Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Brooklyn Label - Hard Grubbin? Hardly.


Having won Time Out's 'Best Brunch in Brooklyn' award for 2008, it is impossible to get brunch at Brooklyn Label without having to wait an hour. Which is surprising considering the location involves a trip on the G train (please refer to Skip's post for further information concerning the G train).
So I opted for the dinner menu instead. Having spent a few years living the the South, I took immediate notice to the Chicken and Waffles and ordered the $12 dish. The item, however, in fact turned out to be $16 as the waitress informed me they had raised their prices.
Okay no biggie, let's see what I'm paying for. At first I thought the waitress had confused my order. I mean, sure, there was the waffle, but on top was what looked like a pair of chicken wings. "That's the fried chicken," the waitress explained succinctly.
So turns out not only was Brooklyn Label charging $16 for a leg and thigh of chicken, but the pieces were so small they looked like wings. Since there was nothing in the form of marinade (gravy, syrup, anything) I asked my waitress for some hot sauce.
"We don't have hot sauce, I can give you some chipolte mayo instead, it's pretty spicy."
Okay don't freak out Hurricane, I had to reassure myself, and regained my composure.
I must note, upon finally diving into the fried chicken, it was pretty damn tasty. Lightly battered, not too greasy, lots of flavor. More along the lines of Shake and Bake, the fried chicken lacked crisp, but also felt like it wasn't too unhealthy.
Unfortunately, before I could even savor the taste I was already done. The waffle beneath was pretty average, slightly undercooked and chewy instead of golden brown and crispy as should be.
The verdict... Hard grubbing? Hardly.
I would recommend it to millionaires, however, as I could see getting three orders of this dish (coming out to about $50) qualifying as 'Hard Grubbin.' If you're like the rest of us, however, I'd say find some Shake and Bake at your local grocery store.
Either that, or Jimmy's Diner in Williamsburg, which boasts the same item. Even though as a fellow Hard Grubbin contributor pointed out, the three chicken pieces are kind of strange (as in, 'which part of the chicken is this from?'), at least they're normal size and doused in delicious white gravy all for $10.

2 comments:

  1. Interesting and controversial commentary on one of Brooklyn's most celebrated grubbin spots. It's straightforward investigative reporting like this that makes Hard Grubbin your most reliable spot for all your grubbin needs.

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  2. Who gave this restaurant the right to give you 'chipotle mayo' as a substitute for any kind of gravy?

    I picture Hurricane Nads drowning. Nads says, "Throw me a line!"

    The waitress, confident but assuringly throws Nads a lime.

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