How it Is at As You Are
The hotel restaurant with a forgettable name and some unforgettable dishes
My friend told me recently that her boyfriend’s mother had discovered a hotel restaurant that she loved so much that she proceeded to go to brunch, lunch, and dinner there several days in a row. Any place that gets that type of hype is a place I want to be, so I made a pilgrimage myself to downtown BK to check out this unlikely gem.
As You Are (252 Schermerhorn St) may technically be attached to the Ace Hotel, but that’s not the only thing that makes it special. This restaurant is also a bakery, offering casual drinks and pastries to go like the chai creme brulee donut (above). On Saturdays, you can place an order to pick up what they call “Saturday Bread.” Along with all that, the place has a hip, exciting menu totally unlike the stuffy hotel restaurants I’ve been to in the past.
According to an interview that head chef Ryan Jordan gave to Eater, As You Are seeks to celebrate Brooklyn cuisine, whatever that is — an amalgam of immigrant cooking styles and pastries, I guess. Their dinner menu features dishes ranging from hamachi crudo to radiatore, an octopus-mezcal ragu. It’s eclectic and exciting.
For that reason, brunch at As You Are was no simple choice between eggs Benedict and eggs any style. Instead, there was a wide range of dishes on offer. I started with that chai donut, which felt like an invention: with the brulee, a crackling, glassy sugar coating that fractured into shards when I hit it, on top, and the creme, infused with orangey-cinnamony chai flavor, at the center of the donut, there’s no wonder this donut has found a fan base.
I also sampled the Cardamom French Toast, which was a standout — six slices of the moistest french toast you’ve ever tasted, which had clearly been SWIMMING in a cardamom egg batter, piping hot and served with a rich, cold blackberry mascarpone that was tangy and spread just like butter. The whole affair had pistachio dust scattered on top. This dish was decadent, in the best way.
The chilaquiles, below, are a dish made up of several layers of tortillas marinated in salsa verde, citrusy and tangy. This was FLAVORFUL. The dish also contained crema and queso fresco, and, of course, some thinly sliced red onion, for taste and crunch. It was sour, creamy, crunchy… it hit every note it needed to.
As You Are may have a forgettable name, but the food they’re serving is pretty unforgettable. I can easily understand how my friend’s boyfriend’s mom ended up going back over and over again. Actually, to be honest, I’ve heard the often-sold-out cinnamon roll is absolutely ridiculous, so I have to return… does anyone want to spend the next 48 hours there with me sometime soon?
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