applewood

So disappointed to hear the news of applewood’s closing. I never had a chance to try it but heard wonderful things — and had a $ 100 gift certificate that I was hoping to use there for Father’s Day this weekend. Quite a bit of money and can’t find a way to contact the Sheas (though fear there is nothing that could be done). Too bad, and wishing them luck in their next endeavor!

The items here are hit or miss for brunch, when they are great they are great but you can go wrong with your orders at applewood.
I’ve been here several times and can say:
skip on
–pancakes
–salt cured chicken hash
don’t miss
–grits
–bacon
recommend
–beef shortrib omelet
–salad (not too bad actually, the dressing is pretty good)
–french toast

Went for dinner there once about a year ago. The waiter was very knowledgeable helping us select wine off the extensive list. We all had excellent meals from the small, thoughtfully created menu. The vibe was very unhurried and cozy even though it was full and busy at the time. I was looking for a place to have a special meal with my girlfriend and my brother who was visiting (and who’s something of a wine expert). Mission accomplished.

I really wanted to like this place more than I did. It was OK, and I will come back because the soup and spaetzle dish were good. The risotto was very bland and unappealing — hopefully they will replace that with something else vegetarian. The apple cobbler seemed like it might taste good, but it was strangely watery at the bottom and ice cold in the center.

disappointed with the lack of service (and forgotten main course) and food did not seem prepared at its best, even seemed a bit tasteless. Fairly overpriced for the portions. Nice setting, but seems like the restaurant was more concerned with seating as many as possible rather than providing an all around eating experience for their patrons.

Eggs just ok, everything else really good.
Visited here this past weekend with some friends. They have a really cool menu, thinks like duck rendered in its own fat (forgot the real name) omelette. Sounds good, but it just tasted ok. I tasted no seasoning.
I love how they have homemade soda on the menu. That is the sign of a cool restaurant to me.
My friends go the biscuits and gravy that was very good, so much flavor.

Great ambiance: warm incandescent lighting, fire roaring in the fireplace, kindly service, unpretentious. I visited Applewood for dinner with a friend and had the mussels, butternut squash risotto, and a glass of Pinot noir.
All was perfectly fine but ultimately forgettable.
The mussel broth lacked bite and the shells were unfortunately drizzled with what appeared to be some sour cream sauce that added no flavor but made handling the mollusks a messy affair.
Risotto was too sweet — the butternut squash purée too heavy handed and likely sweetened with sugar. Rice was soggy not al dente as should have been the case. The toasted pistachios had an unnerving citrus tang. For $ 22 these blunders are eyebrow-​raising.
I’m not sure what to make of this clumsy meal. Off night? Maybe meat dishes are more in their wheelhouse. I’ve heard that Applewood excels at brunch. I hope that’s the case because otherwise this restaurant will be added to the pantheon of perfectly average Park Slope restaurants.

Prob a 3.5. Went here on a Saturday night with a group of 5. We had a 7:30 reservation and arrived an hour early at 6:30 because we were nearby and were hungry. Luckily, they were able to seat us, which was a great plus!
While the menu is somewhat small, I was surprised that everyone in our group ordered something different; everyone easily found something that they liked.
I had the Maine pollock and it was fabulous. From the coffee back bean purée to the perfectly cooked fish topped with mustard seeds that pop in your mouth, it was outstanding. I think I had the best dish of the table.
My only complaint is that the service was a little slow and it took a while to get our entrees after the appetizers. The water was flowing at first and then slowed down a lot once it got crowded. I ordered a seltzer with my entrée and by the time it came I was almost done.
Another standout was the dessert. How can you go wrong with bread pudding, almond ice cream and cardamom crumble?!

We’re a family of 5 (3 boys, ages 10, 8, & 6) and we came here for Sunday brunch at 11am.
The hostess was great. We came into a packed house and there was a 4 seater and a 2 seater table. She quickly spoke to the people in the back and they came right away to re-​arrange for our needs. I appreciate that because they didn’t try to cram us in a 4 table and stick out someone in the aisle (like other hipster-​run places). This I appreciate because I’m a Park Slope native and this is what we need to keep our neighborhood grounded.
Anyway, we try to always teach our kids about better quality food and a wider range of tastes and ingredients. We consider their appreciation of the above versus the cost of the pricier plates, so we always try to prep our kids to NOT order with their eyes, but to rather consider their wants to really enjoy their choices… today they did great (which is not always the case :)
They all ordered from the kids menu: One had buttermilk pancakes w/​Vermont maple syrup, another had scrambled eggs w/​biscuit (+ my order of fries), while the last had a side of oatmeal and a fried egg. $ 7 per kid.
My wife had the brisket omelette with bok choy and some other veggies. I had the bluefish patee w/​fried egg sandwich. $ 16 per plate.
Every dish was on point. The buttermilk was obviously ‘way better’ than boxed pancake mix (per my kid); He also appreciated the maple syrup being more natural and organic. My other boy remarked on the yumminess and fluffiness of his scrambled eggs + the biscuit had a great outside ‘crunchy’ texture with a soft, buttery fluff on the inside. The oatmeal was delicate, not too watery, definitely not thick and pasty. We added some brown sugar and some of the maple syrup (which really hit the spot) for the youngest.
The omelette was seasoned right (not salty to enjoy the farm fresh aspect) and the brisket was very tender. It was also great because our kids were in the zone (because of their plates) and happily tried the bok choy. My patee was good as well. The bluefish was not overtly salty, and balanced with the spicy kick, really allowed me to enjoy my sandwich with the apple turnover soda.
Overall, their are interesting pairings of food and drink. Not too extravagant that you’d be cautious of ordering. It will definitely be up for consideration for repeat.
P. S. our waiter was attentive + he understood the priciness of the menu and gave great recommendations. For example, offering up a side of fried egg to my kid’s oatmeal dish when he wanted the egg platter as well, or suggesting to my oldest that he’d be fine with the kid’s portion of pancakes (2 stack) vs. the adult (3 stack), which saved me almost double the cost.
Thanks for the great ingredients and the family-​friendly thinking. Keep it up!

