Pirosmani

Food’s really tasty. I like the eggplant appetizer as well as the lamb stew. I want to try the other things. Was excited for the tarragon soda but I didn’t really like it. Calf tongue is pretty typical. But get the lamb!!! Yum.

So i am walking by this place, doesn’t look very appealing, i walk inside it says they take cash only.
So i had my reservations. I order a few items, and i have to say food was REALLY good, we had a salad, soup, shikebab and khachapuri. Honestly every item tasted really good, plus the green tarragon drink (Tarhun), they had some fancy brand that i never had before and it was great too.
Service was good, place looks nice inside (outside not so much), but the food was honestly that good, portions were huge but to me the taste is what makes in a 5 star review.
I went to much better looking Georgian places before and food was nowhere near as good.

I just had (for takeout): 1) Khachapuri adcharuli; 2) Chqmeruli; 3) Lamb Shish Kebab. Khachapuri was the most OK part — it was alright, but I felt like I was eating Dominoes pizza… Chqmeruli was eatable, but not enjoyable (a bit too hard and dry (oddly enough)). Kebab was the worst part, first of all it was beef, not lamb like I ordered, then, meat was hard, barely (if at all!) marinated and some pieces had an old meat aftertaste. Disappointing :(

Service is what’s bringing this place to a sub-​par experience: waiter — who doesn’t even bother to give advice on what appetizers to choose; host — who moves tables and chairs around because they are preparing for a banquet later in the evening; cook –who runs around in her apron yelling at bus boys… Food was ok– chanahi great, dolma — pretty bad. All in all — never again!

The only reason I’m giving this place a 1 is because Unilocal doesn’t offer a rating in the negatives.
I’ve been eating here for the past two years, for both, big family occasions or just a friendly dinner. Food was always on point, service was questionable at times but for the most part the two main servers are good guys and work hard.
I convinced my friends a couple weeks ago to come grab dinner on a Tuesday evening. The experience left us disgusted with a lot of thoughts for what we would desire after spending $ 33 per person.
The beef kebobs was the main reason I stepped foot in this café, the kebobs i was served that night was some sliced up chunks, dry like a desert, and just plain nasty tasting. When I asked the server what happened to the kebobs that I’ve been eating for the last two years, he stated; A lot of people didn’t like the old kebobs they claimed it wasn’t good and were sending it back whenever it was served. He even mentioned the kebob I was eating costed twice as much, I told him I wouldn’t pay half as much for it.
I wouldn’t feed this food to my dog, and I don’t even have one.
After mentioning this at a family lunch, my father said he overheard on russian radio, that the place has a new owner, so that explained even more of whats really happening at this place.
There are too many good kebobs in Brooklyn to settle for less, I work too damn hard for my money to throw it away, Goodbye Pirosmani, it was good while it lasted…

I’ve seen the place so many times and never dared to walk in … something about it just makes you feel like «if you’re not a member, do not go in.» It happened so that a friend of a friend from out of town wanted to go there as she has previously gone. The food was good but not exceptional. The best thing I had there was the cheese Khachepuri — it was so cheesy and gooey and simply amazingly delicious. Worth a trip back just for that. We also had this chicken in a milk/​garlic sauce, it sounds yuckie but tasted quite good to my surprise. The rest of the food wasn’t all that special — chicken kebabs were just ok, in fact one person from our party pretty much said they sucked (I won’t go that far). The salads were. just regular salad you can make at home I guess. The whole point of this friend of a friend wanting to eat here were the Georgian Dumplings and yes, she raved about them all before dinner, during dinner, and after dinner but truth be told — I was so not impressed :-/​
Would definitely return for the khachepuri though … oh the cheese …

Good food. Close to genuine Georgian cousin. Atmosphere reminds of early 900 setup…

The food is good the waiters are good, the place is nice and clean. The only thing I don’t like the long period of time beet meals, like they bring everything els except hot appetizers potatoes with mushroom and fried liver, they bring it when you are full already and ready to go home.
P.S I definitely will go there again.

