[My Favorite Park Slope...]: Monday Night Meal

Photo by Park Slope Lens

After spending the first day of the work week dealing with annoying cow-orkers (hyphenation intentional), the last thing you wanna do is try to figure out a dinner plan.

Fortunately, we have the delicious Austrian food at Cafe Steinhof. Cafe Steinhof gives their chef the night off on Mondays, and presents a limited menu that's got some delicious bargains.  There are a handful of starters, but the real deals are the entrees.  For $7 you get either gulash (that's how they spell it...not "goulash", FYI), trout or beans and kielbasa.  The gulash is terrific and spicy with hot paprika, but my personal fave is...wait for it...wait for it...

...the fried trout.  

Zey haff vays off mecking zuh twowt.  The fish is lightly breaded, fried (but not greasy) and served with a generous side of potato salad.  The potato salad's a winner in its own right.  With a mayo dressing, herbs, red onion, and chopped cornichon, it's kinda like having tartar sauce incorporated into your side dish.  It's simple, delicious, light, delicious, inexpensive, delicious, and also quite delicious.  The next time someone tells you never to order fish on a Monday, take them to Cafe Steinhoff and tell them if they don't eat the trout and enjoy it, they can no longer be your friend.  

The beer is just as cold on Monday, as it is any other night of the week, but if you go for the trout (and have I mentioned that you should go for the trout?), check out the Grüner Veltliner (crisp and bright) or the Riesling (off-dry, kinda' like drinking an underripe pear).

Of course, the big downside of going on a Monday is that you don't have access to all of the other sublime Austrian food on their regular menu -- schnitzels, sauerbraten and potato pancakes.  But, for those of us who are ridiculously indecisive, a limited menus of sure-fire hits is sort of a relief.

The only other downside is that you won't be able to stalk any celebrity chefs.   EaterNY recently reported that Season One Top Chef Winner Harold Dieterle is a big fan of the spaetzle, because they make it just like his grandmother did.  (Awww!)  That's not on the menu on Mondays, though, so if you're some sort of weird foodie star-fucker, don't expect to bag Dieterle on a Monday.

Also, order the trout!