Kyle Green
Park Slope is a Brooklyn neighborhood that offers young families and longstanding empty-nesters a retreat from the concrete jungle of Manhattan with giant parks and historic brownstones with fenced lawns.
Bordered by the enormous and magical Prospect Park to the east, Park Slope earned its name due to its location atop the natural incline Prospect Park created. Park Slope is a beautiful neighborhood with historic brownstones and large trees lining its east and west sides with a lively commercial district in its central area.
Considered a historical landmark neighborhood, Park Slope’s buildings and brownstones maintain perfectly preserved 19th-century architecture. Prospect Park, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, the Brooklyn Museum, and the wonderful Brooklyn Public Library make Park Slope one of the top neighborhoods for families.
Park Slope restaurants offer the same quaint and welcoming appeal as the surrounding neighborhoods, with a wide variety of world cuisines to choose from. During my most recent trip to Park Slope, I found an eclectic selection of delicious restaurants to try, whether you’re looking for a fancy intimate dinner or a family-friendly pizza extravaganza. Below you’ll find a list of the very best restaurants in Park Slope for every taste and budget.
al di la Trattoria
248 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-783-4565
Visit Website
Located in Park Slope’s North Slope in the Gowanus neighborhood, al di la Trattoria is a longstanding Italian eatery owned and operated by restaurateur and chef couple Emiliano Coppa and Anna Klinger. Klinger and Coppa have been serving the Park Slope community with award-winning authentic Italian dishes since 1998 to wide acclaim, including annual Michelin-guide nods and two stars from the New York Times food critics.
The multi-course menu at al di la Trattoria changes seasonally and uses locally and responsibly sourced ingredients. Comprised of shareable antipasti salads, decadent primi plates of house-made pasta, and meat and seafood-centric segundi, the selection of dishes will delight your taste buds. I especially loved the Casunziei, red beets and ricotta ravioli topped with melted butter and poppy seeds.
Miriam
79 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-622-2250
Visit Website
Located in North Slope, Miriam is a treasured Park Slope Israeli restaurant opened two decades ago by now famed New York Chef Rafael Hasid. Chef Hasid argues that Israeli cuisine, like new American fusion, combines dishes and flavors from across the globe, mirroring the cultural diversity inherent in Israelis’ nationality.
The menu offers some of the most spectacular Mediterranean food in the most beautiful presentation that you’ll encounter. It’s hard to pick a favorite dish or when to dine as their brunch is as spectacular as the lunch and dinner menus. I loved all their mezze and recommend ordering numerous plates like the classic hummus full of crispy chickpeas, perfectly light, fried falafel with tahini and fresh pita, and the spiced, roasted cauliflower.
Bricolage
162 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-230-1835
Visit Website
Bricolage is a lush and tropical retreat in the heart of Park Slope, three blocks from Prospect Park’s Grand Army Plaza, offering creative Vietnamese food in an indoor and outdoor space enveloped by greenery. There is a cozy outdoor patio, streetside seating, and a rustic interior making for an inviting and comfortable environment as colorful as their delicious dishes.
Bricolage has a diverse menu of Vietnamese favorites like pho, spring rolls, and papaya salad, as well as a kids’ menu with less adventurous items for younger palates. I recommend the slow-cooked lamb buns with pickled carrot and daikon, marinated onion, cilantro, basil, and sriracha aioli to start. Their spicy coconut-pineapple curry with sauteed shrimp atop glass noodles and spinach, topped with crispy shallots and crushed peanuts, is the best kind of tropical flavor explosion.
Sushi Katsuei
210 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-788-5338
Visit Website
Located in east Park Slope, two blocks from Prospect Park West, Sushi Katsuei is a refined yet casual sushi house specializing in Edo-mae style sushi. The small, intimate environment features a traditional sushi bar with a glass partition where you can watch expert sushi chefs create beautiful and delicate dishes.
You can choose from an a la carte menu or the traditional Omakase pre-fixe menu that showcases a tasting of the Chef’s best dishes. Whether you let the Chef choose the best sushi and sashimi of the season for you, or you choose from a vast a la carte menu, you should start with their delicious gyoza, steamed pork dumplings.
Fausto
348 Flatbush Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11238
Phone: 917-909-1427
Visit Website
The brainchild of head chef Erin Shambura and wine expert Joe Campanale, Fausto is an Italian eatery and ode to Brooklyn’s historical and nutritional bounty. The restaurant sources many of its ingredients from the neighboring Grand Army Plaza GreenMarket along with the freshest imported ingredients from Italy.