Awesome little place, I liked the food so much I went to meet the chef — very cheerful man obviously proud in his work
Be back again, hopefully many times

I absolutely LOVED this restaurant!!! The atmosphere was busy and happy, our waiter was never far away, my beef tongue and horseradish was a great start. My salad was fresh and tasteful, and my lamb stew was more than I could have asked for!!! The house wine was recommended to us by our waiter, and we were pleasantly surprised with how well it tasted with the rest of our food. I was so stuffed, I wound up taking the rest home and enjoyed it the next day!
Needless to say WE will be going back for more, and maybe this time I’ll get up and dance with the others!!!

This is the best Georgian food in NYC, and you owe it to yourself to try it. I am not Georgian, but I been to Republic of Georgia and therefore, I have something to compare it to.
It is also interesting to see how many Georgian places are popping up in Manhattan but none of them have food of the same profile as Pirosmani!

Get ready for an eating experience unlike anything you’ve had before. This isn’t even Russian food, it’s Georgian food. They are known for their delicious breads. We had one that was filled with an egg, butter, and cheese. For main courses we had buttered chicken and gizzards. Their cold borscht soup was good. Service was slow but the restaurant is comfortable. It’s the type of place where families go to have large parties and drink lots of vodka. You could walk out of that place drunk.

Disco lights, dancing, and delicious food – what more could you ask for?
I went on a thursday night with 3 other friends and besides the large family party that was happening in the back of the restaurant and the group of three guys who kept taking cigarette breaks, we were the only table there. The waiter was super friendly and helpful, explaining every dish we asked questions about, and the food was awesome!
Loved the khatchapuri with egg and butter mixed in [one of the cigarette guys came over and taught us the proper way to eat it :) ] and the georgian salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions was simple but really fresh and delicious. Eggplant with nuts were a really good app and the lamb stew with vegetables was awesome! Loved the bread cooked over the top which was perfect for swabbing up the stew and the georgian dumplings were pretty tasty. The mushrooms in frying pan (basically whole mushrooms covered in cheese) could’ve been seasoned better and weren’t particularly interesting – I’d try the fried potatoes with mushrooms next time.
I’d definitely come back for the khatchapuri alone even though it’s all the way down in southern Brooklyn!

Do not eat the nipple.
The baseball sized billowy Georgian dumplings look like a dough sack complete with a pointy pinched «nipple». «Do not eat the nipple», I was told. It’s harder and chewier than the rest of the skin. I ignored the advice. Every bit of starch on that table helped to soak up the copious amount of alcohol intended to go hand in hand with Georgian food.
A trip to Pirosmani is educational. Deep in the heart of Sheepshead Bay lies Georgian cuisine. You will find many Russians and Georgian people dining at Pirosmani getting their fill on food from the motherland. The ethnic roots are apparent and unless you are in the know, then you won’t know that Pirosmani exists behind the bland exterior that does not even phonetically spell Pirosmani.
I have eaten at Pirosmani twice and find it campy and cruise-​ship like. The difference between a weeknight and weekend is night and day. Weeknights are definitely calmer and void of the numerous large party celebrations. The video screens blast Georgian «G-​Pop» but the live dj as well as the elderly couples dancing are nonexistent. This weeknight meal was also absent of the prefixed price per person fee.
«Flaming chicken! We have to get the dish that they light on fire!» I said in excitement to my fellow diners. This mystery dish was on every Georgian table on my last visit and I vowed to try it the next time I came back. We asked the waiter what it was and he was clueless. Actually, we weren’t even sure if he understood the word fire. While the staff does speak English, Pirosmani is a very Georgian restaurant. When in Georgia (Pirosmani), attempts to properly pronounce the dishes are appreciated but will most likely get a laugh or look of disgust. «I came to Brooklyn to eat kuch kuch kuch…»
We fared well and picked a variety of dishes I would gladly eat again. They were all done perfectly and were just the right amount to share between eight people.
Pirosmani Menu for newbies:
Borsch– vegetable soup
Gufta-​Bozbash– lamb meatball soup
Badrijani– Eggplant with walnut
Fried Potatoes with Mushrooms
Hot Kuchmachi– chicken gizzards with pomegranate
Chikmenuli– fried chicken in garlic butter sauce
Khinkali– Georgian dumplings
All of this with a sprinkling of Georgian breads through the meal: Shotis Puri (the plainest of the bunch meant to be slathered with butter), Ajarski Khachapuri (bread with cheese and egg), and Osuri Khabidzgini (flat bread with cheese and spinach). The flavors of the dishes note an overwhelming amount of butter and dill. Also notable is the Chanahi lamb stew. I’d avoid the Tarragon Natakhtari, the famous green drink. It tastes like medicine and does not go down well. For better shots, stick to honey rye vodka. It’s strong but when in Georgia… Good luck on getting a glass of water here. The service is spotty and vodka seems to be the beverage of choice.

