NYCReview
photo credit: Kate Previte
OStudio
Included In
OStudio is a creative co-working space and cafe in Bed-Stuy where you’ll find artists making big beautiful ceramics and quilts. At 5pm, candles replace laptops, and the room transforms into OStudio at Night, a super casual wine bar with some of the best small plates in Brooklyn.
Color-blocked cafe tables remain, as do the smocks hanging in the front, left over from that week’s tie dye workshop. Aside from a few tea candles, the only other indication that you’ve entered after-hours mode are the chefs who materialize behind the cramped coffee counter. They’re here to make art too.
At the top of the menu you’ll find a permanent list of small plates, followed by the wine bar’s latest exhibit: a smattering of rotating dishes from chefs in residence. The guest chef changes from week to week, but it’s usually someone with an intriguing background and pop-up pedigree, like Mexico City’s Giuseppe Lacorazza or Filipino American chef Woldy Reyes.
Dishes from the rotating menu tend to be playful and unpretentious, and you get the feeling that the guest chefs are encouraged to fully express themselves. In the past, we’ve had a sweet n’ salty crudo with pickled cherries by Jay Wolman and an umami-rich twist on burrata from chef Greg Wong. Topped with fermented black bean sauce, it made us feel excited about burrata again just when we thought (well, hoped) that we were finally entering the Post-Burrata Period in small plate history.
House chef Omri Silberstein’s bright, seasonal dishes are just as special. A plate of maitake mushrooms crisped with seaweed butter will make you pause at first—mixing something as earthy as a mushroom with the taste of the ocean takes a minute to get used to—but it’ll become your favorite dish by the second bite.
Come by for a casual weeknight date or catch-up. This isn’t the wine bar where you wear your little black dress. You could walk in with paint-stained overalls and fit right in. Think of your meal here as a gallery visit, only this time the cheese plate you’re usually hovering over is the art.
Food Rundown
Roasted Maitake Mushroom W/Seaweed Butter
Cured Scallop With Chanterelle Mushrooms
Nardello Peppers With Goat Cheese
Coconut Flan
Chicken Pho