Restaurant Review: Do or Dine

For anyone who watched season 8 of Food Network Star, you will appreciate that Jeremy and I checked out winner Justin Warner's innovative spot in Bed-Stuy with 2 other couples. Yes, you read that correctly- Bed-Stuy. The place is called Do or Dine and it's really fun and different.

I am not going to lie to you, it was a bit of a journey to get there. I mean, I took the G train. So after 3 transfers, it was only a few blocks from the Bedford-Nostrand stop. This is definitely a random location, yet very fitting for its vibe. The place is pretty small, but they have an awesome outdoor back patio area that is graffitied and decorated with colorful unidentified objects.

Upon being seated outside, the staff was very attentive. Justin was in full force setting tables, filling waters, and serving food.

Before I get to the food, I must explain Justin's "POV" and reason for winning his season. He is extremely creative and "sciencey" and always used highly innovative techniques to cook his food.  So, unsurprisingly, the menu is quite reflective of that. They use quirky, clever names such as "miso-corny" and "pho-rk chop."

There were 6 of us (which, by the way, is my recommended party size not only for table space but for proper selection variety and portion size) and somehow we managed to narrow down our choices. Maybe it's easier to tell you what we DIDN'T get? Nah, not as fun. So the run down goes as follows:

Dranks: we all ordered an array of wines and cocktails, all very nice (especially the Fitzgerald that was a gin and bitters drink, on some "secret" menu)

Snacks and small plates:

E666S-6 (aka Deviled Eggs) with culantro (apparently this isn't cilantro) and bacon. As you may have guessed, these are not your ordinary deviled eggs. They came as fried pockets of joy with hard boiled egg inside, creamy yolk and a spicy sauce gushing out. I must note that these were only lightly greased,  perfectly crispy, and a table favorite.

E666S-6

POND WINGS - spicy frog legs with a Dr. Pepper glaze. Two rather large legs were served all glazed up with a sticky exterior. This was my first experience with frog legs and I liked them. The meat inside was different, but hard to explain how. You could definitely identify the Dr. Pepper ingredient which was unique and tasty. This was a hard to dish to split with a group, but we made do.

Pond Wings

FAWN-TONS - fried wontons filled with venison and Jarlsburg cheese. This was definitely the best small plate of the meal. Reminiscent of crab rangoon, these wontons were super crispy, not at all greasy, and the well-seasoned venison filling was perfectly ground and blended with the cheese.

Fawn-tons

SKIPJACK TUNA CRUDO - sliced raw tuna served with leeks, some kind of sauce and this weird unidentified gelee. This dish was underwhelming, and I know I have had much better raw tuna dishes. It was sliced too thick and texturally it just didn't feel right. No one was fighting for the last few pieces.

Skip Jack Tuna Crudo

YOU'VE GOT QUAIL - quail rillette served with "pomolasses" dollops and pita bread. Not at all what I was expecting, but a pleasant surprise. The menu did not indicate the quail would be in this form, so when a jar of essentially quail purée showed up, I was a bit confused. I spread the pomegranate stuff on the pita and then topped it with the quail, which turned out to be the way to go. My table mates soon followed suit and we all really enjoyed the flavors.

You've Got Quail

Hummus - a bright plate of fresh veggies arranged around hummus. The plate was decorated with blackened sesame seed sauce so beautifully we didn't even realize at first that it wasn't part of the plate. This was a nice way to get some veggies on the table and lighten it up a bit.

Hummus and veggies

Grilled octopus - served over some kind of creamy sauce with scallions. One of the plainer dishes, and I was wishing it was more charred. The flavors were there though.

Grilled octopus

Big plates:

A CHICKEN AND WOFFALS - jerk chicken served atop waffles with maple syrup and pineapple. Mostly legs and maybe a little breast, the jerk chicken was juicy and glazed with a maple syrup/sauce creating a delicious sweet and savory flavor. The waffle sort of just absorbed the goodness and became a vehicle for the sauce. This definitely isn't the ultimate southern chicken n waffles, but it's a unique, yummy version of the dish.

A chicken and woffals

BEEF AND BROCCOLI - sliced beef served with broccoli and a couple of tots over kimchi creme-fraiche. Tots were good (when are they not?) and the sauce was yummy, but unfortunately the beef and broccoli were pretty bland. The sauce really saved the dish, but overall this wasn't a fan favorite.

Beef and broccoli

PHO-RK CHOP - sliced pork chop with an Asian style marinade (lemongrass, peanut, basil) topped with a summer roll. The pork was delicious and these are some of my favorite flavors, so I really enjoyed this one. The summer roll had cilantro in it, which I hate, so I was done with that after one bite. Otherwise, this went fast at the table.

Pho-rk Chop

BASA-NOVA - catfish served with wild mushrooms, seaweed salad, and hush puppies. Catfish is not something you see on a menu everyday, but it's right in line with the many other white fish options. This was blackened and cooked perfectly. Everything else on the plate complimented the fish really nicely. This was my favorite main dish.

Basa-nova

For dessert we ordered 2 FOIE GRAS DOUGHNUTS. These are technically in the small plates section and we ordered them up front, but the waitress asked if we might want them for dessert. We decided that sounded like a good idea and I am so glad we made that decision. These were the perfect way to wrap the meal. A perfectly crisp doughnut arrived on each plate covered in powdered sugar and jelly spilling out. We split each one in 3 pieces and discovered the vast amount of foie gras inside. Foie has sort of a nutty taste, so the jelly in the doughnut is genius and provided the ultimate sweet and salty combo (however, the foie was extremely salty so perhaps the dish could have benefitted from more sweet). These doughnuts were SO rich that a third of it was really all you needed. I think some of the party was a bit overwhelmed, but I liked it.

Foie gras doughnut

Overall this eclectic restaurant was a super fun outing to take with friends and we got to experience some very interesting food in a neighborhood we do not frequent. I thought the service was great and the whole place just has a chill, anything goes, we are here to serve you vibe. Definitely worth the trip and I recommend checking it out!

PS: there is a wonderful bar (cash only) a few doors down that is worth checking out before or after - Dynaco. If you can find your way through with the near pitch black lighting design, there are some tables in the back. The bartender listened to what types of drinks we like and then brought over cocktail after cocktail after cocktail of his creations, all different, yet all strong and delicious. He must have liked us too because we got a round of shots out of nowhere that we happily took with him. Needless to say, we left very happy.