New Park Slope Eatery Cries Uncle

Uncles are the best. Personally, my dad's fraternal twin, Bob, is a Teamster who lacks a full set of teeth & lives in the Boston suburbs and occasionally drives the Farrelly brothers around when they're chillin' in New England & filming crappy movies. At one point, he worked at Logan Airport and I later inherited the jacket he wore on the runways. Bob's my uncle.

Until recently, Park Slope was hurting for uncle-named establishments. There's Uncle Barry's on 5th & the smattering of seasonal Uncle Louie G shops. Other than that, we're lacking in uncle love. When will we get a Park Slope outpost of Uncle Charlie's, NYC's #1 Gay Piano Bar? Only time will tell.

Just in the nick of time, like an uncle in the night, along comes Uncle Arthur's Café, which opened up back on April 1st in an unassuming space on 9th St just west of 4th Ave. It's the latest restaurant from Richard Gussoff, the chef who closed up his 7th Ave popup eatery, The Soup Bowl, for the season back in mid-March.

While you might assume that the establishment is named for the beloved Bewitched character, it's not. It's named for Gussoff's uncle, who was an attorney for Pacino back in the day & TOTALLY has to be the inspiration for Arthur Kirkland, the lawyer Pacino portrayed in the 1979 flick …And Justice for All.

They open every morning at 7am with cold-drip coffee, a pastry case & a few basic breakfast sandwiches.

Later in the day, they bust out a full menu & alcoholic beverages, staying open til 10pm (10:30pm on the weekends). There's also brunch on the weekends.

The interior is homey, with striped wallpaper, a layout of twenty two-seaters and a bar that seats eight. Over the last few weeks, I've stopped by a few times. On my first visit, the dining room was 75% empty. On another evening, we were basically the only people in the place. I attribute this to two things--the odd location & the fact that, with "café" in the name, people may realize they’re open for breakfast but have no idea about the evening setup. It's definitely not because of the food.

Given that Richard has had great success at The Soup Bowl for four years running, it makes sense that there'd be at least one soup from The Soup Bowl featured on the menu. In this case, it's their popular Lobster Butternut Squash Bisque ($8), a creamy soup where the butternut squash flavor dominates but hints of lobster complement it, occasionally coming to the forefront.

Overall, the menu features a large number of smaller plates, such as the Sauteed Herb Encrusted Mozzarella topped with Plum Tomato Marinara ($8). While it doesn't look extremely appetizing, the mozzarella took on an eggplant-like texture and the marinara added a sweetness that complemented the saltiness of the cheese.

They have four salads on the menu and THANK GOD one of those salads has kale in it. Though kale's become a parody of itself around these parts, Uncle Arthur's Kale Salad with Apples & Macadamia Nuts, Orange Vinaigrette ($9) is definitely worth trying. The fruitiness of the apple & orange flavors pairs quite well with the earthiness of the kale.

On another evening, I got the Arthur's Burger with Blue Cheese & Bacon ($12). It's really only a basic burger, but it came out just as requested--pink on the inside and crusty on the outside. The bun held up well and the salt bomb from the blue cheese & bacon was exactly what I was looking for.

As a fan of all things taco, I had no choice but to try the Catfish Taco ($18). They come in a pair, with cabbage slaw, avocado, salsa & sriracha sour cream on a flour tortilla. First off...the price. $18 for two tacos? C’mon now. I mean, I get that, in this day & age, fish tacos command a slightly higher price and that the tacos are larger than your average taco, but still. Second off...they are NOT tacos. They're wraps. All together, they're pretty good, as the fish is well-cooked & the sriracha sour cream adds a nice kick but something needs to change. I don't care if it's the name or the price, but something's gotta give.

Their drinks menu is limited to beer & wine, as there’s that huge white church looming just across 4th Ave, but the selection's still adequate, with a typical craft beer list of Sixpoints & Smuttynoses ($7) alongside about a half-dozen wines that run from $7-10 a glass.

I'm worried that, unless people start to realize that it's there, Uncle Arthur's may not be long for this earth. The food & atmosphere totally work, but it's a good-sized space & there's only so long they can go on with evenings full of empty tables. It'd be a shame if it didn’t last, so go there, people. Spread the uncle love.

Uncle Arthur's Café, 237 9th St (corner of 4th Ave)

Read way more from Shawn at eatdrinksnack.com and eatdrinktaco.com.