In this city, restaurants come and go faster than you can say "sustainable locavore burger." And even though there are great new additions to the culinary landscape popping up every week, you've gotta give kudos to anyone who can stick it out for over a year. With that in mind, we bring you Still Got It, our tribute to establishments that continue to serve mouthwatering meals and drinks long after the buzz has faded—or if the lingering hype is still justified.
Williamsburg's got a bunch of options when it comes to rooftop drinking, but it—and most other neighborhoods in the city—are a little more limited when it comes to sky-high dining. Luckily, Juliette, a charming little brasserie located just off the Bedford Ave L, has the benefit of boasting both a killer French-inspired menu and a stellar rooftop fit for summer feasting.
Juliette first opened in 2006, and though the neighborhood's gone through a steady stream of changes in those short seven years, the restaurant's remained pretty much the same. In addition to the rooftop, Juliette has a vintage bar in the front, a main dining room and a garden out back for private events. The interior rooms are wrapped with vines and decorated with a lot of French knicknacks like ceramic cats and noir advertisement posters, which can certainly get a little too Parisian street cafe-kitschy, but hey, it's Williamsburg, what isn't kitschy anymore, anyway? And if you're stopping by in warm weather, you really want to hang out on the rooftop anyway, which is outfitted with wide red umbrellas and a bamboo fence to shield your view of the brunchers waiting to get into neighboring Egg below.
Drink offerings at Juliette include a large selection of wines and beers, in addition to specialty cocktails like pear martinis ($12), Pimms cups ($8) and old-fashioneds ($12). But do be warned that Juliette's bar options aren't as good as the ones for dining, so if you're looking to do a lot of boozing, it's best to stick with something basic and save the fancy cocktails for some other spot in the neighborhood. Instead, focus on the food. For brunch, try the sweet roasted banana-stuffed french toast drizzled in maple syrup ($13) or the buckwheat crepe ($14) stuffed with ham, aged gruyere and a fried farm egg. For lunch, check out the spicy lamb burger ($16) served with goat cheese and pomme frites; dinner options of note include the hearty winter kale salad ($9) made with spaghetti squash, apples and idiazabal cheese, the garlicky escargot ($10), steamed mussels ($21) or the tender handcut steak tartare ($20).
Juliette decidedly edges toward the nouveau Williamsburg brunch scene set, so if that's not your thing, feel free to avoid it when hordes of Manhattanites invade the neighborhood on Saturdays and Sundays. But it's still a sweet little spot to sit, eat and people-watch, and that plate of garlicked-up little snails in front of you is just a bonus.
Juliette is located at 135 North 5th Street between Bedford Ave and Berry Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718-388-9222, juliettewilliamsburg.com).
