revuesday - Little Town

I didn't grow up very far from the city that I currently live and work in.  My parents still live in the house I grew up in, the same one my mom grew up in.  But I'm a city slicker now and I don't go visit them that often... why would I when I can make them come visit me in my necks of Manhattan and Brooklyn?  So make them I do.  About once a month, I am lucky to go out on a Dad Date.  These are when my super adventurous Pops takes the train and the subway to come meet me at work and then we go out for a beer and a bite.  It's perfect, a quick visit with one of my favorite dudes ever, plus a free meal. 

Unfortunately, I work in a weird food area of the city so we have very limited choices when he comes to meet me at the library.  The options that don't take forever to walk to are either gross chain-y kind of spots in Union Square, or fancy and expensive Gramercy eateries.  We usually end up at Pete's Tavern because it's one of the few places that makes a good burger and has decent beer plus the crowd isn't pretentious or highfalutin.  You know that kind of spot, the one that's perfect for a dad and his daughter.  Don't get me wrong, I love Pete's!  It's probably one of my favorite restaurants around, not just because their food is reliable, but because it has such historic NY significance; significance that deserves a post of it's own one of these days.  But I was getting bored ordering the same thing in the same booth every time my dad came in for a visit.

So what's a gal to do?  But then something wonderful happened.  The foodie gods must have sensed my boredom because while walking to work a few weeks ago, I happened past a new restaurant, Little Town.  'Hmm this looks cute,' I thought to myself as I perused their posted menu.

 

Perfect!  Look at all those beers.  And the restaurant has a theme - New York State!  I love themes!  So I walked off to work and made a mental note that this would be the perfect setting for my next Dad Date. 

Last week (I know, I can't believe I waited a whole week to post this either, but I was pretty lazy last week.  My sincere apologies.) the Daddy-o came in and I took him to our new spot - Little Town.  And we totally loved it.  We started out with a couple of brews, IPA for me and Weiss for my dad.  After much debate, we finally settled on our meals.  I chose the fried oyster sandwich with slaw and my dad picked the cheeseburger with an egg, over easy, on top.  Though some might say that the portions are too small, I found them to be just right.  With a couple of beers, our sandwiches with their sides of homemade chips were perfectly satisfying.  Everything was super fresh and the drink selection is really out of control.  The price was right, too - I don't even think you'd be able to eat at the Union Square TGI Friday's for less.  Oh, and don't worry about the fact that this is sort of a theme restaurant because they really limit the theme-iness to what they serve.  The food is all locally sourced and representative of New York locations like Buffalo Wings and Long Island oysters.   Plus the beers (it's mostly a beer spot) are all from NY breweries like Six Point, Brooklyn, Sugar Hill & Ommegang.

Our only complaint?  It's a little loud so conversation can be tricky.  Plus it's small so getting a table could be a challenge.  But all in all I'd say this quaint, rustic looking place is a wonderful addition to the Union Square/Gramercy eateries.  A quick stop at Little Town makes for the ideal after-work drink with coworkers, a perfect pre-movie nosh, basically any quick bite.  And it's definitely a keeper in the Dad Date Dining Guide!

a happy guy with booze & eats