Fragole

On Saturday night I wanted to get dinner after a haircut (At Boy Luv Girl on Atlantic Avenue) ...and naturally the first thing that came to mind was Buttermilk Channel. It was about 7pm, and the wait was 1.5 hours, and there was no room at the bar. I put my name on the list and headed over to Prime Meats (great cheese, salads, and brunch!) and their wait was 2 hours, and they had kids (I know I know they exist)...so, next was a less fancy spot but apparently the best and most reliable choice - Fragole. An oldie, but a goodie. They still have their huge wine list at $27/bottle for ANY bottle, a full list of beautiful specials, and we had the good fortune of Europeans on the left and teenagers with their parents on the right. [I'll take a teen over a toddler any day - rawr]

Down to the food. The wine was a delicate but interesting Pinot Noir. The STAR was a grilled polenta with wild mushroom and Fontina cheese sauce. AMAZING. The salad was a bit stale like it had been pre-assembled, but still a tasty goat cheese, beat salad. The menu said marinated goat cheese, but I didn't really detect any signs of marination. The Italian sitting next to us said the bread dipping sauce was just like what his mother made.

Anywho, moral of the story, is, when it comes to a Yuppie hood, stick to the (no reservation) foodie places for brunch or early dinner (6?) and the homestyle places for dinner on the weekend. Or better yet, go shopping on Friday night and make your own, invite some friends.

> Fragoles

> Buttermilk Channel (notable mention: they advertise a vegetarian menu)

> Prime Meats

> Sahadi's