James

Nestled on a quaint breezy corner of Carlton Ave in Clinton Hill, this cute brunch spot is perfect for a chill Sunday brunch with the parents. Came with the family and we were promptly seated right away. Luckily we took up the last 4 person corner nook table. There was a wait after that. Service was friendly and food came quick. We ordered the lemon ricotta pancakes, grilled cheese sando, pork belly hash and the burger. Lemon ricotta pancakes were light and fluffy with a nice lemon ricotta cream. The grilled cheese was nice with bacon and asparagus. A very nice version of grilled cheese. Yummo! Mom’s pork belly hash was tasty. No complaints from mom. Dad’s grass fed burger was nice and tasty. Would love to check out this place for dinner soon!

We came for brunch and scored their overrated burger and weren’t impressed with the service. Won’t be back despite how close it is, just too many other better options out there.

Food is great, service is fast and the waiters are really sweet. Always accommodating. We go with our 2 year old and they always make us feel welcome.

Portions are tiny. Feels like a waste of money for something that isn’t superior in quality to anywhere else.
The food is good, though universally over-​salted. Really, it’s a red flag when a chef is heavy handed with the salt. My question becomes, «What is he hiding?» But that’s not entirely the case here, because the flavors are otherwise very good. There is rich complexity to what we both had, despite my «large plate» being essentially 8 bites of food. And it having way too much salt in/​on it.
The waitress was very nice, and the atmosphere was lovely. A good spot for a date if you’re not super hungry and more concerned with the mood and appearance than the food itself.

Finding James, for the first time last week, was a happy accident. This small but charming restaurant sits on the corner of a picturesque, Prospect Heights street. Large windows allow for some quality people-​watching while you’re seated at the bar or at a table.
Cocktails were expertly prepared and thoroughly enjoyed at the bar, while we waited for a table. Once seated, we had a bruschetta appetizer, that was a special, followed by the roast chicken and hanger steak with chimichurri. The dishes were well-​crafted and the food was excellent. Friendly service to boot. I am eager to return and sample the rest of the menu.

My review is similar to the other low-​rated ones here: Good food, heavily overpowered by awful service. Probably the worst dining experience I’ve had in New York.
We waited over an hour for our food at brunch. When we asked our waitress she responded curtly that «the food takes time». Our food arrived only after everyone who was seated at the same time as us, already ate and some even paid their bill. Even new patrons who came in after us, were served food before us.
It was clear that the waitress forgot to put in our order until this point, and I understand these things can happen; the lack of apology was the real kicker.
For the remainder of our meal, the wait staff continued to treat us flippantly, ignoring if we asked for water, and didn’t even give us a pen to sign the receipt. We felt like pariahs ever since we politely asked about the food. Very disappointed.

After having a excellent brunch we decided to go back for dinner, the food for brunch was very good and service was fantastic, the maitre’d and our waitress were so on top of it.
Dinner however was marked by an hostess that seemed quite ineffective and the rest lack of the staff attention. We waited 15 minutes before anyone came over to ask us If we wanted any cocktails then we waited another 40 minutes for main course.
Hope to give it another try just not on Friday night.

Just had an absolutely atrocious experience at James, which is severely disappointing given how beautiful the space is (and how close it is to our apartment).
My boyfriend and I sat down and ordered chicken, and a burger. A cool 60 minutes pass, during which time our snapping turtle of a waitress came by a total of zero times to check in, or offer any explanation as to why our two very simple entrees were taking the length of full length feature film to arrive at our table.
We finally located our waitress by attempting to make prolonged eye contact with her from across the restaurant and she came shuffling over and tersely asked us:
«What can I do for you?»
Uh, what can you do for us? You can be our waitress and maybe, I don’t know, check in on where our food is or be somewhat sympathetic to the fact that we’ve been sitting here with LITERALLY nothing on our table for 64 minutes. I’m not a rocket scientist, but I’m fairly certain that human decency and a check-​in every 20 minutes or so aren’t far beyond the bounds of serving food in this day and age. I kindly told her that we were wondering where our food was as it had been a long time. She left without a word, and magically appeared with our food which had clearly been sitting out for what I can only assume was enough minutes to render a toasted burger bun, well, not so toasty.
To top it off, as she delivered our food she decided to smugly lecture us on the following:
«Just so you know for future reference, the chicken takes a long time.»
OH! Oh okay, so it’s our fault that you left our food in the kitchen for 20 minutes! Gotttttt it. God, I’m so glad you told us because I was beginning to think that when you pay $ 20+ for a burger and $ 14+ for a cocktail you should expect kind, decent service and an indication as to how long your food will take if it is, in fact, the world’s slowest cooked chicken. Thank you so much for shifting the blame off of what was most certainly a kitchen communication error back on to your paying customers, really solid move sweetheart.
All in all, we won’t be coming back any time soon due to a waitress who made us feel uncomfortable, shameful, and idiotic for having the audacity to order food, and then inquire as to when it would be delivered.

