By COLlive reporter
Eastern Parkway was recently titled Brooklyn’s Champs-Elysees. Looking down from Grand Army Plaza’s Memorial Arch, past the Brooklyn Public Library, the Botanic Garden and the Brooklyn Museum, you can be reminded of Paris and the broad avenues that radiate from the Arc de Triomphe, the New York Times wrote.
What would complete that Parisian aura, in a Jewish and even kosher manner, requires a short drive off the parkway to Chagall Bistro, a French food restaurant which opened a few months ago.
The first thing to know about Chagall (other than being named after one of the greatest Jewish artists) is that you won’t be finding it by merely driving through Brooklyn’s yuppie Park Slope neighborhood.
Located on the corner of Fifth Street and Fifth Avenue, it blends well with the line of eateries and bars. The only visible sign is “cafe” and “bar,” remnants from its previous incarnation as the non kosher Belleville Bistro.
Owner Sonia Halimi said a proper sign will go up when funds free up. She and her husband Dan invested and eagerly cooperated with Rabbi Kalman Weinfeld, restaurant coordinator for OK Kosher, to receive the strict certification.
In retrospect, the lack of a sign might be a good thing. There are Judaica artifacts and a proclamation by Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz in the glass breakfront, but this isn’t your typical kosher restaurant (case in point: No sushi, a nice change for once!). The retro-chic look and feel of Chagall Bistro promises you a different experience, albeit a kosher one.
We were a party of four and seated in the corner near the bar. Not far from us we identified a couple and a few girls from Crown Heights. Slices of toasted baguette were served with a soy bean dip.
Our appetizers were salmon sashimi on sliced beet and red pepper, almond milk based “mozzarella” with heirloom tomatoes (credit for the effort, less for the taste), and warn tender beef tongue served with sweet and sour vegetable relish and the French sauce gribiche (the latter a better accompaniment to the bread).
The dishes are beautifully presented and the menu is as eclectic as the setting and the background of French-born Chef Jean-Claude Teulode. This is his first foray into kosher, having been at the former La Cote Basque restaurant in Manhattan, once called the “temple of French cuisine.”
For the main course we went for the fish and chicken. The “fricassee minute of boneless chicken with market baby vegetables and a garlic-singer-soy reduction” was a generous portion and a colorful sight, yet didn’t exceed expectations.
Those that ordered the fish dishes said they were a central reason to visit again. The salt-encrusted salmon and potatoes were stunningly arranged on a rectangular plate and was absolutely delicious. And there was the seared tuna loin, which when eaten with the wasabi scented potato mousseline and flavored Jerusalem artichokes, results in a fascinating delight.
The dessert was also a highlight. We enjoyed a delectable creme brulee, which tasted as good as dairy, made with coconut milk.
Prices are on the higher side and parking can take a few extra minutes. Over all, it was a pleasant meal. The wait was not long, the room is not crowded, the waiters are attentive and there’s wine and beer on the menu. It is close to home yet has the full feel of ‘going out’. So, bon appetit!
Chagall Bistro
330 5th Street, Brooklyn NY 11215
Tel: 718-832-9777
Kashrus: OK Glatt Kosher
Hours – dinner: Sun-Thur 5:00-10:30pm
Hours – lunch: Sun 11:30am-3:30pm, Mon-Thur 12:00-3:00pm
emes Tatikoh.from your heimishe not sushi eating kinderlach!!!
AND JUST THAT YOU SHOULD KNOW #23 IT IS NOT I REPEAT NOT CLOSED….AND BORUCH HASHEM THEY ARE OPEN AND THRIVING SERVING HEIMSHE ESSEN FOR THE CROWD…. AH GESHMAKE FRIKESEE CHULENT KIGEL SHLISHKES…AND EVEN MAYIM CHAIM SODA….. AND IYH THEY WILL BE OPEN AD BEIAS GOIEL ZEDEK….. SOME OF YOU LIKE NOUVELLE CUISINE ..WIT SUSHI… WHERE YOU GET A BIG PLATE NICELY DECORATED… WHERE ONE PIECE OF HEIRLOOM TOMATOE SAYS TO THE OTHER…”VE BIST TE???”AND SOME OF US LIKE A BIG PLATE FULL OF GOOD FOOD WITH YOACH TO DIP IN YOUR BREAD… AHHHHHH GESMAKE!!. AGAIN MUCH HATZLOCHEH FOR ALL.… Read more »
just so you know, Gotlibs has been closed for a while.
Went there a few weeks ago and it was really good authentic French cuisine. Definitely worth a visit!
I have but one thing to say to your comment YOU ARE JUST PLAIN JEALOUS! In yiddish there’s another word for it AN OOMFARGINER!!!!! You should stay home and eat your own tasty spinach and leave everyone else alone- until you can change your attitude (or is it character?)
Was $200 for the 2 of us.. no drinks!!!
Like the owners, I found the restaurant to be comfortable and warm. Their food is high quality and you can tell a lot of work went into the menu. I’m a big fan of this establishment and highly, highly recommend it!
The couple who owns the place is so sweet!!! The food is also amazing!!!
They definitely have Lubavitch though I’m not sure it’s all Lubavitch, they hvae Lubavicthers Mashgiach there.
So well said, so Mentchlich, and so kind!
May others always look at you with an “Ayin Tova”. Impressed with your sensitivity.
Is it all Lubavitch Shchita? Is it available as an option?
hatzlacha!!!
I was just there last night with a friend, I gotta say it was a great experience, great food (I went with the chicken and I thought it was pretty awesome) nice size portion, waiters very helpful, not crowded all in all a very nice experience…. I would highly recommend it. (though you will bump in to other Lubavitchers :))
Sometimes a bad comment is really just the competition. Not necessarily limited to restaurants. Put downs usually come when someone else feels threatened in most instances. I for one hope they are terrifically successful!
I don’t know the owners & don’t go to restaurants much, but I think that if you had wanted to be helpful to a fellow Yid who is trying to make an honest parnassa you should have had a discreet conversation with the owner on the night you ate there, or picked up the phone & let them know your complaints. I think it is hurtful that you chose such a public forum to voice your opinion which could definitely impact their business. No restaurant, especially a new one, is going to bat a thousand with every customer every time… Read more »
Why people eat out so much in nyc??!! I love homemade food which is healthier , cleaner and cheaper!
Good luck!
do you think this would be a nice dating place? or would I bump into other Chabad/Crown Heights people?
i was just there today, great steak.
Just came from Gotliebs. in Wiliamsburg…had kigel chulent… how is that fro a new dining experience..?? and no sushi either!!!!!
Have Hatzlocheh…
Will check it out some time soon
bon chance
I’d like to try it!
Does the chef taste the food before it goes out? The tongue had a dark brownish color (should be on the reddish side) and tasted bland. The duck was served with some sort of sweet sauce that dominated the dish making the duck taste like tasteless chicken. What makes it worst is when you get the bill it’s insane. This being said let me know when you get a chef that CARES for the restaurant and I’ll give it another shot
but had to bring a salmon sashimi for the appetizer