Honey Badger

I read a rave review about this place and absolutely loved what I saw in my research. "Wild to table." Foraging everywhere. A water pairing?? That's ridiculous..and of course I had to try it.

Housed in a tiny space around the back of a strip mall just south of Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Honey Badger is run by a husband and wife team, Junayd (cooking) and Fjölla (front of house). Only 7 tables, but a super easy reservation to get. That's typically a bad sign.

There were 10 of us eating on this Friday night. One seating. The tiny kitchen behind the bar has no hood system. So my expectations were further tempered when I walked in.

More than almost any restaurant I can remember, this restaurant was all over the place. The highs were REALLY high. One dish (the shrimp dish) is 3-star level and should be used to teach/train other chefs. Restrained, but mind-blowing flavor. Full nose-to-tail usage of the ingredient. Uber-refined. It will knock your socks off.

Others fell flat. Really flat. The biggest disappointment was the main dish - monkfish with German potatoes. Nothing was elevated. It was fish you can cook at home over potatoes you can cook at home. A miss so far off that it was confusing.

They can't not know...right?

I love mushrooms as much as anyone, but three mushroom dishes in a row is too much for a tasting menu.

Which is frustrating. Because this couple is so passionate. So glorious in their energy and vision and passion. Two of the waters from the pairing (which was better and more substantive than expected!) are from trees that Fjölla personally taps.

They are committed to this lifestyle. I stayed after and chatted with the two of them. "You could be doing this so much easier. But you're not. And it's clear on every plate."

Chefs come to learn from them. But they aren't featured in news magazines. Michelin pays them no attention at all. While other Michelin misses have me shaking my head in frustration (looking at you, Plu. You too, Luthun.), the gaps at Honey Badger are obvious and clear. 

Aside from wide inconsistencies dish to dish, they should be majoring on the education of the guests. 

Fjölla is an extraordinarily caring and hard-working FOH person. But she did it all. Welcome. Drinks. Refills. Explanations. Chit-chat. Running next door to get the next ingredients. While she engaged with a table, she was somehow fully present. But you didn't want to connect with her too much because you knew there were 14 things she needed to get to.

For a restaurant with such a brilliant and high-level focus, there should be a greater clarity of what you are eating. Why is it on the plate? Where did it come from?

Each table received their own delivery and separate explanation of each dish. If they served the entire room, they could give a lengthier explanation to all guests as to what they were eating. Diving deeper into their passions and what and why they are sharing this plate of food with you. Like they did at EL Ideas.

Send people home armed with greater understanding that they can tell their friends about. Because this couple has this passion in spades!! I found those passions while chatting with them after everyone left.

How I wish it was available to others throughout the meal.

Junayd was silent all evening. Not a single word spoken to the guests. I wondered whether he was shy, or even perhaps had a physical ailment that prevented it. But when he came around the bar, he absolutely came to life! He could not have been more interesting, passionate and engaging. 

That! Share that with your guests!

There were other ways they seemed to make things more complex than they needed to be. The sea snail ice cream was so delicious. Packed individually into each snail ring and stuck together, you ate it by snapping a small shell off and digging out a small amount of ice cream. Then moving to the next. Not a great experience, fighting with tiny shell after tiny shell for the delicious ice cream.

I get that they are showing you how the snails are in the wild. Great concept. But if they presented a nice bowl of ice cream with the shells on the bowl as decoration - connected in the same way - it would have been a lot more enjoyable to eat. We would have received the same education from the dish. And it would be far less preparation for this dish, I imagine.

The dinner took 3.5 hours, which felt generous...but a little long. I wrote this as I sat there:

What is the balance between delicious and meaningful? Not that it wasn't delicious, but it's so much more meaningful. I'm not sure I'll remember any of these dishes for their flavors - they're excellent, but nothing mind-blowing. However, their meaning is SO special and therefore, so unique. This couple deserves to be lauded.

So...do come here. For the experience. And to support a terrific couple who are putting themselves fully onto each and every plate. They have so much to give and teach and share.

You will be better for having experienced it.