Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant
Encyclopedia
Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant (CSBC) is an American bakery and restaurant. It is located at 4 Clinton Street (between East Houston Street and Stanton Street
), on the Lower East Side
in New York City.
The restaurant is noted especially for its pancakes, its burgers, and its biscuits and other fresh-baked goods. In December 2010, The New York Times
described it as a "brunch magnet," and The New York Daily News said the "legendary" dining destination was "the city's hottest breakfast nook." TIME
called it a "cult favorite". In 2011, Poor Taste Magazine rated it # 1 in its list of the 100 Best Brunch Spots in America.
. It attracts a weekend brunch line that stretches around the corner of the block, which includes New York foodies and many foreign tourists.
and baked items, which are made daily on its premises, with breakfast (which it serves all day), lunch, brunch, and dinner.
Among the items that it is known for are its blueberry pancakes. New York Magazine called them the best pancakes in town. February is "Pancake Month" at the restaurant.
It is also noted for its fluffy buttermilk biscuit sandwich with home-made tomato jam, and lauded for its baked goods, including its scone
s and muffins. Its home-made desserts, including muffins, organic apple crumb, chocolate cake, maple-bourbon-pecan pie, creamy pumpkin cheesecake, and cherry pie, are topped with ice cream from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory
.
Its meals include cage-free eggs, omelets, granola, brioches, grilled organic free range
chicken, buttermilk fried chicken
, hamburgers, large warm buttermilk biscuits, cheese grits
fries, salads, and market soups. Drinks include lime squash
and bellinis.
. Kleinberg and Lahman host free cooking and healthy eating classes at the restaurant for neighborhood children.
described it as a "brunch magnet," and The New York Daily News said that the "legendary" dining destination was "the city's hottest breakfast nook." TIME
called it a "cult favorite". The restaurant has been one of Zagat's top picks in the Lower East Side.
Time Magazine cited it for having New York City's best pancakes in both 2005 and 2008. The restaurant is noted especially for its fresh-baked goods. USA Today
described it as a "charming cafe with outstanding cherry pie."
In January 2009, Bobby Flay
challenged the owners of the restaurant to a "blueberry pancake showdown", which was filmed in an episode of Throwdown! with Bobby Flay
at the restaurant. In 2010, Kleinberg won Godiva Chocolatier's SWEETest Challenge Award for his Warm Upside Down Pear Cake with pecan ice cream, caramel sauce, and pecan brittle at the third annual Food Network
New York City Wine & Food Festival.
In 2011, Poor Taste Magazine rated it # 1 in its list of the "100 Best Brunch Spots in America".
and other preparations. The book was identified by Julia Moskin of The New York Times as one of the year's best cookbooks, in December 2010.
between 112th and 113th Streets in the Upper West Side
/Morningside Heights area of New York City, and has an open kitchen and a bi-level dining room.
Stanton Street
Stanton Street is a west-to-east running street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, in the neighborhood of the Lower East Side. It begins at Bowery, one block south of Houston Street at the corner of the infamous Sunshine Motel...
), on the Lower East Side
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
in New York City.
The restaurant is noted especially for its pancakes, its burgers, and its biscuits and other fresh-baked goods. In December 2010, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described it as a "brunch magnet," and The New York Daily News said the "legendary" dining destination was "the city's hottest breakfast nook." TIME
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
called it a "cult favorite". In 2011, Poor Taste Magazine rated it # 1 in its list of the 100 Best Brunch Spots in America.
Restaurant
The restaurant seats 32 people. It is located on Clinton Street, just off Houston Street, which the New York Magazine described as the "hippest restaurant row" in the Lower East Side. The restaurant is next to an 1853 Romanesque Revival traditional synagogue, Congregation Chasam SopherCongregation Chasam Sopher
Congregation Chasam Sopher is an Orthodox synagogue located at 10 Clinton Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.It was formed in 1892 by the merger of two congregations of immigrants from Poland. It occupies an historic Romanesque Revival synagogue building built in 1853 by Congregation...
. It attracts a weekend brunch line that stretches around the corner of the block, which includes New York foodies and many foreign tourists.
Menu
The restaurant serves refined comfort foodComfort food
Comfort food is food prepared traditionally that may have a nostalgic or sentimental appeal. Comfort foods may be foods that have a nostalgic element either to an individual or a specific culture...
and baked items, which are made daily on its premises, with breakfast (which it serves all day), lunch, brunch, and dinner.
Among the items that it is known for are its blueberry pancakes. New York Magazine called them the best pancakes in town. February is "Pancake Month" at the restaurant.
It is also noted for its fluffy buttermilk biscuit sandwich with home-made tomato jam, and lauded for its baked goods, including its scone
Scone (bread)
The scone is a small Scottish quick bread especially popular in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand,Belgium and Ireland, but are also eaten in many other countries. They are usually made of wheat, barley or oatmeal, with baking powder as a leavening agent...
s and muffins. Its home-made desserts, including muffins, organic apple crumb, chocolate cake, maple-bourbon-pecan pie, creamy pumpkin cheesecake, and cherry pie, are topped with ice cream from the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory
Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory
The Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory is an ice cream shop at a converted 1922 fireboat house at 1 Water Street on the Fulton Ferry Landing Pier in Brooklyn, New York City. It is located in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge in the neighborhood called DUMBO....
.
