Spotted: Hipsters and Celebs at Freemans Restaurant
Posted in bars, dining, wine and liquor tagged with Bloody Mary, Brunch NYC, Freemans, Freemans Restaurant on September 22nd, 2009 by Mary-Kate
I consider myself to be a bit of a Bloody Mary connoisseur – I sample one everywhere I go. This past weekend was not an exception; I set out to find the tomato juice-enhanced hair of the dog and ended up in the well-hidden Freemans Alley on the Lower East Side.
Fully armed with a wretched Cooper Square Hotel-induced hangover, my friend and I stumbled over to celeb-friendly Freemans Restaurant at 11am (my pounding headache was making sleep an impossibility) where we plopped down at the back bar. I’m not a Freemans virgin in the slightest, I’d just prefer to avoid this neighborhood during weekend nights – too young and hipster-ish for me then. It’s normally packed with a fashionable, in-the-know crowd.
“So I heard a rumor that you have exceptional bloody marys?” I asked Bobby, our incredibly chipper bartender.
“I made the mix myself just a few minutes ago,” he said. “Hands down one of the best bloody marys in town; I even added chunks of fresh ground pepper to give it a little kick.”
“We’ll both have one, but make mine extra spicy!”
As he concocted my elixir of life, I took a quick walk around the family-filled restaurant to find the restroom. Freemans is homey, rustic, low-profile and low-frills – it looks like a restaurant you’d find at a ski resort, a national park or even The Haunted Mansion in Disney World. The cabin feel and woodsy ambiance is accentuated by the unfinished plankwood floors and the taxidermy lining the walls. Is that a peacock, a turkey or a unicorn behind the bar?
After I came back from my trip around the stuffed zoo, I sat down at the bar and sipped on my zingy, caper-berried bloody as I scanned the savory brunch menu. Should I have the grilled cheddar, tomato, and watercress sandwich with a mixed green salad? Poached eggs, roasted tomato, and cheddar cheese grits with buttered sourdough toast? Or Beef brisket hash with fried eggs and piccalilli relish? This wasn’t exactly a difficult decision for me – I had the poached eggs, roasted tomato and creamy cheddar cheese grits. As someone who is moderately OBSESSED with tomatoes, I must say they’re amazing. They were cooked to absolute perfection and the rosemary topping was the right touch. The eggs were a little too heavy for my still-queasy stomach, but the cheddar cheese grits were divine and contained the perfect amount of grease – not even a southern mother could’ve made them more authentic.
After another round of scrumptious bloodys and multiple glasses of water – neither of which cured my pain – we bid adieu to the fabulous Bobby and began our slow walk back towards Gramercy Park.
An hour later, once we arrived back in the neighborhood, we popped into the Gramercy Tavern for a glass of Muscat and mushroom lasagna. The sweet Muscat threw me over the edge and I headed home with one of the worst headaches of my life.
Gramercy Tavern will be properly reviewed next time – when I’m well enough to sit among the jet set.
Last winter, when I made the difficult decision to move to the Upper East Side from the South Street Seaport I was saddened by the loss of the Front Street bars and restaurants. This area truly is a hidden gem in the city, but I will divulge on this at a later date. I’ve always thought of the Upper East Side as a collegiate playground—I avoid the local bars for fear of being humiliated by a bouncer requesting my AARP card; forget about my driver’s license (why do I have one? I haven’t driven a car in eight years).