The Q at Parkside

(for those for whom the Parkside Q is their hometrain)

News and Nonsense from the Brooklyn neighborhood of Lefferts and environs, or more specifically a neighborhood once known as Melrose Park. Sometimes called Lefferts Gardens. Or Prospect-Lefferts Gardens. Or PLG. Or North Flatbush. Or Caledonia (west of Ocean). Or West Pigtown. Across From Park Slope. Under Crown Heights. Near Drummer's Grove. The Side of the Park With the McDonalds. Jackie Robinson Town. Home of Lefferts Manor. West Wingate. Near Kings County Hospital. Or if you're coming from the airport in taxi, maybe just Flatbush is best.

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Soulful Dining On Nostrand

Nicole Thomas, Tyrell Turner and Dina Anderson - at your service

The Q might as well change his name to Nostrandamus. As in, I'm predicting more and more fabulous choices for dining and shopping along The Nose, as I like to call it, starting today.

Tonight I joined some cohorts on the Community Board for dinner at Soulful Bistro, a 4-month old eatery just north of Empire a couple blocks. Like it's name implies, soul food is definitely in the house, but the menus definitely more than you'd expect from a Southern restauranteur, who happens to be a dazzling lady from Tennessee named Dina Anderson. She's added her own family recipes, even thrown in some West Indian fare. The Q sampled catfish, ribs, macaroni and cheese, yams and chicken (it was a buffet for this special occasion, though normally you'd be doing bistro style, so no I didn't go all Orson Welles on the place). Killer iced tea. Nice small dining room, a bar that'll be open soon (byob for now) and the kind of sweet unassuming charm that would make this place the talk of the town if your town was a wee bit smaller than, say, NYC.

Along with the outstanding Food Sermon (5 stars on Yelp after 32 reviews!) just down the block on Rogers, there's some serious good eats happening north of Empire. Will East Lefferts keep up? Well, Taste of Brooklyn, also on Rogers but below the Mason Dixon seems to be packin' 'em in. Stick to the Q and he'll do the gorging so you don't have to. Or feel free to alert us to your own favorites that I've yet to mention.