While Georgian food and people are not entirely alien to me, I was pleasantly reminded of this rich and festive culture from a recent invitation to a birthday celebration for one of my Georgian friends.
My first impression that I excitedly and jokingly declared to our hostess was «There are so many Georgians in here!» I took it as a good sign. This was on top of the fact that our Georgian friend chose this restaurant for her celebration. And so it was… a good sign.
Stuffing our faces with deliciousness was an understatement. For some reason (although unsurprisingly so) our hostess decided that 2 of everything that we ordered would not be enough and barely stopped ordering more. I will not attempt to name things the right way, for the sake of misspelling them, so check your menu. But pretty much everything (and it seemed like we ordered the whole menu) was a world of flavors and pride. Suffice it to say, we had a few styrofoam take-​away trays (each) on our way out.
The other patrons, the «DJ» and the wait-​staff, oh and of course the food, made this a complete picture of a low key but not too casual Georgian restaurant. Otherwise, the space, the décor (or lack of the fanciness of one) would make me think that I’m in a typical Russian low key but not too casual restaurant (for those that know what I am referring to and know the difference). It was as if we were transported into Tbilisi (although I’ve never been, so my apologies if I am way ahead of myself with assumptions here). We were the only group of about 10 who seemed to have only one Georgian in it.
The «DJ» was playing Georgian music in the background. Some sounded traditional, some sounded contemporary, some sounded as a Georgian translation or an English or Russian equivalent. Either way the music was certainly contributing to the atmosphere. My only recommendation for improvement would be the volume of the music and the techno-​disco party that it turned into at some point because the DJ finally played something that made people dare to go up and dance (or at least the alcohol reached the appropriate of brevity for folks to start moving on the dance floor).

This place is basically Soviet Union and everything that goes with it :) Very mediocre DJ, primary colored lights on the stage with «starry sky» background, very cheap looking décor you may remember from the early 90’s in Eastern Europe. The crowd was all Soviet immigrants of different ages, from families with young children, to a party of a few 20-​something girls, to a large family celebration including a lot of the elderly relatives.
The food was good for someone like me, who does not have access to anything Eastern European regularly, so this was a huge treat. However, my friend, a Georgian, said that it was definitely a so-​so quality experience for her. We had a lot of different things, the fresh bread, the eggplant and walnut appetizer, henkali, hachapuri, kebobs, veal stew. I really enjoyed the dumplings and the «shashlik», even though both could’ve been flavored much better. The idea for the food was great, the quality could use improvement.
Wine — don’t expect anything that’s not semi-​sweet. Definitely Georgian style wines. If you’re a dry-​wine drinker, as are most Westerners, you don’t have a single option. Just something to think about in advance — you might want to bring your own bottle with you, as we saw some people do.
Overall, I would not go back. It was a great immediate «fix» for a craving, eatable, authentic, but not worth coming back to.

It’s somewhat unfortunate that purely «Russian-​restaurant kitsch» décor — cheesy color-​shifting LED lights, table cloths and fake crystal chandeliers — has to accompany the meal here. But to me — without much knowledge of Georgian food, so I am free of instinctively making any comparisons with how it «should» be — the meal is totally worth it. We were there midday, it was empty and service was excellent.
Definitely get the bread ($ 3), piping hot and superbly tasty. We also got one soup ($ 6) and veal and lamb stews ($ 14), which were completely different, each with its own merits and unique taste. That was enough food to cover next lunch with leftovers, and a desire to go back to taste all those other words I don’t recognize on the menu.

