Basil Restaurant Reopens as Biarritz of Crown Heights

By COLlive reporter
Photos: Aharon Gellis/COLlive

Biarritz Pizza and Wine Bar, the new restaurant in the former location of the popular Basil Restaurant, has finally opened in Crown Heights on Thursday with a limited menu.

While the decor of the restaurant may seem familiar, featuring the same warm lighting, wooden bench seating, and marble-topped tables, longtime fans of Basil will notice subtle changes and updates have been made throughout the restaurant.

The store windows, formerly featuring metal windowpanes, have been replaced with new large clear windows, and regular-size tables have replaced the communal table, which stood near the door for 2 and 4 people.

The largest update is the centerpiece oven, which is no longer a wood-burning one but an electric one, and the chefs were already churning out piping hot pizzas for hungry patrons.

The menu has been updated as well, with truffle fries replaced by larger hand-cut fries (thankfully still sprinkled with parmesan cheese) and new pizzas and fish dishes planned for the menu.

Chef Michael Arrington, who has a broad range of experience in the fine dining space, says he has worked with French and Asian cuisine, “from Chinese to Korean, to Japanese, and everything in between,” he told COLlive.com, adding that he is “looking to create a ‘new Kosher cuisine.'”

“I plan on introducing the Kosher market to foods not found in the traditional Kosher market,” he says. “Everything that I prepare, I plan to take the ideas from the high-level restaurants, get the Kosher approval from the CHK, and create those dishes here,” he says.

“I hope that other Kosher chefs may be inspired by what I am creating and will want to do the same,” he says.

Arrington says that to his surprise, he’s been able to obtain many of the ingredients he is accustomed to cooking with, having been introduced to Benz’s Gourmet in Crown Heights.

“I’m super impressed with what they have available, and it makes my job a little easier that these things are out there,” he says. Although he says he is up for a challenge when he does come across items he can’t get. “If you give a chef many restrictions, many times, they will be forced to be much more creative,” he says. “And the result will be that much more amazing.”

The menu includes pizzas, fish dishes and coffees, as well as beer and wine. The restaurant will be serving a seasonal menu, using farm-fresh items, so it will be changing frequently.

For now, his favorites are an Asian-inspired salmon dish with seaweed puree and pickled ginger puree, and the Bianca pizza, which will have a white truffle puree.

“I want people to be surprised when they try my dishes and say, ‘Wow, I didn’t know these flavors could be applied this way,'” he said.

The restaurant is currently working on installing a grain mill in the kitchen, and they plan to create their own pizza dough with their own signature flour in the next couple of months.

“This grain will be fresh and will be easier for some individuals with grain sensitivities to enjoy,” the Chef explains.

Biarritz, named after the elegant seaside town on France’s southwestern Basque coast, is currently having a soft opening, and will be having its official opening next week.

Biarritz: 270 Kingston Avenue, Brooklyn, NY.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by COLlive (@colliveofficial)