The beautiful dining room inside is a mid-century modern masterpiece inside one of Flatbush Avenue’s historic 19th-century buildings. Their small and perfectly curated menu has an incredible selection of house-made bread and pasta along with colorful antipasti and hearty main dishes. I loved their tagliatelle with rabbit Bolognese and could’ve eaten the house-made focaccia all night.
La Villa Pizzeria
261 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-499-9888
Visit Website
Located in central Park Slope, La Villa Pizzeria is a family-friendly Italian restaurant and pizzeria founded in 1982 by the Branchinelli family, whose presence in the New York Italian restaurant community dates to the ‘50s. La Villa Pizzeria is a massive 100-seat restaurant and beer garden with an open kitchen and custom-built wood-fired ovens.
Whether you’re looking for classic thin and crispy Neapolitan pies, flatbread-style pizza, or deep-dish square Sicilian pizza, La Villa Pizzeria serves the best of all varieties. You can choose your favorite style of crust as a base to build your own pie. They also have spectacular specialty pie dishes like the Romana stuffed pizza with oven-roasted potatoes, sliced sweet fennel sausage, layered pepperoni, and whole milk mozzarella.
Fonda
434 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-369-3144
Visit Website
Fonda is a casual and affordable neighborhood Mexican Restaurant with locations in Chelsea, the East Village, and Park Slope’s South Slope district. Founded and run by famous chef and cookbook author Roberto Santibanez, Fonda combines traditional Mexican dishes with his own Mexican-inspired modern creations.
As with any Mexican restaurant worth its salt, Fonda has a delicious selection of margaritas to enjoy with freshly fried tortilla chips and guacamole made to order. I loved the traditional Oaxacan mole enchiladas, but if you want to venture into contemporary cooking, try the duck zarape with habanero-spiked tomato salsa.
Stone Park Cafe
324 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-369-0082
Visit Website
Located right in front of the historic Old Stone House of Brooklyn Museum, Stone Park Café is an inviting neighborhood eatery offering refined New American dishes at an accessible price. Stone Park Café is the long-awaited dream come true establishment for founders Josh Grinker and Josh Foster, two Park Slope natives who grew up together.
Whether you’re looking for a delectable boozy brunch or a fancy dinner with excellent craft cocktails and an imported bottle of wine, Stone Park Café has a diverse menu with locally sourced meat, cheese, and produce. I recommend their Kurobuta Pork Chop dinner over rosemary polenta with brussels sprouts, pickled mustard seeds, and veal demi-glace.
Bogota Latin Bistro
141 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-230-3805
Visit Website
As you may have surmised, Bogota is a North Slope neighborhood Latin Bistro specializing in Colombian cuisine. Bogota Latin Bistro is a friendly, warm, and colorful restaurant with interior and patio seating and welcoming, knowledgeable staff, offering vast brunch, lunch, and dinner menus that feature the best of traditional Colombian cuisine along with other Latin cuisines like Mexican, Argentinian, and Spanish.
While you can get Mexican favorites like grilled street corn and guacamole at Bogota, I recommend sticking with the Colombian and Argentine specialties like cornmeal or wheat empanadas, sweet or white corn arepas, and the classic Colombian-style Ropa Vieja, shredded steak with olives, capers, and bay leaf in a tomato wine sauce with fried plantain tostones.
Convivium Osteria
68 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-857-1833
Visit Website
If you’re looking for a truly old-world, rustic Italian tavern experience, then Convivium Osteria is the place for you. Located halfway between Prospect Park and Fort Greene Park, Convivium Osteria is an intimate rustic-country-style space replete with a clutter of antique copper pots and pans hanging from the walls and old hardwood floors and old textured stucco walls.
Deemed New York’s most romantic restaurant, Convivium Osteria is the perfect spot for a special date night or intimate family celebration. Their delicious traditional Italian menu offers authentic dishes from every region. I loved the Mallorddus, Sardinian pasta with house-made pork sausage in tomato sauce with fresh pecorino romano.
Brooklyn Burgers & Beer
259 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-788-1458
Visit Website
Located two blocks from Stone Park Café and the Old Stone House of Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Burgers & Beer is a local favorite for the best burgers and craft beer selection. Brooklyn Burgers & Beer is committed to providing the Park Slope community a family-friendly atmosphere and a menu of excellent burgers using locally sourced meat, buns, and produce.
There is a burger for everyone on this vast menu of build-your-own burgers, signature special burgers, and even a slider and beer pairing menu. There aren’t just beef patties, either. Proteins range from bison to lamb, tuna to turkey, and black bean to beyond burgers. I went with the signature B&B Burger with a beef blend patty, applewood bacon, brie, a sizeable crispy onion ring, arugula, and special sauce on a brioche bun.
