Immaculate Infatuation

We’ve been spending a lot more time in Brooklyn lately, and it’s not the indie music scene or girls in ironic glasses drawing us in (please god let that trend end soon). We know we aren’t exactly breaking any news by telling you there are outstanding restaurants all over the borough, but now that some ground has been covered in Manhattan, we’re ready to start expanding the Infatuation empire. It’s business time in BK.

Prime Meats has been on our list for a while now – we love Frankie’s Spuntino (owned by the same people), and we love meat. We also happen to be big fans of old timey things, and Prime Meats was meticulously designed to feel like it came from old timey New York. There’s a beautiful antique bar, the staff all look like extras from Gangs of New York, and you should know that, just like in the 1890’s, they only take cash. The menu is heavy and meat-centric, but most everything is incredible, especially the steaks and anything that sounds German, which is pretty much everything. Before you go, know that this is the kind of place you make a night of. You will likely wait a long while for your table, will likely drink far too many vintage cocktails, and will more than likely want to die from eating so much. As long as you plan accordingly, you should come away happy.

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Known to most simply as Frankies 457, this is the flagship restaurant from “The Franks” who (see it coming?) happen to be two guys named Frank. The Franks are also the proprietors of Prime Meats, and 457’s Lower East Side clone, Frankies 17. Not that Frankies needs another glowing review, but this place really is a fantastic restaurant if you can manage to get a table. It’s a tiny, cozy joint with simple Italian cooking, and the food is pretty damn great. Also adding to the awesome is a very reasonably priced wine selection and playlists that are heavy on The Stones and Zeppelin. It’s a nice place to linger, especially in the summer when the back garden is open. Downside? Tough to linger when you can’t get a table. Waits can push well past an hour during prime time, sometimes close to two. Every once in a while you’ll get lucky and sit sooner than you expect, but there isn’t a ton of bar real estate, even if you get sent next door to Prime Meats. The bummer of it all is that without those unpredictable waits, both 457 and 17 would be absolutely ideal date spots. Did you both have “unimaginable patience” listed as a quality on your match.com profile? Welcome to the best night of your life.

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