K O R Z O

IN SLOVAKIA MEANS BOULEVARD - MAIN STREET - THE PLACE TO BE

IN BROOKLYN IT STANDS FOR SENSIBLY SOURCED COMFORT FARE

IT IS SLOVAKIA, NOT SLOVENIA

Maria and Otto Zizak met in 2nd grade of their Grammar School, in the mountain resort town of Poprad – an eastern region of what was then Czechoslovakia. The year was 1983 and Brindzové Halušky was their favorite snack after a day of skiing. Otto preferred his with bits of crispy bacon, while Maria had hers in their purest form, with bryndza (sheep’s feta-style tangy cheese) and no toppings.    

     Almost forty years later, they are making Central European komforts in this, 19th century Brooklyn storefront. They source many ingredients from Zizak Preserve, their own, traditionally farmed land. The rest comes from sustainable local farmers and purveyors.

Brindzové Halušky at Korzo has been called the best in the United States. Neighborhood regulars as well as countless visitors from Slovakia and far beyond have called them the best anywhere.

Phone

(718) 499-1199

Location

667 5th Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11217

Hours

M-Th 12p–10p
F-Sa 12p–11p
Su 11a–11p

weekend brunch

online ordering. coming soon . . .

Village Voice, April 10, 2008, by Sarah DiGregorio
Central European fare, conceived by Maria Zizak, a chef from the Czech Republic. There’s a nice selection of Czech and German beers on tap, as well as Hungarian and German Wines. The menu runs from Viennese duck to Czech bread dumplings and pork to “EuroTripe”- homemade tripe soup. And although the place is clearly ‘nicer’ than many of the restaurants surrounding it, it’s in synch with the flavor of the neighborhood, which used to be (and to some extent still is) central and eastern European.

New York Times, April 23, 2008, by Florence Fabricant
…this kind of place was common 50 years ago in Yorkville, on the Upper East Side. Yearning for halusky dumplings, Hungarian flatbread, pirogi, sausage platters or slivovitz chicken?

Daily News, August 8, 2008, by Irene Sax
The Czech owners offer central European foods with grace notes. Silken cauliflower soup-both gluten-and dairy-free – is drizzled with hot pepper oils ($6). Forget that it’s summer! Order a cool Czech beer and try the sweet rich duck confit and duck sausage plate ($19), or the juicy roast pork loin that sits on a sliced bread dumpling alongside sweet shavings of red cabbage ($17). Just be careful. If the waiter says a dish is “for sharing,” he means sharing by a crowd. I ordered an appetizer of langos topped with smoked salmon ($9) thinking I’d get salmon on toast; instead, it was a chewy, crunchy puff of deep-fried dough that almost covered my plate. On the other hand, when a friend ordered a desert langos with jam and whipped cream ($8), he managed to finish it all himself. Some things are just too good to share.

Village Voice, September 1, 2008
… a new Eastern European bistro, has a Slovak chef, a great beer selection, and hearty, lovingly prepared food. Try halušky- tiny dumplings with a comforting chew, tossed with chives, bacon and bryndza (tangy sheep’s-milk cheese).

Time Out New York, July 10-16, 2008 Issue 667, by Jordana Rothman (Cheap Eats issue)
Steins of $4 house lager set the festive tone at this spacious, brick-walled newbie. Generous small plates include a trio of German, Austrian and Slovak sausages ($9.50) and the “kase klassik” ($9.25), a molten Edam cheese with lingonberry sauce.

Time Out New York, September 18-24, 2008 – TONY
(4 stars) When we embarked on our own postcollegiate Euro trip not so many years ago, we subsisted mostly on heels of brown bread and whatever cured pork product was most affordable. …this simply adorned, brick-walled gastropub that’s quietly becoming a South Slope staple—inspires no such restraint.... The extensive collection veers from regional bottled beers like the clean, bitter Zlaty Bazant Golden Pheasant from Slovakia to Hungarian wines and Czech herbal liqueurs… melted Brie arrived strained red with zweigelt wine preserves, with walnuts and toast points on which to smear the sweet, unctuous compound. … though it doesn’t quite trigger nostalgia for our traveling days, that’s probably a good thing.