So last night 14 of us go to Pirosmani and as Tamara P pointed out in her review on 7÷18÷11, it is Georgian food, not Russian, Ukrainian or Turkish. But don’t expect pecan pie and mint ice tea because this is the Georgia up there near Turkey and Armenia!
This is also an unusual review for me to write because while I was not a fan of many of the dishes, I could tell they were authentic and well made and the wait staff was friendly and helpful though they do try to get you to order more than you can eat.
Personally I liked the fries and the salad (hey who let the American in the door!) but if you like cheese and fried foods (and they like you) I thought this was, in spite of the $ 35 per person minimum (which came out close to $ 50), an okay restaurant.

You think you know all there is to know, till you know that you don’t.
Despite having consumed a few thousand carb driven calories in the past two hours, our table of 7 Unilocalers was transfixed by an entrée brought for the larger table of nearby diners at Pirosmani, featuring some chicken, a flame, and a lot of sizzle. Clearly, «the eyes are bigger than the stomach».
Research. I’m all about doing the necessary research to help the odds for a good experience. After all, isn’t that what Unilocal’s all about? I’m thrilled that my fellow diners share the same enthusiasm at embracing unfamiliar and exotic tastes.
Travel. They say in New York you’re no more than a subway ride away from any exotic culture of the world. But, the hour long ride was enough for my oldest Unilocal friend to debate hopping off at the Midwood subway station he would dedicate to the pizza Dom. Luckily, Pirosmani is perfect for large groups and food bloggers (including a ‘restaurant baby’) to break bread with each other.
Bread. We started off with the freshly baked Shotis Puri: a flat, long bread with narrow ends and wider in the center. It’s visually quite arresting, and our group photographer (who apparently now resides in Hawaii) wanted to capture all of its glory («the end looks like a mustache»), but was unable to do so as no one could resist indulging in more of the warm, crusty bread — crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. We paired it off with the Suluguni, a cow’s milk cheese that reminds one of both feta and ricotta — buttery in texture. The breads (Khachapuris) that followed were «the same but different» as per Unilocal’s resident night owl who’s still ‘sorting the goodness’. The Imeruli reminds one of a calzone filled with Suluguni, while the Megruli has melted cheese on the top as well — much like a white pizza. The star attraction is the Atcharuli which is hollowed out in the shape of a boat and on the crusty loaf is placed more cheese, a raw egg, and some butter. Ultimately everything melts together to form a messy, difficult to share texture, but one where the cheese tastes less sweet as a result.
Beyond. There’s much more to Georgian cuisine than the wonderful breads which are the cause of much chatter in local food circles. The highlights at Pirosmani, for me, were the walnut paste and eggplant appetizer: Badrijani (cold paste mixed with herbs and the nuttiness of walnuts), the addictive fried potatoes (crisp outside and soft inside) and mushrooms, the Chanahi (lamb stew with vegetables, much like a pot pie), and my favorite: the Chkmeruli (fried, crisp skinned chicken simmering in an explosion of garlic sauce). We never got to try the Borscht as the soup was hogged by an ‘Out of the Blue’ Unilocaler, which apparently describes her infrequent Unilocal appearances. It was excellent, as she confirmed.
Disappointments include the large soupy dumplings: «Khinkali», the minimum charge for Saturdays (my fault: I understood it to be $ 25, turned out to be $ 35), and especially the Tarragon flavored soda ordered by almost the entire group (other than our resident Unilocal contrarian who believes that spam is better served fried). The soda order was a result of the server describing it as Tarragon flavored lemonade, a taste that would’ve been infinitely more interesting than the liquorice tasting drink we received. Some of us had to resort to taking «shots» of water instead, while waiting to flag the server as the night progressed.
But, can a meal really be complete without any mention of dessert? It can, as Mister Dessert realized. All you need is the right group to join you for the experience. Do you know where your friends are?

Love love love this place. Great food, great ambiance (specially when the dancing going). I don’t recall the name of dishes we ordered all in Russian but my pictures should water your appetite. They all were perfectly delicious.
I noticed the murals on the wall and just found this: «Pirosmani is named after a celebrated 19^th-​century muralist whose work is replicated on every wall.»