Flying Lobster

This is a gem on the edge of Red Hook and Carroll Gardens. A short walk from the F, the Flying Lobster was a great find in a great neighborhood. The décor is great, and he wine selection there is enough to satisfy any palette. Elaina, our bartender, was super friendly and made great wine recommendations for us to try. Definite going back on my next easy Saturday!

Cool quiet bar that is a sister bar to the restaurant next door. I was a bit dissapointed with the beer selection, but was glad to try one of two things offered, New Castle or a cider. I love both so this was going to work out. The cider was lime and strawberry infused and amazing, new favorite cider for me, so bonus. They had a live jazz band with some really talented young artists. I don’t know if I will often frequent this location, but if they have live jazz again, I’ll make the effort.

Neil, the magical owner of Petite Crevette opened this joint up on the corner of Union and Hcks so waiting customers can get wine tipsy and overorder at Petite. MMMMMMMM… cuz wine beforehand (Petite is BYOB) and some fresh seafood mmmmm will make your night bones dance off this lovely joint esp with the LIVE JAZZ music. really pushes you into the night time chill groove…
Carroll Garden, stand up.

Small little bar on the corner next to their big sister Petite Crevette.
If it’s not crowded, this is a charming space. If it’s packed, it might be pretty frustrating.
Dare I say that this place could also be romantic?
My only picky issue was that the night we were there they only had still wine. They had Port on their chalkboard but were out. Something other than still wine would be lovely.
Also, the night we were there, the bartender was frustratingly having long conversations with the clientele. Nothing like standing in a bar with 6 other customers and trying to get the bartenders attention. Kind of a lousy first impression.
Finally… was it late and was I cranky, but is their wine list a bit super boring? For a place with a french owner (right?) I expected less new world junk.

The last time I was here was a couple of months ago, so I’m not sure if they’re past their never-​ending «soft opening» phase, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t. Which is a shame, because this bar is awesome. It’s beautiful inside, intimate, romantic. We came for the first time last year when it first opened & were told they were having a soft opening, & would be up & running for realsies in a couple of weeks. Then the bartender TALKED OUR EAR OFF. About the wine menu– fine, that’s necessary, as the menus had no descriptions yet– but then didn’t actually pour the wine after we’d ordered it until he’d gone into endless, superfluous details about wines we expressed no interest in. And once he did pour it, he talked so much for so long that my boyfriend & I were literally never able to converse with each other. It was weird. Even weirder was when we went back a couple of months later and THE EXACT SAME THING HAPPENED. I’m not even kidding. The exact same thing. Down to the things the bartender «chatted» about, the schpiel about the soft opening, what would be on the menu, when the hard opening would be, when the band comes, how many people were there the night before, that we could put our names on the email list (which we’d already done, of course!) — everything. We were like, Dude, we know. Then we went back a couple of months later and IT HAPPENED AGAIN I AM NOT EVEN KIDDING YOU GUYS. Fortunately, this time, we had the sense to sit at a table, not at the bar, and he was giving his verbatim schpiel to a different unlucky couple, and we were able to sneak in a quick «We’ll take two glasses of cava!» and sort of cut him off before he could go launch his babble-​missile again. The whole time we were overhearing him talking to this other couple– saying the exact same things he’d said MONTHS AND MONTHS before– and we decided that the interior of this bar is the universe occupied by Bill Murray in Groundhog Day, and that every day, Matt the bartender is there, saying his speech to everyone that comes in, over and over and over forever. We haven’t been back to confirm or deny this. I hope they get their act together, (and that the bartender– how do I say this delicately?- lets his patrons talk once in a while?) because it’s a beautiful space.

They are in the middle of a «soft open» meaning they don’t have their act together yet, but they’re open. It’s probably not a good idea to approach an opening this way, because it ‘s frustrating. Here’s our experience:
–Bartender was playing Steve Miller at loud levels until the jazz band came. If they bill themselves as a jazz/​wine bar, it’d be good to stick to jazz.
–There are no descriptions on the wine menu, so you have to talk for 10 minutes with the bar staff to figure out what’s what.
–Prices were high. Please have one inexpensive house red and a cheap-​ish beer on the menu — like Black Mountain Wine Bar does in Gowanus. Normal people like wine too.
–Bar staff was trying a little to hard to be «fancy». Good wine+music would be enough for most people.
–Unfortunately, our wine wasn’t so great.
Hopefully, things will be figured out for the «real opening» and it’ll get better…

This space has well chosen fixtures and décor that has transformed it into a warm, inviting bar. I loved the booth and arm chair area in the rear, intimate nooks, and comfortable stools. It was easy to picture myself finding a satisfactory place to settle in for a glass of wine no matter how busy the bar. The only things that would keep one from getting too comfortable here are the very large, open windows at the entrance. (This being one of the scant diminishing qualities.)
The helpful bartender filled us in on the Flying Lobster’s plans for the near future. They are going to have small jazz groups play several days a week, they will have a larger beer and wine selection soon, and they will be accepting credit cards in about a month. The wine selection rotates seasonally and is obviously selected with keen insight. I’m very excited to live a few blocks from this reasonably priced addition to the neighborhood.

O.K., we were all waiting with great anticipation for this place to open… and it was worth the wait. The place looks gorgeous, with a deep red colour and antique soft lighting. The wine list is somewhat limited right now, but it’s growing and Matthew, the bartender, knows about wine and really cares. Small plates of excellent food are also now being served. If you’re a fan of Neil Ganic, as I am, you probably already know the story behind the unusual name. If not, stop on by, grab some wine and find out!

I went to the «soft opening» of Neil Ganic’s new wine bar this past Saturday. It’s a cozy place with a good (not extensive, at least now) selection of wines. The décor is classier than his Petite Crevette next door but maintains some of its bistroesque decorative eccentricities.
Judging from all the walk-​in business on this unannounced opening, it appeared to be success with patrons, including Congresswoman Nydia Valazquez. I know I stayed much longer than I intended to, if only because Ray Cruz was playing with his small band. They were excellent.
Neil says that four or five tap beers will also be available as soon as the taps are completed in the next week or two.