Defonte’s Sandwich Shop
379 Columbia St (Coles/Luquer), Red Hook, Brooklyn
Baked
359 Van Brunt St, Red Hook, Brooklyn
This post has been long overdue since we first visited Red Hook looking for the Mexican trucks at the ball fields last May. We had heard about these incredibly authentic trucks that serve tacos and pupusas and were salivating from the videos. But after trekking all the way out to the far end of Brooklyn, we learned the city had closed them down! Right before the start of the summer! Well they are back now and are well worth the trip. (See the GrubHub review) But of on this beautiful day in May, we needed a backup plan stat. So of course I carry in my wallet a list of the Time Out NY’s 100 Best City Dishes (doesn’t everyone?) and we consulted the list for two nearby favorites.
We walked about a half mile and found Defonte’s on the corner in a working class neighborhood. Now I’ve been in a lot of delis (I’m from Jersey) and this is as real as it gets. There are no frills here, just quality ingredients and fantastic heroes (or subs/hoagies/grinders). The featured sandwich was roast beef, mozzarella and fried eggplant and it was incredible. Our friends, Blair and Jeff also enjoyed some mighty tasty giant subs.
When we asked where to find Baked, the counter guys gave us directions and the suspicious tip “walk fast”. But we didn’t run into any trouble, just amazing whoopie pies at
Baked. In case you are not familiar with this tasty treat, a whoopie pie is two round chocolate cake discs with a thick layer a creamy frosting sandwiched between them. Think of a big cakey oreo. We had some peanut butter ones which were oh so good. Baked itself is a full service coffee place with great treats and interesting customers. It might be heading towards trendy in the near future, but for right now, it is an excellent stop for whoopie pies, brownies and caffeine.
So this day did not go according to plan, but so many times those days are the most fun. We definitely had an adventure, discovered a new Ikea, played a marathon Uno game and had awesome comfort foods. Go Red Hook.
