By Stacey Lastoe
With the busiest travel season nearly upon us, it’s no surprise that many Brooklynites are choosing to stay put and enjoy a quieter borough for the long holiday weekend. While many may have already preordered the bird and fastidiously compiled a menu of side dishes that accounted for the prep involved with each, others are making dinner reservations for the last Thursday of the month. Making a Thanksgiving meal is, more often than not, a significant undertaking, which is why many of us are choosing to leave it to the pros.
Whether you’re craving the traditional flavors of the Thanksgiving feast—turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, and green bean casserole—or don’t much care for the November classics, rest assured, there’s a restaurant in Brooklyn ready to welcome you and yours with open arms on the holiday for giving thanks. Here are seven good options.
Meadowsweet
Address: 149 Broadway
This Williamsburg restaurant has been going strong since 2014, when wife-and-husband duo Stephanie Lempert (the current director of operations) and Polo Dobkin opened their spot on Broadway. Two-hour seatings are available from 1 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., so if you prefer a midday meal followed by a luxurious nap, you’re in luck. The three-course menu is $125-plus and just $45 for kids under 12. Vegan dishes are available upon request, but for those with no dietary restrictions, a burrata and delicata squash is a tempting starter, perhaps followed by a spiced duck breast served with sweet potato and other accompaniments. Of course, turkey—organic and served with cornbread chestnut stuffing—is also a sound option.
Olmsted
Address: 659 Vanderbilt Ave.
This farm-to-table Prospect Heights spot is serving a four-course, market-driven menu on Thanksgiving. The $145 meal (tax and gratuity not included) features duck fat chestnuts, garlic roasted beets, and a full turkey dinner complete with gravy, sweet potato duchesse, brussels sprouts, and an orange-braised cranberry sauce. Reservations, starting as early as 11 a.m. on Nov. 28, can be made via Resy. Pair the multi-course menu with wine for an additional $55 and know that children under 10 will receive a kid-friendly menu for just $50. Solo diners or anyone who just loves a cozy meal at the bar can book a spot with even easier access to the restaurant’s libations.
Peter Luger
Address: 178 Broadway
Turkey is not everyone’s cup of tea. Which is why we’re grateful for Thanksgiving Day options like Peter Luger, a South Williamsburg institution dishing up juicy, buttery Porterhouse steaks (simply referred to as steak for two, three, and so on), creamed spinach, and German fried potatoes on Nov. 28. The best way to begin a meal here, however, is with an expertly made martini, savored at the bustling bar. After you’ve whet your appetite, move on to the dining room, where you can dig into a basket of warm rolls (the onion rolls are the clear winner) and an iceberg wedge with bacon, natch, before continuing to the piece de resistance. Just make sure to save room for the ice cream sundae with an impressive side of schlag (Luger’s homemade whipped cream)—after all, this is the holiday where gluttony is practically mandatory.
Rucola
Address: 190 Dean St.
Ticketed Thanksgiving seatings start at 12:30 p.m. on turkey day and go until 8 p.m. For $82 (and $40 for kids 12 and under), you’ll enjoy a first course featuring the chef’s selection of meat, cheese, and vegetable antipasti and market greens. Heritage turkey—with all the fixings, including stuffing, cranberry sauce, and rosemary potatoes—is one of two second-course options; the other is a pumpkin, ricotta lasagna, and dessert is pie from Brooklyn’s own Four & Twenty Blackbirds. You’re here for the food, yes, but the convivial atmosphere on a beautiful Brooklyn street adds to the appeal, and we can think of few better restaurants to spend the Thanksgiving holiday.
The Osprey
Address: 60 Furman St.
The special Thanksgiving menu, curated by Aaron Kiser, the executive chef, will be served from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. for $115 per person (and $45 for children). Start with a chicory salad or a seasonal butternut squash soup before moving on to a main, where selections include turketta (Green Circle turkey, deboned, rolled and herb-roasted served with sausage focaccia stuffing) or Osso Bucco for non-turkey lovers. Mushroom risotto rounds out the entrée choices, and side dishes are served family-style. For dessert? Pumpkin pie, made extra special with the addition of a pine nut brittle, and budino di pane are sure to satisfy the ol’ sweet tooth.
Levant on Smith
Address: 223 Smith St.
This Thanksgiving meal is not like all the others: Levant on Smith has tossed a complimentary glass of wine, a cocktail, or a mocktail into the experience. The menu, $65 for adults and roughly half that for children under 12, begins with an amuse bouche—chicken croquettes, anyone?—and is followed by your choice of a main. Turkey is one optionif you’re keen on going the more traditional route; for everyone else, there’s a choice of steak frites, seabass, or a vegetarian option. Dessert is classic pumpkin pie or classic French: creme brulee. Either way, you can’t go wrong.
Siren Oyster Bar & Restaurant
Address: 687 5th Ave.
For less than $100 (the three-course prix fixe menu is $95), you can nosh on the restaurant’s signature crab cakes or go for something meatier to start, like the baby rack of lamb served with a bright mint chimichurri. This being a seafood restaurant, no one would fault you for ordering the Mediterranean branzino for your main, but turkey seekers need not worry, for a traditional herb-roasted turkey with gravy and cranberry sauce is also on the menu. Sides, like the green beans almondine and sweet mashed potatoes, lean more classic, while dessert also pays homage to the holiday’s beloved sweets: pumpkin and apple pie. It’s worth noting that for a supplementary charge, your table can kick things off with the seafood tower and bell caviar service.
