Wicked Good, Northeast Kingdom

Wyckoff Avenue in Bushwick used to be a bustling center of clothing manufacture. Have you ever wondered why the subway stops are so close together out there, only a few blocks between each? One can only imagine that on crowded streets and with arms full of manufactured goods, you wouldn’t want to walk too far to get to the subway. In the late sixties and seventies after a devastating policy of blockbusting and the riots of 1977, Bushwick was left a veritable no man’s land of abandoned buildings and poverty.
This is the Bushwick that husband and wife team Paris Smeraldo and Meg Lipke found when they opened their restaurant out-post, Northeast Kingdom at 18 Wyckoff Ave. The restaurant takes it name from the northeast corner of Vermont, the couple’s home state and the place from which they draw inspiration for the décor.
For the interior, picture a small cabin in the woods near the Canadian border: earth tones, salvaged amber stained-glass windows, plank tables, and chintzy accents. A couple of potted trees and a sign with recumbent stag do more to set the scene even before you step in. This brand of hunting lodge chic would be annoying if the place wasn’t so charming and so far from overly trendy epicenters in Williamsburg and Manhattan. It really feels like it’s on its own out there, though the neighborhood has changed a lot in the half-decade it has existed, and feels closer all the time.
The menu is basically updated Yankee favorites, nothing groundbreaking, but it is certainly comfort food.
For appetizers, think salads and toasts. A green salad is $6, and the roasted mushroom fondue toast is $5. Is this an updated version of the cream of mushroom soup on toast that my dad used to feed me? If I had my druthers though, I would go for the beer mustard liverwurst served with dark bread and homemade mustard, $5.
As far as entrees go, the one that is made the most of is the chicken potpie, $13. It’s all natural lest that conjures images of Swanson frozen pies, and is the probably the most comforting thing on the menu. Other things to try include the Berkshire pork loin, $18 served with seasonal sides, and the beef sausage with braised red cabbage, and potatoes, $16.
The drink menu has a cocktail list that emphasizes rich smooth flavors, ryes, apples and honey. The beer list focuses on artisanal beers, microbrews, and international varieties. Wolaver’s Organic IPA, Allagash White, and Chimay Rouge make up part of the list.
So, while the weather is chilly, and you are stuck in the city unable to take yourself on a backwoods ski trip up to Vermont, find your consolation in Northeast Kingdom. Sit back and warm your hands on a hot toddy and pretend it’s après. This rustic sanctuary in the hinterlands may just be the closest that you can get.