Flatbush Farm (formerly Bistro St. Marks)

Subject: Re: Flatbush Farm (formerly Bistro St. Marks)

sarahb wrote: Today at Gorilla I met this guy who is opening a restaurant called Flatbush Farm in the old Bistro St. Marks space... the bar is already open and the restaurant will open soon. Will be American cuisine w/ a natural/organic focus. Saw flyers around the nabe too.

Anyone think this ad is for that place?
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/ret/176691287.html
It looks to me like they don't have a chef yet (or at least they didn't as of a few days ago).

Subject: Re: Flatbush Farm (formerly Bistro St. Marks)

alafairnadia wrote: [quote=Carnivore][quote=sarahb]Today at Gorilla I met this guy who is opening a restaurant called Flatbush Farm in the old Bistro St. Marks space... the bar is already open and the restaurant will open soon. Will be American cuisine w/ a natural/organic focus. Saw flyers around the nabe too.

Anyone think this ad is for that place?
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/ret/176691287.html
It looks to me like they don't have a chef yet (or at least they didn't as of a few days ago).

that or the half replacement ....
Could be, although they do say "Park Slope/Prospect Heights" which that location fits pretty well, and the half spot doesn't so much.

I actually know the family that owns it and they are great plus I live around the corner, so I wish The Farm all the success in the world. Maybe there should be a happy hour there? Heard they have a nice garden.

Subject: Re: Flatbush Farm (formerly Bistro St. Marks)

sarahb wrote: Today at Gorilla I met this guy who is opening a restaurant called Flatbush Farm in the old Bistro St. Marks space... the bar is already open and the restaurant will open soon. Will be American cuisine w/ a natural/organic focus. Saw flyers around the nabe too.

At the Community Board 8 meeting in June, the old owner of the Bistro applied for a beer and wine license for a place directly across Flatbush from his old establishment. For those of you who missed him.

i don't think it's open yet

Really? That's weird, because the wife of the owner told me to let her know when I was going to stop by and that was about a week ago. Hmmm...maybe I will check it out this evening an see what's up.

So Idlewild, alafairnadia and I stopped in here after dinner tonight. Great spot. The atmosphere was nice, the beer selection excellent, and there were a variety of sitting areas for different moods (the overall vibe was extremely mellow). They have a bar food menu that looks really promising (we were assured that the restaurant kitchen will have a much more extensive menu once it opens). Plus the staff actually shooshed someone who was yelling annoyingly! The music was a little random, but I'm sure that will vary. Overall, I think this is a spot I'll be returning to often. It would also make a great spot for happy hour (hint! hint!).

apollonia666 wrote: That's great to hear! The handful of times I went to Bistro St. Marks I was downright infuriated by the horrible service. Such a waste of a great space.

Any sense of what kind of food they're going to have when they open for full service?

the bar food menu was VERY tempting. we were just seroiusly all full of delicious sushi. the food all looked eclectic, vaguely healthy, and tasty. not too pricey (half or beast prices) but not cheap-o, either. there was something with asparagus and bacon that I'm totally going to eat next time I go there.
the service was a little spastic, but we were at the empty end of the bar and I didn't have my boobs exposed so ....

Loved the Bistro St. Marks garden. I'll have to check out this new space.

Has anybody been to the new spot on Union with the indoor bocce lanes? It looks cozy, but maybe it's too hip for the likes o' me.

Six of us stopped by Flatbush Farm about midnight last night. The garden looked great and the decor was nice but there was very little in the way of atmosphere. Maybe we turned up a little too late but there were very few people outside and in which made it feel pretty empty.

We'll happily give the place another try. And I'm sure it will only get busier once it gets going, but I have to say we were a little disappointed. Soda is normally humming around midnight and Beast is always cozy.

Should we try to do it this Thursday? It's tough during the summer because everyone usually has plans already. If 2 more people express interest, I'll start a thread.

stopped by with a friend for a mostly-liquid dinner on monday night.

we both liked the vibe. good lighting. nice wood. cute staff. mellow. not too loud for conversation.

cocktails well mixed.

whites by the glass = nice enough selection

service -- apparently still *training*, but gracious enough to be endearing.

barfood -- the white bean-thing with olives was very good, as were the deviled eggs; the spinach salad with gorgonzola, pistachios, apricots was
okay...a little too skewed fruit-to-veg for my taste. the smoked salmon with pickled beets was.....well....i'm thinking pickling beets is not a good idea, regardless of the accompanyment.

if the bar can keep up the mellow 'tude, i am thinking it will fill the 'half' void, which i am hoping it does. despite half's 'issues,' i admit to missing that local scene.

oh yeah. and while i was there, they were playing zappa covering zeppelin. i kvelled :oops:

Pricey food is bland and comes in small portions.

Subject: It's not that bad

Personally i like Flatbush Farm if only for the beer selection and the French Dip sandwich. I feel it gets a lot of bad press and it is generally due to the lackadaisical service. Yes, I agree the service is not prompt nor is it attentive, but if you know that going in it can be a relaxing place with some good food. On the flip side I usually stick to the artichoke dip, the mac and cheese (which has been spotty), the burger and french dip so I can't speak for the whole menu.

last time I was there I had mac & cheese which was gritty and just ... not that good. I also had a half dozen oysters at some absurd per-oyster price (why do restaurants do that if they're only serving one variety? offer 1/2 doz and full doz!). they were shucked so poorly - as in not detached at all and full of grit from the outside of the oyster - that they were inedible. pretty sad