-and-pop shop for the discerning diner. Do what the locals do and order the malfatti (Swiss-chard-and-ricotta gnocchi), casonziei (red-beet ravioli), or the braised rabbit with black olives and polenta.

Franny’s
Andrew Feinberg (pictured) and Francine Stephens’s new pizza mecca, in a borough famous for pizza meccas. This being a new Brooklyn pizza mecca, of course, everything is organic.

Related:

• Archive: “Features”
• Articles by Adam Platt
• Table of Contents: January 9, 2006 issue of New York | Subscribe!