Marlow & Sons
81 Broadway between Wythe Avenue and Berry Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211
718-384-1441
Marlow & Sons had a while ago been recommended to me by Stacy, but as Dave found ourselves in the area, we decided to finally check it out. Walking to it from the subway, we passed Peter Luger, and the wonderful aroma of steak entered our nostrils. Mmm. As this is Williamsburg, Marlow & Sons is hipster central. Lots of tattoos and such. Even though it was prime dinner time on a Saturday night, we lucked out and snagged a table outside; other parties of two didn’t have to wait all that long either, but large groups got to know the sidewalk quite well. No reservations are always frustrating, but at least plastic is accepted. Outside seemed like the sweeter deal since inside was dark and noisy.
The seating is typical New York, very tight. That is why we ended up listening to what our neighbors were saying, not because we wanted to but because we had no other option. The pretentious pregnant couple always seemed to be getting their food before us even though we ordered before them. Suspicious. The bathroom has a scale for some reason, and it also has Dr. Bronner’s soap.
Our waitress knew her stuff, but owing to it being a Saturday night, there were large gaps between ordering and eating. The menu is quite small, and only three entrees are listed. The food items are not described in detail, and therefore the waitress has to describe them over and over to each group. Although many of the plates sounded appealing, we finally settled on our choice, but we ordered drinks first. I got the Forrest Hills ($10) which was a cocktail concoction of Earl Grey Boodles Gin, Pimms, lemon, and ginger ale. It was quite ginny. Okay, but I’d prefer a Pimms cup instead.
Dave ordered the chicken liver pate ($11) and I went with the crostini ($8) for my appetizer. The appetizer also featured stuff like salads, soups, oysters on the half shell at $2.75 each (I’d get ‘em if they were cheaper), cheeses, meats, fettuccine, and morel toast. The evening’s crostini was garlic sauteed broccoli with goat cheese and parm, all on sesame bread. Yum! I’d like the bread to be more toasted, but oh well. The pate was out of this world. What a generous ice cream scoop size serving too. Needed a little more bread, and I’m sure we could have gotten it, but it was easier to not ask for it and wait around.
As for the matter of entrees, I selected the soft shelled crab sandwich ($16), and Dave requested the off-the-menu steak ($29). The steak earned raves from Dave, and I was also keen on my crab sandwich. I will freely admit that it was on the small side, and the chips weren’t my bag as they were spiced with some hot herb. Loved the touches of bacon on the sandwich and the delish mayo based sauce and lest I forget the pickled red onions. Mmm.
Maybe Marlow & Sons keeps the portions small so that you are sure to order appetizers and desserts? If so, well done. There were three desserts featured that evening: mint chocolate pot de creme, buttermilk panna cotta with strawberries and rhubarb, and a caramel chocolate tart with sea salt. We decided that the latter should grace our taste buds. The slice that came out of the kitchen was massive. See below. It was incredibly rich. And it was cold and hard to cut; we had to ask for a knife. Oreo-like crust. My main criticism was that it was too salty. The insides were salted as well as the top. Sea salt is potent and packs a punch; just on the top would have been fine for me. Or at least reduced within the chocolate and caramel parts. Mmm otherwise!
I got a kick out of scrutinizing the hipster girls’ ugly outfits. Gosh, fashions nowadays are wacky. If you want people watching, Marlow & Sons has got it. Sister restaurant Diner right next door is supposed to be superb, so I look forward to trying that soon.