Due to changes in staff over the years the food quality seems to have gone down.
It’s pretty much a hit or a miss .
Food is good but prices are a little high
With all the amazing brunch spots outside park slope id say it’s worth a trip if you live in the hood.

Situated in Park Slope this is one of the best brunch places i’ve been to in the city. Two words the Bloody Mary and the biscuits. The bloody mary is one of the best made bloody mary’s i’ve had. Just the right amount of kick with alcohol and that bloody mary tomato mix. It even tastes like it’s a flavored alcohol with a nice pickling juice. It comes with a chaser as well. A nice local beer to go with the drink. Brunch plates here come with a biscuit and the biscuit is buttery flakey and has that nice crunch to it’s outer shell. Matched up well with the preserves. The omlettes are also made great. The veggie omlette you can taste the fresh ingredients and the wonderful eggs. The side bacon was crisp and had that great porky flavor. We also had a side grits as well and the corn and butteryness really came through. A nice hot cup of strong coffee is also served here. Service was attentive and friendly and we had ample space for a brunch. It’s now one of my favorite brunch spots in the area. A definite go back to kind of place.

Disappointing service led to early departure. We have gluten allergy so we often bring our own GF bread to restaurants and ask the staff toast it for us. The Applewood waiter and mgmt refused to accommodate because they claim this is a health code violation and they want to maintain their A rating. We gladly offered to pay for the coffee we ordered and left immediately.
Applewood ought to be ashamed of such behavior.
This goes to show that fantastic reviews doesn’t always guarantee a good dining experience.

Amazing dinner experience. Had the farm tasting menu on a weekday. Besides tasting amazing, it’s only $ 30 for 3 courses, including homemade bread and spreads and a costini! The heirloom tomato salad and red wine braised shortribs made this meal one of the best I’ve had in awhile. I would come back for this exact meal in a heartbeat.

UNFORTUNATELY… I’m NOT able to write a review on the food because we were denied access into the establishment. We arrived early at 9:53am on a Sunday for brunch and UNFORTUNATELY the doors did not open at 10:00am, 10:05am nor at 10:10am…this is when we left as 3 to 4 staff members looked at us through the window and not 1 of the service providers acknowledged our presence. HORRIBLE SERVICE !!! btw, other patrons came and left as well…

To be honest I had been meaning to eat here for about four years and I finally did about two weeks ago. Just getting around to the review now.
We called ahead for a reservation for two and they had a table waiting but it took the waitress about ten minutes to come over and greet us with water. We gave her five more minutes and if she hadn’t come by then we’d have left. But she did come eventually. So we stayed. The homemade bread and spreads were good and the entrée was good (short ribs were well flavored and tender) but it was what was in my salad that was a little off to me.
I ordered the salad with the smoked nuts in it. I’ve had smoked fish, smoked cheese, smoked meats, but never smoked nuts before. But this was not your regular smokey flavor. It tasted like a burned out campfire. As if they took the nuts and threw them in the ashes of a burning fireplace. It was so gross. Like crunching on a used cigarette. Please applewood put something else in the salad. It didn’t really leave a good taste in my mouth. Sorry…

Applewood is our destination tonight. We are met are the door and graciously led to a nice table. It’s a Thursday night and the restaurant is abuzz. We ordered the appetizers. Assorted cheeses from Shea’s Bimi’s of Chatham NY which are top shelf. These cheeses are really good. Everything here is sourced from organic farms. Especially the Applewood Farm, situated in Chatham.
We order a bottle of Riesling and a bottle of Château Laffitte-​Teston Cabernet.
Rhode Island sea scallops are equally delicious.
I’ve ordered an entrée of New Hampshire Pork Medallions, braised. Very very good with Brussels sprouts. My other quest has ordered the tile fish. Which is done very well.
Ok three stars because nothing is spectacular. But all is very good.