Patsy’s Pizzeria
A450 Dean St, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-622-2268
Visit Website
Located on the cusp of the Prospect Heights and North Park Slope neighborhoods, Patsy’s Pizzeria has been the definition of Brooklyn-style pizza and the borough’s pride and joy since 1933. Since its opening, Patsy’s Pizzeria has had a cult following, with celebrity regulars like Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, Babe Ruth, and Joe DiMaggio.
Patsy’s specializes in southern Italian cuisine, including a full menu of antipasti, pasta, entrees, and of course, a special style of thin-crust pizza that New Yorkers now associate with Brooklyn. I loved their Polpette pie with meatballs, onions, tomato sauce, and mozzarella.
Scottadito Osteria Toscana
788A Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-636-4800
Visit Website
Scottadito Osteria Toscana is an elegant Southern Italian bistro and cocktail bar in a warm and inviting rustic-chic interior with stained wood tables and bar, exposed brick walls, hanging plants, and fresh bouquets adorning every table. Located two blocks from Grand Army Plaza and the Brooklyn Public Library, Scottadito Osteria Toscana is a favorite neighborhood spot for group dining and holiday parties.
The menu at Scottadito is impressively large and varied, with a wide selection of antipasti, pasta, salads, pizza, and entrees. I recommend the delightfully fresh fettuccine Zafferano Frutti di mare with lump crabmeat, tiger shrimp, scallops, and PEI mussels in a spicy saffron broth.
Ghenet
348 Douglass St, Brooklyn, NY 11217
Phone: 718-230-4475
Visit Website
Meaning “heaven” in Ethiopian, Ghenet is a cherished neighborhood Ethiopian Restaurant founded in 1998 by Addis Ababa native Yeworkwoha Ephrem. Ephrem first opened Ghenet in SOHO in 1998 and relocated to North Slope in 2007. Ghenet uses traditional Ethiopian ingredients sourced from NYC local vendors from every borough of NYC.
The menu at Ghenet has won many accolades from local and national culinary press outlets like Eater and The New York Times, offering the most authentic Ethiopian dishes in town. I started with the delicious sambusa, pastry dough stuffed with spiced lentils, and minced beef. They also have an excellent whole fish dish known as Asa Tibs. Ethiopian food is meant to be shared, with multiple rich stewed dishes that you soak up with a sourdough crepe known as injera.
Palo Santo
652 Union St, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 718-636-6311
Visit Website
Located in a historic old brownstone on the eastern side of Park Slope, Palo Santo is a Pan-Latin bistro using locally sourced ingredients bought daily from Park Slope’s own Greenmarket at Grand Army Plaza. Head Chef Jacques Gautier creates a vibrant and creative menu that changes daily and showcases the Caribbean and South American flavors in simple, unpretentious tradition.
They offer brunch, lunch, and dinner menus with amazingly colorful, fresh, and flavorful dishes from around Latin America. I loved the coconut plantain stew with greenmarket okra, green coconut, and jasmine rice. If you’re there for brunch, I recommend the chicken chilaquiles with cotija cheese, mole verde, and a fried egg, or the braised beef stuffed plantains with quesillo and avocado.
Dumplings & Things
375B 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215, United States
Phone: 718-768-2200
Visit Website
Located two blocks from the J.J Byrne Playground in central Park Slope, Dumplings & Things is a friendly Pan-Asian fusion café with delicious varieties of traditional Chinese dumplings, soups, and baos. The staff is welcoming, and the prices are accessible to all budgets.
They’re a great place for a quick and hearty lunch, with great lunch combos that include their famous dumplings, plus one other signature dish like fried rice, sesame noodles, or pork belly bao. Their delicious dumplings come in numerous variations that incorporate flavors from around Asia, like spicy beef and kimchi or Pork and Napa cabbage.
Calexico
278 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215
Phone: 347-254-7644
Visit Website
A mix between California and Mexico, Calexico is an actual town on the Mexican and Californian border that displays the cultural fusion of California and Mexican cuisine this fun and festive restaurant and bar strives to imitate. Calexico started as a taco stand in Soho that rapidly grew to become a Mexican food favorite in neighborhoods across New York, including Park Slope.
Their tacos are authentic with regional favorites like Baja fish tacos and carne asada. They also have plenty of other Mexican street food favorites like grilled corn esquites. I had the gargantuan Cali-style Burrito with carne asada, guacamole, sour cream, chili-cilantro fries, black beans, Monterey jack cheese, cheddar cheese, and pico de gallo wrapped in a warm flour tortilla.
Flora,
Best Authentic Italian restaurant