Back in 1999, Lawrence Elliott opened the Read cafe on Bedford Avenue, which was among the first hipster hangouts to stake a claim in the neighborhood. There were a slew of odd books and highbrow magazines to flip through, a sweet backyard, and a priceless Mr. T Chia Pet, which was so coveted that some bastard finally stole it. Anyway, Read finally closed in 2008, replaced by the ultra fastidious coffeshop El Beit, and Elliott decamped to the Southside, opening The Rabbithole Bistro on Bedford and South Third Street. It's been a humble neighborhood spot for years, but recently Elliott took the place to a new level. more ›

In this week's food news: Sapori d’Ischia rings in white truffle season, Del Posto hosts a Murray's Cheese tasting, Matsuri serves a sinful seven course menu, and Brooklyn's cookin' for the NYC Wine & Food festival. more ›

We recently interviewed chef Saul Bolton, whose eponymous restaurant in Boerum Hill just celebrated ten years in business. Today Pete Wells at the Times bestows two stars on the place, where the elegantly understated atmosphere provides a modest frame for Bolton's culinary ambition: "One of the first restaurants to bring a contemporary sensibility to Brooklyn when it appeared on Smith Street in 1999, it has neither faded, nor stood still, nor sought a personality transplant. Instead Saul Bolton, the chef and the owner with his wife, Lisa, has upgraded just about everything in their modest storefront. Saul is the same restaurant, but better." more ›

Ten years ago Saul Bolton and his wife Lisa opened Saul on Smith Street in Brooklyn’s Boerum Hill. At the time, the location probably seemed a little too remote for fine dining, but the restaurant has since become a favorite of locals, epicureans from other boroughs, and—since becoming one of only three restaurants in Brooklyn to receive a precious Michelin star—a destination for European tourists. Bolton spent his early years in the kitchens of David Bouley and Eric Ripert, and the meticulousness of his seasonal menu reflects those experiences. more ›

The NYT reports that a restaurant space under construction at 570 Vanderbilt Avenue called The Vanderbilt will be 150-seater operated by Num Pang partner Ben Daitz and Smith Street pioneer Saul Bolton, the chef and owner of Saul, one of the original new wave Brooklyn restaurants. We took a quick look at the Prospect Heights space (right) in April, noting that a small section of Vanderbilt Avenue is quickly becoming the home to a bunch of new restaurants and bars. And while The Vanderbilt is scheduled to open this fall, Frank Bruni pays an unrated checkup visit to Diner in Williamsburg, the decade-old wellspring of Brooklyn's New Culinary Movement, and the proving grounds of Tom Mylan and Sasha Davies' UnFancy Food Show. "Diner was doing the Brooklyn tropes before they were Brooklyn tropes," he writes. Opening chef Caroline Fidanza has moved down the street to companion butcher shop Marlow & Daughters, ceding the reigns to Sean Rembold. The food remains consistent but is expensive. Bruni laments that a once $9 chicken dish now costs a steep $22 is par for the course: "That’s inflation, yes," he admits. "But that’s also what happens when a neighborhood itself ascends." more ›