Review: The Gallery Cafe Opens in Dumbo
May 31st, 2011
Those of us who have been around Dumbo for a while know about the dearth of restaurant space in the area. This has to do with out-of-sight ductwork requirement to the roof of landmarked designated buildings in Dumbo, which is difficult and expensive. There are restaurateurs, celebrity Top Chefs, and world class sommeliers who live in the neighborhood and have looked for space in Dumbo, without much luck. So when new restaurants launch, you can expect a highly anticipated opening, as it was for Choice Market in February 2010. As much as the neighborhood wanted to love ‘Choice’, kinks and all, people were inevitably turned off by the slow service. After one year of operation, the owners of Choice Market (also known as Choice Kitchen) sold their business.
The new owner, Mike, is a seasoned restaurateur who lives in Brooklyn. He took over the space and soft-launched their new restaurant, The Gallery (d/b/a The Gallery Cafe) in April. The Gallery still provides breakfast items for dine in and take out (now serving Empire Coffee), and lunch to the working crowd. However, the evening service has been transformed into a dining experience. The original ceiling design remains intact but the bench seating was removed and drapes were added to conceal the bright kitchen area. The restaurant welcomes walk-in diners and those who just want to enjoy a nice bottle of wine or a pint of beer.
The food is best described as Mediterranean though the menu includes comfort food classics like burgers and mac ‘n cheese as well as Italian/French/Spanish influenced dishes. Appetizers include sweet shrimp delicately flavored with a savory cream sauce and tuna tartar with a dollop of caviar and a touch of soy chili sauce (see below pic). Short ribs with herb butter in a rich port wine sauce was slowly simmered for 8 hours to achieve that melt in your mouth quality. For sweet-tooths, the house-made desserts are high quality and vary nightly – pear custard tart, apple crumble pie, chocolate mousse, and red velvet cake were recently featured.
The Gallery is a restaurant that believes service and food quality should be first priority. The care Mike puts into service is evident when you see him in the dining room talking with each table as if they were his only guests.
The Gallery also provides a full catering service to businesses and homes in the area. They will deliver a full spread of delicious food complete with warming trays, utensils, plates, and linens. (View a few pics here).
Check it out and tell Mike DumboNYC sent you!
The Gallery Cafe (thegallerycafe.co)
108 Jay Street, Brooklyn NY 11201
718-797-1695
Hours:
Mon-Fri 8am-10pm
Sat-Sun Brunch 9am-4pm
facebook.com/thegallerycafe
17 Responses to “Review: The Gallery Cafe Opens in Dumbo”
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May 31st, 2011 at 2:31 pm
Ack, there goes my local source for Stumptown Coffee.
May 31st, 2011 at 2:42 pm
I was also hoping that Stumptown would stay, but I tried their Empire coffee today and was very good. Looking for @BklynRoasting to open soon on Jay St.
May 31st, 2011 at 5:56 pm
we kept trying this place, when it was Choice and now under new ownership, wanting to simply like it, not love it, no outsize expectations - and its hit or miss at best so we’ve just given. Aside from the changes in decor, little else has changed for the better – its just off in a different way. Mediocre menu that’s all over the place, and even basic stuff – an egg sandwich for example, can take 45 minutes. new owners try hard, yet have lots of excuses why they can’t get it together. disappointing.
May 31st, 2011 at 10:35 pm
I had brunch here with my girlfriend last weekend for the first time (never tried it when it was choice). The decor and atmosphere is really well done. Im not sure who designed it but there is a real attention to detail that is impressive. The service staff was friendly but the food came out pretty slowly. I had the veggie burger (one of a few vegetarian options on the menu) which I would describe as ‘decent.’ They have a vegan soup of the day which is encouraging for us vegans looking for more local options in the Dumbo but I would love to see them expand on the vegan selections. My girlfriend had the French Toast which she didn’t even eat. It was essentially eggy wet bread. I would love to go back but we were not really thrilled with the food. I would definitely stop in for a glass of wine after work as long as they are not playing “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” again (I kid you not). Desperate need of a new playlist.
May 31st, 2011 at 10:47 pm
With respect to brooklyn roasting- I peeked my head in the other day. They invited back when they were roasting for a taste! My most anticipated opening in the ‘hood for some time.
May 31st, 2011 at 11:38 pm
i’m excited too…they had some coffee outside for free a couple months back. so yummy. the dude said the ‘metal workers’ crafting the inside are taking a LOT longer than expected to get the place ready…hopefully it’ll be here soon! you can buy bagged coffee there now.
