Brooklyn / Prospect Heights
Get directions | 605 Carlton Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11238
Hours | Sunday 11am-3:30pm | 5:30pm-10pm, Monday 5:30pm-11pm, Tuesday 5:30pm-11pm, Wednesday 5:30pm-11pm, Thursday 5:30pm-11pm, Friday 5:30pm-11pm, Saturday 11am-11pm
Have you ever sat down at a restaurant, read the menu, realized it’s full of the same stuff you see all the time, and assumed the meal that you’re about to eat is either going to suck or make you fall asleep? Well that’s what happened to us at James. Let’s run through the list of things available for dinner on any given night at this restaurant: Kale salad? Obviously. We were surprised it wasn’t served with some kind of ramp dressing. Pork belly? You know it. Roasted Chicken? Yup. Diver scallops? A ‘spring’ pasta? Skate? Hanger Steak? All present. A burger? ‘The best you’ll ever have. It will change your life,’ according to our server. You get the picture. We were of the mindset that unless Amanda Bynes came out of that kitchen high as f*ck and holding our food, this meal wasn’t destined for greatness. We were wrong.
The menu at James may not be all that original, but damn does it deliver the goods. This place reminds us of a Brooklyn version of Five Points, another restaurant that makes simple food seem exciting by making it taste really, really good. We actually enjoyed our meal at James so much that we decided to take our waitress up on that burger challenge…and had one for dessert.
The moral of the story here is that sometimes we just need to chill out. There are so many ridiculous dining trends to obsess over, but at the end of the day, it’s hard to beat well-executed, simple food. Thank you for the reality check, James. Now, who wants to go eat some bark and rocks at Atera?
718-942-4255
hello@jamesrestaurantny.com
http://instagram.com/jamesbklyn
Soups
$12
Celery Root Soup
celery root, local apple, pepitas, chive oil
dairy free, gluten free
$10
Bone Broth
chicken broth, herbs, turmeric, calendula salt
dairy free, gluten free
Vegetables
$10
Roasted Brussels Sprouts
chili, roasted garlic
$10
Turmeric Roasted Cauliflower
turmeric salt, castelvetrano olives
$9
Roasted Radish
radish top pesto, chrysantheumum salt
$10
Baby Japanese Potatoes
miso-butter, rosemary, spruce salt
$10
Charred Beets
coriander, citrus vin, wild thyme salt
$10
Pink Beet Dip
creamy roasted red beets, chickpeas, sumac, toasted miche, baby greens
$14
Roasted Carrots
house ricotta, toasted berbere, treviso, nettle salt
Snacks
$8
Crispy Chickpeas
rosemary, black salt
cooked in canola oil
$9
Herb Fries
hand-cut fries, herbs, sea salt
cooked in canola oil
$11
Parmesan Truffle Fries
hand-cut fries, grano padano, truffle oil, sea salt
cooked in canola oil
$5
High Vibe Popcorn
sumac, aleppo, turmeric salt
Small Plates
$18
Oysters
half dozen, plum mignonette, pink shallot granita
$8
Market Greens
shaved radish, lemon vinaigrette
$15
Little Gems
crispy sunchokes, castelvetrano olives, pecorino sardo, sunflower seeds, horseradish vinaigrette
$16
Tuscan Kale Salad
quinoa, almonds, ricotta salata, crispy egg, lemon vinaigrette
Sandwiches
$23
Grass Fed Burger
half pound, grass fed, cheddar, sesame seed bun
served with herb fries
$23
Autumn Burger
grass fed, sweet potato jam, pickled apple, sesame seed brioche bun
served with herb fries
Plates + Bowls
$17
Carolina Shrimp
crispy polenta, mizuna, herb sauce, ramp salt
$18
Favorite Bowl
olive oil poached chicken, black rice, beet hummus, kale, fennel, pickled radishes, sunflower seeds, turmeric-miso vinaigrette
$23
Cavatelli
broccoli rabe, house ricotta, chili flake, garlic
$25
Smoked Hudson Valley Trout
shaved kholrabi, capers, pine nuts, lemon vin, micro greens.
$24
Roasted Chicken
roast chicken breast with thigh confit, baby potato, radishes, shiso, lemon turmeric vinaigrette
$30
Hanger Steak
bitter greens, roasted fingerlings, chimichurri
