Restaurant Review: Roman’s

Lately, I’ve been toying around with the idea of using this blog to explore things I enjoy outside of programming. One of those things is eating at the amazing restaurants New York City has to offer. This post is the first of what I hope to be many non-tech related posts and is a review of the new Marlow and Sons restaurant Roman’s in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

Roman’s
243 Dekalb Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11205
718-622-5300
tl;dr – You need to go here

I’ll be honest, I’m still dealing with my disappointment over the closing of Bonita. It was, to me, light years ahead of Pequena as far as Mexican fare in Fort Greene. It was easier to handle the closing when I heard that Bonita would be replaced with a new Marlow and Sons affiliated restaurant. This week I began hearing murmurs of the opening of said new restaurant, an Italian restaurant named Roman’s, and decided it would be the perfect place to bring my in-laws during their visit this weekend.

Arriving at Roman’s, it is immediately apparent that they are still in the midst of a soft launch. The sign is homemade and the work permits are still prominently displayed in the windows. The interior is sparsely decorated, excluding the very elegant wooden bar. The menu changes daily and as a result is handwritten. Much like the specials at Bonita, chances are you’ll have no idea what half the menu items actually are until you’re waiter/waitress explains them to you. This only adds to the charm of eating at Roman’s.

Their menu is separated into 4 sections: appetizers, pastas, meats and sides. Each item is served in what would typically be an appetizer portion with the idea being that you order one item from each section. From the appetizer menu my wife and father-in-law ordered the Spinach and Pear salad, my mother-in-law order the Salt Cod Fritters, our waiter also gave us a complimentary Pig Head’s Terrine since we expressed interest in what it was. To me, the Salt Cod Fritters were by far the stand out item. I have never been a huge fish fan but they were incredible. I only hope that this is on the menu on my future visits. The salad was very minimalist, just spinach and halved pears with a vinaigrette but was exceptional. I was not too hot on the Terrine, but I just don’t think it was my kind of dish.

From the pasta menu my wife and father-in-law had the Agnolotti, I had the Pennetti and my mother-in-law had the Sauerkraut Soup. The Agnolotti was like tiny butternut squach raviolis. My wife and father-in-law both reported that they were incredible. The Pennetti was basically a penne pasta with tomato sauce, pine nuts and capers. It was probably the best pasta I’ve had in the city. Although I’m not a huge pine nut or capers fan they were distributed perfectly in this dish. I wasn’t adventurous to try the Sauerkraut Soup but my mother-in-law seemed content, though she didn’t rave as much as the rest of us.

I was the only one to get a meat, the Meatball. It was a single stuffed pork meatball. I am a huge fan of meatballs and typically have them at least once a week. I have never had a meatball like this… it was incredible. My wife doesn’t typically like pork and she even was blown away by it.

At the conclusion of our meal our waiter seemed apprehensive about the small dessert menu. The selection was either crumbled cheddar cheese and apple pastry or chocolate and almonds. We opted to try one of each plate and they both were amazing. The perfect close to the meal. The standout of dessert was definitely the chocolate.

I cannot wait to go back to Roman’s. The food, the service and the ambiance is all perfect. I believe it will be giving No. 7 a run for its money as the best restaurant in Fort Greene.