During my last week in New York, I went on a whirlwind food tour, and James was on the list, which was recommended by a friend. It was quite a trek to get there from Manhattan, but as I walked down the street of brown stones and cherry blossoms, I knew good food was awaiting. My friend and I decided to make it a «surf and turf» night so we decided on the diver scallops and hangar steak with a side of Broccoli. I’ve been to several steak houses in New York, and James’ hangar steak was just as delicious if not better than Del Friscos, Old Homestead, and Strip House. However, I don’t know if you can compare a hangar steak to filet mignon (is filet mignon supposed to be a better cut? or maybe my tastebuds prefer inexpensive cuts of meat?) Either way, if you are craving red meat but don’t want to spend $ 48, subway over to James. Solid, delicious meal.

If you come to the James, don’t sit at the bar. The bartender is slow, infrequent checking in on guests and is unpleasant and terse to boot. This is the 2^nd time we’ve visited the establishment and made the mistake of sitting at the bar.
**UPDATE:**
The owner was kind enough to reach out, express sincere concern regarding our negative experience and try to right the situation. For that reason the rating has been changed from 2 stars to 3 stars. Great management, incredibly responsive, and genuinely cares about customers — great to see!

First beautiful weekend in a long while and of course I brunched. As nice as the weather was, the wait at James wasn’t horrible compared to average wait times of 1 – 1.5 hrs at more popular brunch spots in NY. The wait for two on Sunday around noon was maybe 30 mins.
The picturesque restaurant is minimalist with a touch of vintage charm and fits in perfectly with this quiet little brownstone-​filled street. Our server, who was also the bartender, was very warm and inviting. When it was time to order, I went with the Carolina Shrimp with Harissa Jus and Creamy Polenta, which was good but I wouldn’t have minded a couple more shrimp. Aside from wishing portions were larger, I enjoyed my quartet of flavorful shrimp combined with creamy polenta and yolky poached eggs. I’m not sure how spicy harissa is supposed to be but I didn’t taste any heat, which was fine by me.
I’d love to see a bit more brunchy variety on their menu (i.e. the Lemon Ricotta Pancakes sounds like an interesting departure from your typical pancakes) but otherwise, James is a lovely, low-​key restaurant in the neighborhood and worth a visit.

Fresh, quality ingredients
All the food we ordered was very well prepared and seasoned, everything from salad, to shrimp and polenta, to burger and steak. I mean every item was ridiculously well done.
The cocktails were delicious, unique and potent. Had my head spinning after two
The only real down side were the prices. Idk I feel like $ 15 for a small salad was too much. Most of the appetizers or small plates were exactly the same prices as the cocktails ($ 14 – 15) and the main dishes, well the cheapest item was the burger for $ 18.

Think of 5^th Ave… Madison Avenue upscale resto hidden on Carlton Ave in Park Slope, Brooklyn with the NYC PRICE TAG attached… lol.
My take is if you are not passing through the area… you wouldn’t even know that it existed… the fabulous James restaurant. It is common to the residents of the area…
I walked in on a Saturday night with a friend. Small comfortable restaurant with a bar with literally a few tables. Like my friend said verbatim, «it feels so homie»… and I would agree…
The staff was very pleasant and professional… not just professional… but their whole vibe was above my expectations… everything about the place was upscale.
The food:
Complimentary toasted warm bread bites… there was something about the butter spread… Delicious!
Arugula Salad w/​goat cheese… very good.
The Burger… I must say that was one of the best burgers I’ve had.
Scallops… my friend thoroughly enjoyed her dinner.
Lastly, the desert… Chocolate Brownie Cake with Crème Fraisse… Yummy yum yum yum… with the green tea thyme ice cream out of this world.
James Resto… well done!