Serious Eats.com, November 24, 2008, by Michele Humes
A central European-themed eater on the south side of Park Slope doesn’t skimp on the good stuff. Frankly, there are times when I wish they would. I don’t know that shrimp and grits need mascarpone and pancetta. (What are shrimp and grits doing on a Central European menu, anyway?) But the kitchen gets it exactly right with their controlled chaos of a breakfast sandwich. It’s hard to do the beast justice in a photo—what it really needs is a dissection chart. A grilled bratwurst, caramelized onions, sautéed Portobello mushrooms, house-made sauerkraut, hot pickled peppers, and two eggs, over-easy, are all crammed into a potato-onion hero from Balthazar. The magic happens when you pierce the yolks, releasing a rich ooze that permeates every bite. It case this isn’t enough food for you, the sandwich comes with a heaping side of fried potato wedges. Skip the ketchup and dip them in the house-bottled hot sauce, which, made from a mixture of hot and roasted sweet peppers, is more ajvar than Tabasco.

New York Times, December 17, 2008, by Oliver Schwarner-Albright “BARS”
…gastro-bar in Brooklyn’s South Slope that serves the neighborhood well…choose from 20-plus different beers including a handful on tap, such as the creamy Bavarian hefeweizen ($6pint). It’s exactly the right companion for the Wander-wurst ($11), three different sausages stacked on a pile of sautéed onions and warm sauerkraut…end with hot Berlin cider ($8) with fresh sage and bourbon, a mug of grown-up comfort just right for the season.

Chowhound, July 26, 2009
Finally an innovative, delicious treat in South Slope that comes with a killer menu… get an omelet with caramelized fennel, topped with black caviar and a Bloody Mary to boot, insane! Matt was our server/bartender, he was informative, fun, and created a wonderful experience for us. Our brunch was in front of us after two sips of my Mary. This new restaurant is definitely a treasure yet to be discovered with a menu full of scrumptious unique flavors.

Park Slope Reader, Summer 2009, Issue 29, by Christy Vaughan.
After visiting for drinks, dinner and brunch, I’m pleased to say that I’m so happy that such an interesting and different restaurant has found a welcome home here in our neighborhood. Executive chef and co-owner Maria Zizak is originally from Slovakia and has created a menu with a variety of updated Central European classics…. hailing from Germany is a tangy potato salad, studded with thick chunks of slab bacon, and a huge pork Schitzel that arrives with a delicious thinly sliced cucumber salad, liberally dilled on the side. My favorite starter was the pulled pork pirogi, served with deeply caramelized onions and spoonful of sour cream. One evening I tried the Czech-style slow-roasted pork loin which is crusted in herbs, sliced and served with slivers of tender bread dumplings nestled between each piece of meat. Caraway-scented red cabbage makes a delicious accompaniment to the homey meal.

TONY’s Best Cheap Eats, July 16, 2009
… the halusky is UTTERLY FANTASTIC and so is the rest of the Korzo fare. Try the bacon Bacon wrapped dates with gorgonzola filling…heaven!

Chowhound.com, November 2009, Outer Boroughs Digest: Winter Warm up in the South Slope
As winter creeps nearer, the goulash at Korzo is sounding mighty fine. Served with pan-seared spatzle, it’s “first rate, spicy and soul-satisfying,” promises Deb Van D. Other winners on the wide-ranging Mitteleuropean menu include latkes, Czech-style slow-roasted pork fier, and white bean soup that Deb found “really good, really zippy.” … Bob Martinez suggests, “Central European food in New York is usually formulaic. It can be good but it’s stuff you’ve had before”, he writes. “Korzo is trying to break that mold. The chef isn’t afraid to branch out a bit and flavors are distinctive.

Brooklynite, February 15, 2010, by Jessica Hulett
… Spicy Hungarian Goulash was full of flavor and packing just the right amount of heat. Again, the presentation was great, and the homemade spatzle was well-seasoned and not too heavy. Since there are several intriguing items on the menu, including a Fried Burger, we may have to make many, many more trips.

The New York Post. Is this really NY’s best burger?, by Melanie Lefkowitz. April 1, 2013                New York is a venerated burger city, …according to a new Travel Channel series, one of the city’s best burgers is hiding out in a Brooklyn goulash joint, wrapped in Hungarian flatbread and deep-fried. “We decided to go off the deep end,” says George Motz, host of “Burger Land,” a state-by-state and city-by-city odyssey in search of the country’s best hamburgers,…an Eastern European gastropub on South Park Slope’s Fifth Avenue, will be featured on the NYC episode alongside hamburger stalwarts like JG Melon on the Upper East Side, Minetta Tavern in Greenwich Village, and Donovan’s in Woodside, Queens.