Its meals include cage-free eggs, omelets, granola, brioches, grilled organic free range
Free range
thumb|250px|Free-range chickens being fed outdoors.Free range is a term which outside of the United States denotes a method of farming husbandry where the animals are allowed to roam freely instead of being contained in any manner. In the United States, USDA regulations apply only to poultry and...
chicken, buttermilk fried chicken
Fried chicken
Fried chicken is a dish consisting of chicken pieces usually from broiler chickens which have been floured or battered and then pan fried, deep fried, or pressure fried. The breading adds a crisp coating or crust to the exterior...
, hamburgers, large warm buttermilk biscuits, cheese grits
Grits
Grits are a food of American Indian origin common in the Southern United States and mainly eaten at breakfast. They consist of coarsely ground corn, or sometimes alkali-treated corn . They are also sometimes called sofkee or sofkey from the Muskogee language word...
fries, salads, and market soups. Drinks include lime squash
Squash (drink)
Squash is a non-alcoholic concentrated syrup that is usually fruit-flavoured and usually made from fruit juice, water, and sugar or a sugar substitute. Modern squashes may also contain food colouring and additional flavouring...
and bellinis.
Owners
It is owned by a husband-and-wife team of restaurateurs, seasoned chef Neil Kleinberg and DeDe Lahman. Kleinberg had originally planned to open the business with another partner, but Lahman, who was a former advice columnist and a freelance writer at the time running an apparel company, bought the partner out. Kleinberg has responsibility for the restaurant's kitchen. Lahman is the restaurant’s catering director and handles back-end responsibilities such as public relations.History
The restaurant began in 2001 as a bakery and a small coffee cafe, and over time became a full-fledged seven-days-a-week restaurant with a liquor licenseLiquor license
-Alberta:In Alberta, liquor licences are issued by the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission.-United Kingdom:Throughout the United Kingdom, the sale of alcohol is restricted—pubs, restaurants, shops and other premises must be licensed by the local authority. The individual responsible for the...
. Kleinberg and Lahman host free cooking and healthy eating classes at the restaurant for neighborhood children.
Awards and accolades
In December 2010, The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described it as a "brunch magnet," and The New York Daily News said that the "legendary" dining destination was "the city's hottest breakfast nook." TIME
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
called it a "cult favorite". The restaurant has been one of Zagat's top picks in the Lower East Side.
Time Magazine cited it for having New York City's best pancakes in both 2005 and 2008. The restaurant is noted especially for its fresh-baked goods. USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
described it as a "charming cafe with outstanding cherry pie."
In January 2009, Bobby Flay
Bobby Flay
Robert William "Bobby" Flay is an American celebrity chef, restaurateur and reality television personality. He is the owner and executive chef of 12 restaurants: Mesa Grill in Las Vegas, New York City, and the Bahamas ; Bar Americain in New York City and Uncasville, Connecticut; Bobby Flay Steak...
challenged the owners of the restaurant to a "blueberry pancake showdown", which was filmed in an episode of Throwdown! with Bobby Flay
Throwdown! with Bobby Flay
Throwdown! with Bobby Flay is a Food Network television program in which celebrity chef Bobby Flay challenges cooks renowned for a specific dish or type of cooking to a cook-off of their signature dish....
at the restaurant. In 2010, Kleinberg won Godiva Chocolatier's SWEETest Challenge Award for his Warm Upside Down Pear Cake with pecan ice cream, caramel sauce, and pecan brittle at the third annual Food Network
Food Network
Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
New York City Wine & Food Festival.
In 2011, Poor Taste Magazine rated it # 1 in its list of the "100 Best Brunch Spots in America".
Restaurant cookbook
The Clinton St. Baking Company Cookbook: Breakfast, Brunch & Beyond from New York's Favorite Neighborhood Restaurant (2010) was authored by Kleinberg and Lahman. The book includes what The New York Times describes as the "celebrated" pancake recipe served at the restaurant, as well as the restaurant's other most popular recipes for Eggs BenedictEggs Benedict
Eggs Benedict is a dish that consists of two halves of an English muffin, topped with ham or bacon, poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce.-Origin:There are conflicting accounts as to the origin of Eggs Benedict, including:...
and other preparations. The book was identified by Julia Moskin of The New York Times as one of the year's best cookbooks, in December 2010.
Sister restaurant
The owners opened up an eco-conscious sister restaurant, named "Community Food and Juice", that also serves American food. It is located at 2893 BroadwayBroadway (New York City)
Broadway is a prominent avenue in New York City, United States, which runs through the full length of the borough of Manhattan and continues northward through the Bronx borough before terminating in Westchester County, New York. It is the oldest north–south main thoroughfare in the city, dating to...
between 112th and 113th Streets in the Upper West Side
Upper West Side
The Upper West Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, that lies between Central Park and the Hudson River and between West 59th Street and West 125th Street...
/Morningside Heights area of New York City, and has an open kitchen and a bi-level dining room.
In popular culture
The restaurant and its pancakes are mentioned in the 2011 book Where I Belong, by Gwendolyn Heasley.External links
- Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant website
- Facebook page
- CSBC Cheese Grit Fries recipe, March 2004
- Video: "Best Burgers", Time Out New York, August 1, 2007
- Video: "Baking Biscuits", The Martha Stewart Show, June 3, 2008
- Video: "Blueberry Pancake Showdown", Throwdown! with Bobby FlayThrowdown! with Bobby FlayThrowdown! with Bobby Flay is a Food Network television program in which celebrity chef Bobby Flay challenges cooks renowned for a specific dish or type of cooking to a cook-off of their signature dish....
, January 2009 - CSBC Pancake Toppings recipes for Cinnamon Chili Chocolate Sauce, Passion Fruit Curd, and Standard Pancake Batter, February 2009
- CSBC Funky Topping for Pancakes recipe, November 2010