Washington Street Businesses

Subject: Re: Washington Street Businesses

rhodamine wrote:

i must have passed cafe shane a zillion times, but have never had the urge to go in there. it looks utterly unappealing, and ive heard more than one person say that their experiences were just that, as well as overpriced.

any other opinions? is it worth giving a shot?

Cafe Shane is a waste of time as far as I'm concerned. The service is terrible, I had to send my egg's over easy back to the kitchen because they weren't cooked all the way (?!?), and they charge you extra for using a credit card if you spend below a certain amount.

My $.02

digital_buffalo wrote: Shane's looks utterly unappealing? Really?

[sarcasm]no, i was just saying that for the fun of it :P [/sarcasm]

it always looks empty, cluttered and significantly overpriced. i dunno, i have a propensity to eschew places with too much polished wood, brass, glass and mirrors. maybe i just like slumming it.

also: when i walk to the train in the morning, i sometimes see their produce sitting in crates- literally- on the sidewalk. crates where the spinach and greens are coming out through the wooden slats and dangling into curbside puddles and onto the sidewalk. im sure this happens at other places, but what you dont have to see cant hurt you, eh?

i also wasnt a big fan of them spamming the whole of wash ave with corny flyers (saying stuff like "hungry for a post-museum bite? our dishes are a work of art!") on every first saturday in order to boost sat nite sales... but thats just me. i havent seen them do that since winter.

now that im done bashing a place ive never tried, ill click submit :idea: :idea: :idea:

I ate at Shane once and had a very good experience. It was their anniversary week so they were giving free mimosas with brunch which made it that much better but I liked it regardless.

I thought the food was very good, I've had much worse at many a brunch spot in the PH/PS area. As for pricing, I thought it was reasonable for what I got.

I can't comment on their dinner service but I'd go back to give it a try.

I think the main thing I liked about the decor is that it is new and clean. Unfortunately, this can't be said about the majority of the other wash. ave establishments.

I would like to mention Ginger Root ... I walked in there once thinking they might have carrot juice, which they didn't, but the SMELL.... oooh yum. I went back a couple of weeks later and had fried chicken and sides.... all very good. The vibe is a little odd, but the food I had was really good. Home cooking, basically. You can sit there.

Gen - the Japanese place on St Marks is good. A little expensive, but not too much more than Geido. Also, they have some options that Geidodoes not have.

I give Shane the thumbs down based on a dinner experience there... but it was early on, and I have considered giving them another try.

The Islands is delicious!

Cepeda got a new awning this weekend! They are very nice in that little grocery (on Park Place). The family lives in the building there...

I have always had weird experiences at MayDay hardware and tend to make the trip to Pintchik on Flatbush except for very small purchases.

I heart Tom's.

My 2 cents for now.


Does anyone know a good tailor in the area?

ana.log wrote: I totally agree about MayDay -- it's close, but weird. I went there for emergency paint supplies when I first moved into my building and the owner made this weird and not-so-subtle comment about how elated he was to see "people like me" moving back to the neighborhood (e.g., white people), and he said this while a hispanic man was standing at the counter! I felt so awkward. He went on to warn me to "watch my back" on my block, which I've found to be perfectly safe. He's also very abusive to his staff. I make the trip to Pintchik.

I live across from it and have had the exact same experience/feeling. Unless it's an emergency, I don't go there, mainly because he's a total dick to his staff.

Cafe Shane straight up blows. I picked at my lame-ass pancakes, weak coffee and once I saw the check, that was it. They have another location much farther NorthWest, same name.

I completely agree with Anonymous-G. Tom's is all about atmosphere you can't get anymore. Tom is a relic of Brooklyn things past and as such, is a treasure. Who else shakes your hand, slaps you on the back and keeps you in HandiWipes like Tom? I love that guy. Cookies, coffee and orange wedges, while might be straight up bribery to stay in line, it works for me.

I'm a fan of Tom's as well (yum, cinnamon butter), but its 1) closed on sundays and 2) super-duper crowded on saturdays. I also find the tables on the sunporch area extremely disconcerting since they slip and slide around if you so much as lean on them.

I've had brunch at Shane, and it was good and priced pretty much the same as Tom's. My omelette came with some kind of potato galette thing which i remember thinking seemed ambitious when i saw it on the menu, looked awful (this weird grey-brown), but tasted fantastic.

ocortina wrote: shane is only good for sunday morning "I want eggs and I refuse to leave my block" cravings when tom's is closed. but I call ahead and tell them I'll be there in 20 minutes. because yes, it takes them that long to scramble an egg and put it on toast. geniuses, all of them. the shane deux closed down. I'm crossing my fingers this one will go asap. and that something cool will move into the space formerly occupied by soul food. gosh that place ruled (and is right by my front door).

Damn straight!