Welcome back to another installment of Ethnic Eating Adventures, in which we travel far and wide to discover the hidden culinary delights of New York City. Today, we're heading to Brighton Beach for some over-the-top Russian seafood at Gambrinus.
Some of the best ethnic eats are found at restaurants with little to no atmosphere—holes in the wall, if you will. Gambrinus is not one of those places. Gambrinus has atmosphere coming out the wazoo. It's decorated like a Russian pirate ship-cum-beer hall, complete with waiters in striped boatnecks and kitschy nautical knickknacks. It's totally ridiculous, and that's why it's amazing. Nevermind that the Russian-speaking staff isn't always the friendliest—just go with it.
And by "with it" we do mean go with a group, because the menu is huge and so are the portions. Gambrinus bills itself as a seafood restaurant and sushi bar, though we've always avoided the Japanese portion of the menu in favor of Eastern European flavors. Start off with a pickled vegetable platter ($9), piled high with tangy cabbage, whole tomatoes and watermelon wedges (don't knock it til you try it), then move on to the big guns—a platter of whole head-on shrimp smothered with garlic butter ($12) and comically oversized steamed king crab legs (seasonal). Soak up all the buttery goodness with a pile of wedge-cut fries with Altoid-defying garlic and dill. To wash it all down, there's never-fail vodka, but the restaurant also stocks a surprisingly large and varied beer menu, including Euro favorites like Bitburger, Baltika and Krusovice.
To give you a better idea of what to expect, here's a commercial the restaurant made for themselves. Enjoy:
Gambrinus Seafood Bar & Restaurant // 3100 Ocean Pkwy, Brooklyn // 718-265-1009 // online
