First thing’s first: Who the hell is Jarro XIV? Italian folklore says it’s bad luck to have 13 guests at a table—the Last Supper attendees could have surely attested—so a lucky 14th is routinely pulled in. In the 19th century, Florentine writer-slash-gourmand Giulio “Jarro” Piccini was frequently that kismet-turning 14th. And Rome native Simon Clementi hopes to invoke the lad's luck with this Cobble Hill small-plates restaurant, which opened March 9th. Clementi’s tapped Rodrigo Nogueira (Colicchio & Sons) to dispatch cross-cultural tapas that nod to Piccini’s cookbooks: truffle salami; duck rillettes dotted with date mustard; and salmon belly sprinkled with blood-orange zest. Plush velvet lounge seating and Victorian high-backed chairs are dispersed for dining, vintage touches that evoke Piccini’s era. At the wooden 13-seat bar, Italian mixologist Eddie Fontana infuses vodkas with rosemary or jalapeño, crafts barrel-aged cocktails and finishes tipples with spoonfuls of fig jelly. 68 Bergen St between Court and Smith Sts, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (718-488-3906)
SOUPS
Sunchoke soup with crunchy chips and lemon vinaigrette, $10
Spicy seafood stew, $10
FROM THE MILL
Housemade papardelle with braised pork ragu, $16
Housemade potato gnocchi with mixed mushrooms and Parmesan cracker, $14
FROM THE SEA
Pan-seared striped bass with bacon, clams and Swiss chard, $22
Roasted salmon with baby eggplant and pequillo paper ragu, $20
Pimenton-braised octopus with roasted beets and onions, $18
FROM THE FARM
Pan-seared half chicken with zucchini and baby paty plan, $19
Braised pork belly with cranberry beans and roasted organic oyster mushrooms, $20
Hanger steak with brussel sprouts and roasted fingerling potatoes, $22
FROM THE GARDEN
Frisee and arugula salad with housemade duck ham and dates, $11
Radicchio and endive salad with pistacchio and blood orance, $10
Jarro potato: baked potato with cream fraiche, Parmesan, mixed mushrooms and caramelized onions, $8
French fries, $5
PINTXOS
Sweetbreads, bacon jam and sunchokes, $4
Poached shrimp with pepper, $5
Crispy pork belly with fig jam, $4
White anchovies, smoked cherry tomatoes, $4
Pork sliders, pickled jalapenos and carrots, $4
Blue Stilton, $3
Roquefort crushted chevre, $3
Old Nederland Cheddar, $3
Truffle salami, $3
Bresola, $3
Speck, $3
Chicken liver pate with pickled shallots, $5