On Friday night we visited Allswell on a very busy stretch of Bedford Avenue. We haven't been out in Williamsburg at night (daytime coffee trips happen) in a long time. Honestly, maybe it's been ten years. So our first observation was the level of foot traffic, cabs, and yelling. It reminds me of 2nd avenue in the East Village. Second observation is that Allswell is not a comfortable restaurant. The benches and stools are low and short. You are not really going to want to sit here very long. In summary, we old!
Overall Localvore rating - Meh, fine. Worth going to if you live nearby.
Our menu covered all the basics - some fish, some beef, a flatbread. It's not challenging or particularly interesting. Aside from the herring and mussels, there's nothing on the menu I couldn't procure at the Food Coop on any given day.
We had the mussels, scallops, and short ribs. Far and away the mussels in green curry were the tastiest of the three. The kitchen does something pretty difficult. It made a curry that is both very flavorful and not insanely spicy. We loved it. Strangely, they serve this with a little piece of baguette. We asked for additional bread. That took some time to return with and by that time the curry was cold.
The scallops and short ribs were fine. They were tasty enough; fresh scallops, creamy polenta, etc.
Actually we enjoyed the cocktails more than the food. Allswell makes their own orgeat and featured it in a cocktail. I don't recall the names, but if we were nearby again, we would stop by for a drink.
Allswell is similar to The Vanderbilt, but not quite as professional or interesting.
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