This cute and cozy—yet still stylish and roomy—new spot’s a great stop for a weeknight pick-me-up of a dinner or (for once!) an easily won Friday or Saturday evening reservation. Neeloo has space for 70 between tables and the long bar inside this brick-lined Grand Street locale, plus a patio that can accommodate a couple dozen in the back.
Stick to classic cocktails ($16+) if mixed drinks are a must (beer and wine are also available), and order the hearth-broiled Wellfleet oysters ($19/6) for bivalve believers and belitters alike. Their cloak of melty Camembert creates a real shellfish hit. The pommes dauphine appetizer ($10) is simpler but satisfying, as golden-fried potato poufs are wont to be.
Among the mains, lovely slices of American Wagyu sirloin ($39) are excellently prepared to a requested medium rare, if overly smothered in a foie gras and Sauternes jus that’s seemingly absent notes of the former ingredient. A nice bit of halibut’s more of a sure thing: moist, fresh and swimming in a green tomato and coconut broth that gives the fish a bit of zip.
Finish with Neeloo’s baked Alaska ($12). Almost as sweet as it is bright, the dynamic dessert is set alight right at the table for a flashy end to any evening.
Neeloo is located at 284 Grand Street in Brooklyn. It is open Wednesday-Sunday from 5:30pm-close. See restaurant critic Amber Sutherland-Namako’s extended review here.
