The “Beer Garden” Goes Kosher

By Mica Soffer
Photos: Sholem Srugo/COLlive

With all the myriad of new and trendy Kosher restaurants opening up these days, one would think you would be hard-pressed to come up with a concept truly unique and original.

And yet, three Brooklyn entrepreneurs have hit upon a notable concept in Kosher dining which has never been done before in the Kosher market, they said.

Toli Dubinsky, Isaac Bernstein and Zalman Skoblo have opened Grüit, the first of its kind strictly Kosher beer garden restaurant, on the border of Brooklyn’s Crown Heights and Prospect Heights neighborhoods.

The location is the old Toomey’s Diner, the place where the Brooklyn Dodgers would celebrate their World Series wins. It has been restored and converted into a warm and inviting space and attached landscaped yard, where families, couples, and groups of friends “will equally feel at home,” Dubinsky told COLlive.com.

Dubinsky, originally from Ukraine, and who owns a number of Beer Gardens and eateries in Brooklyn, is passionate about beer, along with offering high-quality affordable menu items, and was determined to bring it to the Kosher consumer.

So he teamed up with his longtime friends, Skoblo from Crown Heights and Bernstein from Far Rockaway, to create Grüit (pronounced Grew-it), a traditional beer garden offering delicious, hearty food, with beers and cocktails as a centerpiece.

“The first beer brewers were Jewish back in Europe and Russia,” Dubinsky told COLlive. “And back in the 1800’s many of the German and the Polish immigrants in New York were Jews who owned breweries – a few of them right here in Brooklyn. We are bringing it back to our Jewish roots.”

Bringing his vision for the menu to fruition while following all Kosher requirements was a challenging task, he told COLlive, but the result is incredible, and he has already been receiving delighted feedback from customers, including locals from Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens and beyond.

The menu, which they call a “modern, elevated take on Ashkenazic comfort food,” was developed with Chef Alan Harding, a 30-year-veteran, and combines old world traditions with new reinterpreted twists.

“American Ashkenazic Jews don’t really have an official cuisine,” partner Isaac Bernstein told COLlive. “So we worked with those dishes, and embraced those traditional foods that most New Yorkers are familiar with.”

Every item on the menu has Jewish roots, but these are not your grandmother’s dishes, he says with a smile.

The stuffed cabbage is filled, for example, with beef cheek and wrapped in “bacon.” The classic Kashe Varnishkes are prepared with truffle oil, wild mushrooms, and fresh herbs. Other items include Spaetzle with chicken confit, Gribenes with radishes and green goddess dressing, chicken liver with toasted sourdough and braised plums, and beer battered fish and chips with tartar sauce.

The drink menu features a cocktail menu with both signature and seasonal beer cocktails and a large variety of beer, 80% of which are from local New York breweries.

The restaurant offers private events indoors or outside with a tent option available, with seating indoors for 70 and outside for 100. They also offer catering and takeout for simchas, Sheva Brachos, corporate events and more.

Bernstein says what makes the restaurant unique is the vibe and social element – it’s a place to chill with friends and enjoy great food at a reasonable price.

“In the Kosher restaurant market today, there’s either high end or low end, there’s no middle ground, so even if they say they are so-called ‘middle ground,’ they are higher priced,” he explains.

“At Grüit, you’re getting high-quality gastropub food and not junk food. Our customers can come here often, enjoy a hearty and satisfying meal, without breaking the bank,” he says. “We are here to offer the community an affordable place to go out, eat delicious food, and enjoy a great social scene.”

Grüit
252 Empire Blvd
Brooklyn, NY 11225

(347) 846-0622

Under OK Supervision

www.gruitbk.com