May 31st, 2011 at 11:54 pm
We also wanted to have a great restaurant in the neighborhood and decided to give this a try for Brunch. Sad to say the service was just awful. We waited for over 1.5 hours (and No the restaurant was not busy 3 other tables) for basically eggs and pancakes. I kept asking the waiter what was the problem its just breakfast food and I could see he was getting frustrated himself with the kitchen. I can’t blame the waiter as he is not cooking the food. It is clear ntg has changed there except ownership. Too bad, the food actually wasn’t bad, but If they can’t even cook eggs in under an an hour I hate to see what dinner service is like…
June 1st, 2011 at 6:41 pm
We went here for brunch a few weekends ago as well, but we had a great experience. The pancakes and french toast were perfectly cooked…And it didn’t take long at all. The squeezed juices were especially tasty too. I think the problem sometimes is that since everything is made to order, there aren’t enough line cooks to help speed up the process.
June 1st, 2011 at 7:05 pm
Flawed argument from someone who works at the restaurant:
1. This occurs when there are only 5 or less occupied tables in the restaurant, not at capacity, no line.
2. Should the restaurant be at full capacity, the line cooks should be able to comfortably accomodate as any other restaurant.
p.s. they should also lose the goofy live music.
June 2nd, 2011 at 4:08 pm
I think the problem with that operation was that they never really got the single menu/dining approach to work for the breakfast/lunch/dinner fare. The space and food was too slow and expensive for lunch and too casual and bright for dinner and too ‘cafeteria’ for weekend brunch. The design of the register locations and general slowness of service has also been a major issue there. Even a takeout coffee order can take longer than necessary at times. If The Gallery can address those issues perhaps they can garner some patrons.
June 3rd, 2011 at 1:01 pm
Before I write my review of the food I have a comment to make….in this terrible economy which has yet to recover I think it takes incredible gumption to purchase a business, no less a restaurant, which requires an incredible amount of work to get everything right. Kudos to the new owners for taking on such a daunting task. I think it’s pretty sad that people feel they need to write bad reviews for a new business that is still in its learning curve. New businesses create jobs and that’s what we need to get our country back on track. I, for one, always give a new business the benefit of the doubt and a fair chance before I go and bash it online.
Now for the food! I ate there with a group of six on the first Saturday they were open for dinner. I have never had breakfast or lunch there so I really can’t speak about that particular menu or service. But the dinner…really I have no words for how good it was! The Chef, Jay, is so talented. I had the Spinach Salad with grilled eel…delicious and very inventive. I rarely see eel on a menu outside of a Japanese restaurant. For my main course I had the rabbit which I also enjoyed very much. My husband had the short ribs which is his favorite dish to order when we go out and he loved them too. I also had the Arancini (riceballs) which was not like the Italian kind that I grew up with, but had entirely different flavors which worked really well together. I think it was the first riceball I ever ate that could rival my mother’s! And the desserts are to die for! There was no one in our party of six that wasn’t raving about everything they ate. We did wait a while for our food to come out but since we were amidst good company and great conversation it really didn’t matter. Anyway, the quality of the food was worth the wait.
June 3rd, 2011 at 5:27 pm
obviously you work for the restaurant, or know the owners because this is not, in any way, shape or form, indicative of what others have experienced at this restaurant. everyone in the neighborhood has given this restaurant - both before with old owners - and after the months of new ownership – more than a fair chance. the comments reflected are real experiences and are simply not acceptable after so many months of “soft opening.” the comments are consistent and certainly not manufactured for the sake of bashing a business owner. these are simple issues that should have been resolved months ago. i think it takes incredible nerve to suggest that people repeatedly patronize a restaurant with poor service and mediocre food. there are other, better options that do not require a waste of my time, money and disappointment – unless they’re giving the food away.
June 4th, 2011 at 1:14 am
yes, I do know the owners but I don’t work there. There is nothing in my review however that is a lie or exaggeration. My experience with dinner was just as I wrote it…the food was fabulous. The problems you and others have experienced are certainly of concern and are being addressed. However, I have just learned that there are people out there whose job it is to write bad reviews…yes they actually get paid for it. I can’t believe that such a job exists…pretty sad..so who knows really which reviews are real and which aren’t.
June 4th, 2011 at 7:54 pm
that’s just ridiculous.
June 8th, 2011 at 6:49 pm
This is a capitalistic society. The free market will decide whether this resturant survives. Bad restuarants will die, thats life.
June 11th, 2011 at 11:30 am
I want to give credit where credit is due. I went to the gallery when i just opened, it was a busy sunday brunch. The place was mostly packed and the staff obviously was having trouble handling it all, the meal took forever and I was annoyed. food was also so-so, apparently the kitchen was also struggling.
I went back with my wife last night for dinner, and it was a completely different experience, the service was quite good, certainly nothing to complain about there. we were also happy with our meals, while i just had a sandwich, there were some interesting items on the menu that deserve a shot.
All and all, I came away happy. so here it is, an endorsement for the gallery cafe.
August 17th, 2011 at 12:39 pm
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