I’m really surprised this has such good reviews (which is why I chose it for brunch recently), because my experience was kind of shitty.
First off, we waited roughly 40 minutes on a Sunday BEFORE the peak brunch rush. Doesn’t that seem a bit… much for Park Slope? You can get a table faster at Talde next door, and have a far superior experience. Or literally go anywhere else on 7^th or 5^th Ave.
Second up, once we finally sat down the restaurant kept varying from very warm to incredibly cold. Not sure if the heat kept getting turned on-​and-​off by dueling staffers, but it was really weird and left my party pretty uncomfortable.
My dish (winter vegetable omelet) had undercooked veggies and overcooked potatoes on the side. I couldn’t finish it for lack of taste, and I was starving. I also had some OJ, which turned out to be $ 8. I’m sorry, EIGHT DOLLARS FOR A TINY GLASS OF ORANGE JUICE?! That’s the price of a mimosa anywhere else in this neighborhood! They didn’t even give us a drink menu, so we had no idea it wasn’t the standard $ 4…otherwise I wouldn’t have ordered it.
Then the service. Our waiter seemed to have forgotten out existence, because toward the end of our meal he just dipped for 30 minutes. Even though we all had our wallets out, and had napkins on our plates. He was nice, but aloof.
Finally, it’s cash only… but only for brunch (dinner they accept credit cards). Isn’t that kind of a f*%k you to daytime customers? It’s 2015 for pancake’s sake. Get a Square.
Points for ambience (it’s cute for sure!) but I’m definitely not coming back. There’s far better brunch in this neighborhood.

I came here for brunch with a few girlfriends to catch up before Christmas vacation. We waited a while for a table but we didn’t mind bc the food was supposed to be good.
I honestly was notttt super impressed with this place. Maybe I ordered the wrong thing but I’m not sure why it was so packed and well reviewed on Unilocal.I mean it wasn’t bad at all but it was nothing to write home about.
I came for brunch but was more in the mood for lunch so ordered the fish dish with a side of cheese grits. The cheese grits were good but not fantastic. The fish was very mediocre.
My friends both ordered omelets which looked a lot better than my dish.

Sunday brunch was perfection.
I’ve been meaning to come here for years, and finally did. It was a crisp, early fall day, and we ate outside (the inside was smokey). I had the autumn vegetable omelet (with squash, corn, and kale). The sweetness of the squash paired incredibly with the eggs. There was also cheddar in the omelet, and it probably would have benefitted from a stronger kind. My girlfriend had the steak and eggs, which was cooked perfectly medium and delicious. We both opted for the creamy grits and flakey yet crisp biscuit as sides. We asked for a side of butter, which was pale, whipped, and rich, and amazing with the strawberry jam (loaded with whole berries). They were out of bacon (!!!), so we had a sausage patty: a fat, delicious, peppery, herbaceous, meaty orb.
The mimosa was fruity and light, almost like an Orangina (not a bad thing). And the bloody Mary was one of the best I’ve ever had, spicy and flavorful, served with a beer back.
The server was charming and attentive. We lost track of time and stayed past closing, and he was great.
The coffee was okay– nothing stellar– and the chamomile tea was just a pot with a Stash tea bag (for $ 5).

Monday night dinner early dinner on a whim.
Very nice and friendly service and although the resturant was
empty we didnt feel over-​catered to at all.
The dimly lit, barn style seating area is romatic without being TOO dark. (you know, the kind where you cant see what you’re eating!)
Let me just tell you, one of the main highlights of our night was «The bread man». This is what we so cleverly named the busboy who continued to come to our table with a huge basket of assorted, warm bread. HEAVEN. i know, i know. We shouldnt fill up on bread, but it was just too fresh and tempting. Plus the bread man loved our expressions every time he wandered to our table.
While we stuffed outselves with delicious bread and spreads, we waited for our pork belly small plate and it was also wonderful.
For my entrée me eyes zoomed to the potato gnocchi for some reason and they so light and fluffy! Most likely some of the best ive had in a long time. I also liked the roasted carrots they paired the gnocchi with, they were sweet and tender. My person ordered a roast pork dish which he also really enjoyed.
I would come back to applewood again mostly because they change their menu often since they claim to use local/​organic produce. The menu is very small but i think thats for the best, that way you know everything is being made fresh.

Lovely Sunday brunch experience. Cozy country environment that makes you feel like you’re back home at your family’s farmhouse. There are even framed pictures of animals decorated throughout the restaurant. The food here was fresh with unique ingredients, however, my only complaint was the blandness of my omelette. I definitely had to salt and pepper my omelette quite a bit to get it up to taste. The potatoes and biscuits were satisfying and I also sampled my friend’s sour milk pancakes which were delicious, light and fluffy.
The service here was attentive. The food came out a bit slow, which I enjoyed as it was one of the first times I did not feel rushed at brunch. Surprisingly, for a table of 4, we arrived a few minutes before noon and only had to wait for about 15 minutes. Overall, I’d come back here again.