Moto

A harbinger of hipness in South Williamsburg, Café Moto’s ambiance is a little too-cute-for-comfort on a mostly ungentrified block. Broadway at the intersection of Hooper St. and Division Ave. is a bustling commercial district traversed by local families, dotted with take-out joints, Hasidic businesses and nail salons. The crowded streets directly under the elevated JMZ are chaotic—but not in a post-modern sense; Not at all in the way the quirky bicycle dangling in place of a sign above Moto’s brassy, triangular façade evokes. The exterior fails to blend in. Inside, forget Brooklyn altogether, you might as well be on some quirky village rest stop along the Tour De France.

The décor is conspicuously cute, outlandishly eclectic, and as ignorant of the local surroundings as humanely possible. Shelves overflow with antique coffeemakers, glass-encased figurines, old-fashioned coke bottles, and other knickknacks. The bar taps are actually reworked bike parts, a la the two-wheeled name. Beneath single lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling by wires, the brick walls are painted white, and lined with roughly carved, small square mirrors. A clothesline pinned with various postcards runs across the back of the bar, where a rocking horse rests near an ancient-looking life preserver.

The clientele, seated at marble-topped tables are mostly young, artistic types. They sip espresso or artisanal beers and linger late in the evening, when the small dining area hosts jazz shows. Desperately adorable and vaguely European, Café Moto’s audacious little enclave is just this side of nauseating.

The food however, is far from it. Fresh ingredients and intriguing options mark the lunch menu. The highlight is definitely the Panini selection. Moto offers various concoctions on perfectly crusty bread, with goat cheese, Portobello or various cured meats. Each of these pressed sandwiches is served with a simple salad in balsamic vinaigrette. It was a challenging decision, but in the end I picked for my panini an absolutely mouthwatering combination—soprassata, fresh tomato, pesto and mozzarella pressed together between crisp sourdough bread. The ratio of these fresh ingredients was executed to a tee. Where the pesto might have overpowered the dish, the basil flavor in my panini was just strong enough.

Another winning dish was the tomato soup with a creamy but not too thick texture, also dashed with basil. Floating atop the savory soup was a small crustino of goat cheese.
Moto’s baked egg with ham posed a creative alternative to an omelet. The texture of this rare mode of cooking an egg is close to soft boiled; the yoke stays intact but the white is crisp and fluffy. Somehow the ham strips and bits of cheese meld to the edges of the thing. It’s all rather lumpy, a blend of flavors which is perhaps best done in the traditional omelet style.

The service is prompt and friendly at Moto, and the price is right, too, with most lunch entrees under ten dollars. Upon exiting that trinket-filled fantasyland though, I was relieved to rest my eyes on unadorned Broadway, South Williamsburg, 2009. But, if you think you can stomach the out-of-control decor, Café Moto is probably worthy of a lunch date.