The Good Fork Pub

There’s a perpetual coziness to Red Hook, even post-Ikea, and we require that all establishments there maintain this coziness. If you’re going to identify as a pub, even more so. 

Previously known as Good Fork, this beloved neighborhood restaurant shut down during the pandemic, then reemerged as a pub with a bigger bar and a cute backyard with enough stray weeds snaking through it to remind you you’re allowed to unwind. This place has all the warmth of your favorite English pub—inviting barn doors, brick walls, amber light—and it also happens to have some of the more interesting bar food out there.

photo credit: Good Fork Pub

Instead of your typical fish and chips or shepherd's pie, they serve a small, ever-changing selection of snacks and mains with a Korean twist. We’re forever loyal to their veggie burger, a fried green mung bean patty that gets a slightly smoky flavor thanks to Vegemite aioli. The menu also has other items like a gooey Korean cheesesteak and a fried chicken sandwich with gochujang sauce—but if you don’t want to have a full meal, you’d be just as happy coming with a group to drink some beers and share a pot of the spicy-sweet kimchi beer cheese. 

Good Fork Pub is the sort of place where you wander in for a late snack or dinner and have a conversation with the bartender that goes on far too long for a weeknight. Only this time, you can eat something other than chicken wings and frozen burgers. Red Hook lost a capital-R restaurant but gained something more sacred, a homey neighborhood watering hole where your friends can pop in and out as they please. 

Food Rundown

photo credit: Good Fork Pub

Veggie Smash Burger

Even if you're not vegetarian, this veggie burger is worth getting for the well-seasoned mung bean patty. It's one of the better veggie patties we've had. The battered fried broccoli on the side is a light but still satisfying substitute for fries.

photo credit: Good Fork Pub

Korean Cheesesteak Sandwich

For this Korean twist on a Philly classic, steak is swapped out for gochujang short rib with some sweet, pickle-y tang from the kimchi mayo. This was one of the most popular dishes at Good Fork, and it works perfectly as bar food.

Kimchi Beer Cheese

This dip is thick like a Tex-Mex queso, and the wontons are a nice light vehicle for getting cheese in your mouth.

Fried Chicken Sandwich

Moist thigh meat and sweet sticky gochujang sauce are a good match in this fried chicken sandwich, which is topped with red cabbage to even out the sauciness and strong flavors.