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* Oznot's Dish
oznots.jpg
(photo leavethecastle.net)

Eclectic with a Mediterranean Spin
79 Berry Street
PHONE: (718) 599-6596
CARDS: Mastercard/ Visa
AVERAGE ENTREE: $13
MAP:Click Here (Bedford Stop on L train)
MENU: Click Here
WE SAY: Williamsburg's best brunch and most unusual decor. Oznot's is like no dining experience you will ever have. Seafood, pastas, and specialty dishes with a Mediterranean twist will surprise and delight you.
Dinner is more expensive than what you would generally expect in Brooklyn, but well worth the price. Seafood dishes are spectacular. Be sure and try the much cheaper weekend brunch, but be prepared to wait. Restaurants this good don't remain a secret for long.
Now with a full bar!
From Village Voice
"The grub is adventuresome in this Williamsburg boho clubhouse, with nods to the Middle East, North Africa, and Mexico. The menu varies from month to month, but if you see coriander paste bread among the appetizers, order several portions--it's made with an Afghani loaf slathered with a tangy puree of coriander and cardamom. Also good are the pizzas, the soups, and anything featuring poultry, like the garlicky game hen. Don't miss the collection of old tea pots."
From New York Magazine:
"Once they've gotten over the alleged convenience of the actually terrible L Café or the myth of the great Enid's brunch (it's only the excellent carrot cake and the prodigious amounts of alcohol everyone's encouraged to consume that inspire awe), most Williamsburg food hounds sniff out-and stick with-Oznot's Dish. There you can sit with a newspaper in the greenhouse-like, mosaic-covered back room or outside on a desolate yet somehow charming strip of industrial warehouses and never be disturbed-even by the restaurant's notoriously slow waitstaff. But it's the ordinary meals with unique Mediterranean twists that have received shout-outs from everyone in the hood. Dinner options include a lamb burger on rosemary focaccia, $10, and flank steak marinated with Moroccan spices and served on rice pilaf, $12. Brunch brings bigger crowds and variations on eggs, like Huevos Tripoli, which serves them fried on lentil stew, or French toast spiced with cardamom and served with yogurt and fresh fruit (all large brunch plates $8.50). But keep in mind that though the food is Mediterranean-inspired, it's not actually Mediterranean. Case in point: an abysmally bland baba ganoush. Thankfully, they get region's general spirit right: the wine list contains more than 200 labels, and the delicious hibiscus iced tea is spiked with mint, $3, and vodka, $6. -Jada Yuan "
From City Search:
"With its thoroughly relaxed vibe and globe-trotting menu, Oznot's Dish is a light in Williamsburg's culinary scene. The interior recalls an artist's studio; colorful chipped tile covers an attractive bar near the entrance. In warm weather, take to the relaxing sidewalk cafe or the sunny, greenhouse-like room near the back of the restaurant. The service is as low key as the food. This expansive menu rambles through India, Morocco, Spain and the Middle East, drawing on the signature dishes and spices of each cuisine. Start with the seafood mezze platter, which highlights excellent house-cured salmon, or the pastry-wrapped duck bisteeya with pinenuts and mushrooms. Main dishes range from internationally-inspired comfort food--like juicy lamb burgers with Manchego--to homemade pastas. Huevos Tripoli--two eggs with brown rice, lentil stew, salsa, feta and harissa--is a brunch standby"
From NY Times
"In a neighborhood like Williamsburg, restaurants are routinely called quirky and offbeat. But Oznot's is truly unusual, a veritable flea market of mosaics, mismatched furniture and artwork set on a rickety, uneven wood floor. The blend of Mediterranean food is just as interesting."


Reviews

** This is intended to be a useful review board, not a discussion room. Please submit only serious, thoughtful reviews. All others will be deleted.**

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one of the best bloody mary's
definately sunnier in oznots than anywhere else in brooklyn

Posted by: bm at March 10, 2005 08:47 PM


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gone downhill. in a major way

Posted by: ed at June 11, 2005 10:54 PM


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I ate dinner here the other night and was horribly disappointed. I must say, the lamb burger was delicious, but everything else that arrived at our table was close to unedible. My girlfriend had the shrimp skewer appetizer, which seemed like a pretty safe bet, and the shrimp was overcooked, dry, and not even close to worth the 11 dollars charged for it. We were offered a hummus plate as retribution, and ended up being charged for that, all on top of the fact that they didn't have any of the drinks we wanted. Maybe it's because Oznot's is closing,but i would say wait until they move to give it a shot or steer clear of this dinner disaster.

Posted by: g at July 26, 2005 03:38 PM


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Is Oznot's gone for good? I walked by last week and their gorgeous interior is totally cleaned out and their sign is gone.. does anyone know what happened?

Posted by: kateO at August 9, 2005 06:26 PM


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I called them on their last day and they said they were looking for another space, but it wouldn't re-open anytime soon. Alas, one of the many casualties of increasing rents and development.

Posted by: ET at August 28, 2005 12:46 AM


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I moved here in "93 and this was one of the only place to eat on the northside. Their gate used to have grafitti that said "go back to Manhattan...faggots". I would say that through the years (as I watched their prices and patronage change) I had over 100 meals here. One of the greatest eateries in the world. Never had a bad experience ever. I was priced/grossed out of the neighborhood a year ago, I recently came back to the Northside to eat at Oznot's and was really devestaded to see it closed. I never thought I could get so sentimental about this place. Thanks for so many great meals and good memories.

Posted by: jeffrey at October 3, 2005 07:12 AM


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i lived in williamsburg several years (1994)ago for nearly one year. it was the best time i have ever had. we lived in an apartment just around the corner. oznot´s was our most loved place to eat something special outside of manhattan in an exotic atmosphere. and at that time it was the only restaurant in that area. now, i´m living in munich - germany. far away from my loving williamsburg.
oznot´s - williamsburg - i miss you! but i will come back anytime.

Posted by: Umut at November 16, 2005 07:36 AM


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