Brick Oven Bar Be Cue in Gowanus Takes First Steps

Sunday’s 3rd Avenue In Brooklyn Is About To Be Rampant With Yuppies Times article glossed over the presence of a new restaurant on the block, Brick Oven Bar Be Que & Pizza. One gets the sense that owner Emmanuel Maropakis is involved in something downright quixotic here. Messages like “Free Coffee” are spray painted on the outside of the brick building, and at different times during the day such words appear only with considerable eye strain, just like one of those old Magic Eye illustrations. Most of the time they’re plainly visible: “Grand Opening NOW SOON says another one. The restaurant’s interior is sprawling and curved, airbrushed with cloudy purple-pink accents. Mr. Maropakis built the restaurant’s brick oven himself, and the Times says it can handle an insane “1,000 pounds of meat at a time.” A big oven is clearly visible from the dining area.

The first Chowhound write-up of the place (from March 4) noted a number of oddities, and proposed “they opened before they were ready.” Last week, it seemed like they still weren’t. A heaping portion of real french fries would have been perfect if they had been blanched in oil, rested, and then re-fried when ordered. Smoked brisket ($7.50) and pork shoulder ($5.95) sandwiches served on small frisbee-sized rolls were filled with tasty charred meat, but not much else that was likable. Shoulder slices were served intact with globules of intramuscular fat typically absent from so-called pulled pork; both sandwiches had taken a frantic shower in something like Open Pit Barbecue Sauce. A general rule of thumb is that when real smoke is involved with the cooking process, artificial smoke flavoring shouldn’t require that much plate space.

Rumor has it that Mr. Maropakis turned down millions for the space, opting to open the restaurant instead as a labor of love. Accordingly, there’s no reason why the fledgling restaurant can’t improve. Brick Oven Bar Be Que & Pizza (there’s no pizza yet, by the way) has its oven, at least, and that’s a start.

Brick Oven Bar Be Cue, 402 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn. (718) 596-6141

Photo: Not so pulled pork