This place is such a gem! The reviews says it all, and although brunch seems more popular from the Unilocal photos, their dinner menu is solid! I know it may sound super simple, but the most memorable dish was undoubtedly the parsnips & fennel. Well seasoned, well cooked, and perfect portion size. Another rec is the Aromatic-​Braised Short Rib, Mizuna, Cipollini Onions.
Price: $$-$$$
Service: polite & friendly
Groups: It’s a modest space, a group of 3 – 5 should fit comfortably
Would I come back? Yes

This is a Brooklyn must go. My fiancé and I come here regularly for its laid back yet upscale atmosphere. The menu never disappoints, with the shrimp and grits being some of the best in the city. The menu is particularly appealing to me, as it’s very vegetarian friendly. Usually I create my own meals off side dishes at restaurants, but James offers a variety of veggie friendly options that aren’t just a side of roasted vegetables. Don’t let the fact that it’s packed scare you away either. Each time we go we’ve never waited more than 15 minutes for a very comfortable table, and theres a lovely bar area to enjoy some craft cocktails while you wait.

I had the delicious shrimp over polenta, a lighter version of shrimp and grits. My friend had the super yummy lemon ricotta pancakes, and we both enjoyed fun cocktails (mine was the Escobar fizz). Service is really friendly. Prices are high — it’s easy to throw down $ 40+ per person for brunch here — but the quality is so high that it feels like a worthy splurge!

Been here for brunch and for dinner. It’s always looked frighteningly packed, but I’ve never had to wait more than 10 minutes to be seated. Waitstaff is super friendly and accommodating, and parents will be happy to know that I’ve seen them easily squeeze in multiple larger groups with several kids, which didn’t disrupt the ambiance one bit.
Can’t recommend the Busiate Trapenese Pasta enough. So tasty! The cocktails were also great – you get a lot more bang for your buck on the cocktail front here than you would at other similarly ~hip~ joints in the neighborhood.
Be aware, the «small plates» are just that. Lots of restaurants will use small plates to refer to appetizers/​shareable tapas-​type dishes, but this isn’t the case here. These small plates are definitely only suitable for 1 person. Still delicious, though!

This place is absolutely fantastic! Bang for your buck when you come here. We left with our bellies packed full.
On my second time here, I ordered the chicken and apple sandwich, and it came with so many fries I was about to topple over from the amount of food I consumed. It was savory and sweet and so delicious. My boyfriend got the burger and this is the FIRST TIME I’ve heard him say it was good after all the brunch places we’ve brunched at.
Service can lag a little during the weekend brunch hours but wayyyyy worth the trip!

I’ve been to James twice, and wouldn’t you know it? I was a bit inebriated* both times.
Visit One.
We came in for post-​brunch cocktails, and ended up staying for hours because the cocktails were so good, and we couldn’t just stop at one. James actually shuts down between brunch and dinner, but they were nice enough to let us stick around until we started bothering them because their staff family meal smelled so delicious. So when my other employment opportunities fall through (probably because of the drinking), I might have to hit them up for a job.
Visit Two.
In the neighborhood for some strange reason, we recalled the excellent cocktails and smells from our previous visit and stopped by for a late dinner. It turns out that the deliciousness extends past family meal to the items on the actual menu as well. We shared shortrib, scallops, pasta, salad, cheesecake, and an excellent, excellent burger. I can’t say that I recall that many details about the meal beyond that, but it seems that the staff at James is composed of friendly and hospitable folk who have no problem with long, loud conversations about the acceptability of sweat pants and various related topics.
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*Hamsauced, even.

Very nice restaurant, ideal for brunch!
The food is good but portions are a little too small for the price.
I had a salad with beets and oranges that was pretty tasty and a side of toasted brioche that was ok. They also offer ice tea if you don’t feel like drinking alcohol.
I liked the atmosphere and the the waitress was attentive. Good place.

I have never had scallops as delicious as those I had at James. They just melted in my mouth. I didn’t even want dessert because I wanted the taste to stay for as long as possible. There were three scallops topped with short ribs (right!!) and served over cauliflower. The pomegranate is a nice sweet and tart contrast to the savory sauce.
My date had the burger, which was also very good. The meat was well-​seasoned, and moist.
The décor is nice and intimate. The service is great. I was a little worried about sitting near the door in the winter, but the restaurant is warm and a curtain kept the cold out.