Brooklyn Warehouse: Delicious with an Attitude

You can’t help but be instantly energized by the entrepreneurial spirit and vision of George Christakos, owner of Halifax’s Brooklyn Warehouse.

Founded in 2007, this restaurant has already earned a full suite of awards for innovative menu items and its great atmosphere, and George is eager to share credit for these honours with his Brooklyn Warehouse team.

Entering the restaurant, located on 2795 Windsor St. in Halifax’s North End, you can expect to step into a dining atmosphere where no detail has been overlooked. George credits his attention to the little things to his time spent bussing tables and growing up in the restaurant business – his father, Leo, founded Paper Chase, a Halifax landmark newsstand and restaurant. Expect a healthy buzz of conversation, upbeat tunes, and a warm welcome (made even warmer if you choose to indulge in a selection from the Warehouse’s extensive drink menu  as you walk in the door).

On the recommendation of our server, Vanessa, I started the meal with an award-winning Wasabi Caesar. The only way to describe this cocktail would be with one of the sweet cartoon bubbles one might come across in the 1970’s television version of Batman…

This cocktail packed a punch, and set the bar high for the rest of the meal.

And let me tell you, Brooklyn Warehouse hasn’t won all these awards for nothing….

The name Brooklyn Warehouse comes from a family trip George took several years back to New York City. He was inspired by the energy, attitude and culture of the most populous of the Big Apple’s five boroughs. This trip ignited a vision to build a place where people could be part of a food experience that was like its namesake: forever young, trendsetting, and with a healthy amount of attitude.

There is no shortage of options for one’s taste buds available here. An emphasis on local food and innovative recipes makes the menu more a culinary “choose your own adventure” wherein there are only happy endings.

For my starter, I opted for the Beef Cheeks:

This tasty little dish, featuring free range NS Beef Cheeks from Getaway Farms, braised in red wine with grilled green onions, and That Dutchman’s Dragon’s Breath cheese, required an additional order of bread to soak up all of the brothy goodness (Vanessa indicated that I wasn’t the first person to do this).

For the main course, fuelled by the fact that it was accompanied by bacon-cider risotto and a strong nod from George and Vanessa, I decided to go for the Pork Chop.

The cartoonishly awesome flavour adjectives must continue, as this dish kicked a$$, took names, and didn’t offer any apologies. A sweet Propeller Root Beer brine, vanilla-whiskey drizzled bacon-cider risotto and fresh vegetables made for an explosion of flavour in every bite.

To close things out, a dessert with some serious attitude…. the Lemon “Meringue” “Pie”… this isn’t your grandmother’s pie…

Lemon custard, house-made marshmallow, and a NS blueberry splatter that would make Showtime’s Dexter proud.

Having now experienced the product of Christakos and his team’s vision, I look forward to big things. Over the next few months, construction will begin on a covered patio that will allow the Warehouse to serve an additional 20+ customers as well as an expansion of the cocktail menu.

In my near future, there is no question that I’ll be back to try the award-winning Brooklyn Burger, which is currently featured in the November issue of Sharp magazine, sharing the cover with Johnny Depp. Check out the food section online to get your taste buds revved up.

In a broader sense, the Brooklyn Warehouse team is not content to rest on their Coast Best Restaurant laurels. They are treating the honour as a “responsibility” to continue pushing the envelope on the local food movement.

Christakos is excited about being part of the local movement in Halifax, and is quick to acknowledge those who are helping to lead the way, including his team at the Warehouse, Fid Resto’s Dennis Johnston, Local Source Market’s Sean Gallagher, Chives Bistro’s Craig Flynn, the Tempest’s Michael Howell and the many others who are committed to building on Nova Scotia’s emerging reputation as a world leader in local food culture.

With the amount of passion behind this movement, I have no doubt he’ll succeed… and that our taste buds and communities will be the better for it.