NYC Restaurants

Craving Italian?  Queen should definitely be on your list.  Tucked away on Court Street in Brooklyn Heights, this neighborhood pizzeria has grown into a fine dining establishment.  Queen hasn't forgotten its roots and as a result offers two menus; one focusing on the specialties of the house, while the other offers more traditional fare like linguine with clam sauce, chicken parmigiana and homemade lasagna.

Before you begin your meal, you'll want to take full advantage of the bread basket which boasts breads from five regions of Italy including crispy bread sticks sprinkledwith fennel seeds and homemade focaccia.  And if you're lucky, the waiter will come around with some piping hot deep-fried dough balls similar to zeppoles.  But instead of powdered sugar these are given a light dusting of salt and are very addictive.

At Queen, appetizers for sharing are plated by the waiters who dish out equal portions right on down to the last olive.  We sampled the Ostrici Gratinati ($13), baked oysters with pancetta and roasted peppers and topped with some buttery bread crumbs.  The chilled artichoke called Carciofo al Vapore ($8) arrives in a lemon and anchovy sauce.  You'll want to drop the fork and savor it one delicious leaf at a time.   The beet salad with baby string beans ($9.50) also perks up with the help of some gorgonzola.

Main dishes also perform well here; from a Shrimp Risotto ($23.75) with juicy bits of shrimp and fresh peas throughout  to a perfectly prepared Angus Sirloin Steak ($32.50) sauteed with prosciutto and Chianti.

Desserts include a ricotta cheesecake and chocolate raviolini served warm.   We sampled the cannoli which had trouble living up to its eight dollar price tag.  But my cup of espresso served with lemon peel made up for it, and made me feel like I was back in Italy again.