When Frank Falcinelli and Frank Castronovo opened a slice shop in Carroll Gardens in 2019, there were lines down the block on day one. The Franks, as they’re known together, were already legends thanks to Italian spot Frankies 457 Spuntino, so the buzz was only natural. Fast forward to today, and you can see why there’s so much excitement around their newest, F&F Restaurant and Bar.
The duo expanded their slice shop into a proper sit-down spot in the old Franks wine bar space, and there’s so much more on the menu beyond the beloved pies. “This is a dining experience that you don’t get in the slice shop,” says Anthony Simasek, CEO and co-founder of Hospitality Innovations, the group helping the Franks run the restaurant. “So full-service, liquor, beer, wine, and then a full kitchen where we’re doing a lot of different dishes that really complement pizza.”
A few months following its November opening, the restaurant is in its groove, and we’re spotlighting five things you can look forward to that you won’t find at the slice shop.
Read on for what to expect at F&F Restaurant and Bar, and secure your spot on OpenTable.
Pies with “whatever looks good to our chefs”
In addition to all of the classics like the white clam pie from the slice shop, you can look forward to several new ones at the restaurant. “The leek and guanciale has been wildly popular,” Simasek says. As has the wild mushroom pie “Whatever looks good to our chefs that week when they’re in the market is what ends up on the pizza,” Simasek says. “Trumpet, lion’s mane, maitake, and chestnut mushrooms have been on there recently.”
But the dough remains the same you’ve come to love and expect. “It’s a sourdough that we’ve been using since we started six years ago, and it just gets more and more flavorful every day,” Simasek says. “It’s kind of where Neapolitan meets the Brooklyn slice.”
The martini makes a comeback
When the restaurant space was still Franks Wine Bar, locals kept coming back for the olive-oil washed martini, and that’s now back at the restaurant. Two different vermouths sit in olive oil overnight, which settles to the top by the morning and is skimmed off. “It gives it this amazing texture,” Simasek says.
Plus, thanks to the connections the team built at the wine bar, you can expect a solid wine list here, too. “Really drinkable wines that go great with pizza,” Simasek says.
Pizzas are just the beginning
Pizza may well be the undisputed star, but much of the menu is meant to complement the pies. “It’s an opportunity for us to be creative with some fun menu items, but also items that we think really highlight the pizza,” Simasek says.
That includes a big green salad with radicchios, baby gem lettuce, and a herb and shallot vinaigrette. Then there’s the arancini with a slow-simmered ragú mixed in with the rice inside. Go big with the citrusy shrimp scampi with busiate pasta. And don’t sleep on the calzones. “We have a wild boar ragú that we’ve served over a pappardelle and polenta,” Simasek says. “We just thought it would go so well with ricotta stuffed inside of a calzone and it turns out we were right.”
Expect something different each time you’re back
Unlike the pizzeria, where the line-up remains consistent, the sit-down follows the seasons. “We go to the green market every Wednesday and Friday and see what looks good,” Simasek says. “Right now we’re doing a kabocha squash with spigarello [a type of broccoli] and za’atar with shaved piave cheese on top. We’ve got a whole squid that we grill up on our plancha.”
A rotating list of desserts
Save room for dessert; the menu rotates daily and there’s an emphasis on nostalgic hits. “We have this beautiful apple tarte tatin that Frank Falcinelli has been really working on for a long time,” Simasek says.
There’s a ricotta cheesecake, which is a more delicate version of the classic Junior’s slice. “We finish it in the pizza oven, so it gets a really nice crust around the outside,” Simasek says. And then there’s the chocolate lava cake. “When you need that mountain of gooey chocolate to end your meal, it delivers every time,” Simasek says. “It’s been wildly popular. People are loving it.”
Diana Hubbell is a James Beard Award-winning food and culture journalist based in Brooklyn. Currently an associate editor at Atlas Obscura, she has also written for Eater, The Washington Post, The Guardian, VICE, Condé Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, WIRED, and Playboy, among others.
