Clover Club

210 Smith St., Brooklyn, NY

7.5

map & more

Neighborhood
Brooklyn
Carroll Gardens

Cuisine
American
Bar Food

718-855-7939

Official Website

By Andrew Steinthal
April 18, 2011

The East Village isn’t the only place to get an artisan cocktail these days. Brooklyn is rich in classy cocktail hybrids as well. Clover Club’s Prohibition Era brand of decor and drinks are nod to the old school – it was named after an influential group of Philadelphia journalists who used to gather to booze, chow and hang in the late 1800′s. Imagine if we were around back then? We would have been rocking incredible mustaches, wearing suspenders and reviewing restaurants on our typewriters.

Known for their tremendous drinks, the Clover Club’s food also deserves some recognition. The menu is full of well-executed snacks to pair with your cocktails, and there are plenty of options for a full meal too. The place is a perfect candidate for Late Night Eats (the kitchen is open until 3AM on weekends, and 1AM Sun-Thurs), but it’s also a popular destination for Chronic Brunch.

Unlike many of the fancy cocktail dens in NYC, entry into this fine establishment is never a hassle. It’s a big enough space to allow for standing room only, and there always seems to be a table open, or a short wait for one at worst. We’ve always enjoyed our times at Clover Club over the years. It’s been our go-to post-dinner destination for all Carroll Gardens & Boerum Hill meals, and it should be yours as well.

Food Rundown

Drinks
You really can’t go wrong, but a couple of our favorites are: Royal Tannenbaum (rye whiskey, cynar, grapefruit juice, honey syrup, lemon juice, pine tincture), Apple Blow Fizz (apple brandy, lemon juice, simple syrup and egg white), and the Clover Club (gin, dry vermouth, lemon, raspberry syrup and egg white). Also, don’t sleep on the punches. They’re fun for the whole family.

Pork ‘n Grits
Yup, that’s right. Braised pork served over cheddar Anson Mill grits, topped with a sunnyside up egg, crispy shallots. and sourdough toast. Chronic brunch, in the flesh.

Baked Eggs
Another solid brunch option. This is two eggs baked in their own personal pan with chorizo, manchego cheese and sourdough toast. It’s reminiscent of an Infatuation favorite, the baked eggs at August.

Pulled Pork Minis
The menu description says it all: barbequed pulled pork topped with house-made slaw, spicy remoulade and served on silver dollar buns. An obvious choice to help soak up some of the booze.

Steak Over Toast
Mini, open-faced hanger steak sandwiches served on a toasted baguette with spicy horseradish cream sauce. Definitely order these, as we do every time through.

Mac & Cheese
All these cocktail bars seem to have a really high quality mac & cheese. Death & Co‘s spoons from heaven this is not, but this baked, multi-cheese action is smoky and crunchy thanks to smoked Heritage pork bacon and garlic breadcrumbs.

Oysters “Rock Your Face Off”
Served on the half shell, we applaud their attempt at a fried oysters Rockefeller, but will most likely avoid ordering this next time we come. Not bad, just not good.

Diver Scallop Skewers
A fun idea and a great bar snack, these skewers of scallops and roasted brussels sprout leaves can be hit or miss depending on how good your scallops that day are. We’ve had some delicious ones, but we’ve also had some not so delicious ones too.