Pomme de Terre

Steak frites

Photograph: Talia Simhi

If it opened almost anywhere else, Pomme de Terre, a by-the-books bistro in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, would be a cliché—albeit a charming one. An awning hangs over rickety sidewalk tables, the tin-ceilinged dining room is accented with a primary-colored palette, a multitude of vintage-poster reproductions line the walls. It’s a formula that has been repeated over and over again. But on this gritty stretch of Newkirk Avenue, there is novelty to be found in the location: It’s the first bougie restaurant on the block. Owned by Smith Street pioneer Jim Mamary and Ditmas restaurateurs Gary and Allison Jonas (the Farm on Adderley), the team keeps it simple, yet competent. The casual service is accentuated by reasonable prices. The star menu item, a succulent and generous steak crowded with crisp shoestring fries, is a deal at $19, and the serviceable wine list offers most selections for under $40. Among the other usual suspects, the crisp-skinned duck leg confit, elevated by a smoky house-made duck sausage, was a hearty success. Likewise, chicken liver pâté, packed tight in a ceramic ramekin, was all you could ask for—heady, rich and smooth. We blame ourselves for the one misstep: doughy fried calamari rings. (Who orders crispy squid at a brasserie anyway?) Desserts brought us back to the tasty yet predictable—dense chocolate mousse and a toasty caramel pot de crème covered in brûléed banana slices. Familiar territory, sure, but it’s refreshing in this terrain.