Lady's

572 Fulton St at Flatbush Ave, Fort Greene

Sparkling rose at Lady's.

The Place: A new, spacious, modern Italian restaurant a stone's throw from the BAM Harvey Theater.

The Time: Thursday October 4, 6:15pm. I’m meeting a friend at 7:30 to see Bill T. Jones’ “A Letter to My Nephew” at BAM. I’m in Fort Greene all the time, so there are very few bars around here I haven’t been to, until I walk by Lady’s. I go in, mostly because I’m like “what’s this?” and get distracted by something shiny.

The Vibe: It’s a big place that tows the line between modern, elegant and welcoming, kind of like The Smith or any Keith McNally restaurant, except not French. I pull up a stool at the large circle bar, and I have a nice view of the open kitchen. For a new place hidden under scaffolding at 6:15pm, there are a decent number of people here. A skinny, mustached man in a suit jacket is near me on the right, two guys both in newsboy caps drinking cocktails and eating calamari near me on the left, a couple with a baby at a table blissfully far from me. Definitely an eclectic mix happening. Oh just kidding, the guys don’t have newsboy caps, they both have glasses. Why in my brain is that the same thing?

The Bartender: A guy named Trey, who is super friendly, and when I say the place smells new, he tells me the story. Lady’s used to be a fine-dining restaurant, then they gutted it and changed everything. The only remaining things are the location and the name. They reopened on September 25th. Trey says they just got their frozen drink machine in today, and he and I high-five.

The Drank: Sparkling rose for $5. Yeah, you read that right. Their happy hour is tight, and they have a decently priced menu - for the most part (looking at you, $18 martini). All of the food also looks great. I go with the brussels sprouts, because even though it feels like summer, did you know it’s actually fall? The newscap/glasses guys are making loud yummy noises. Guess they approve of their calamari? Obvi, because they get 2 more orders.

Was I Hit On? Nope. It definitely has that new-place-vibe about it, with the owner(s) going around to people asking how everything is, and Trey checking in regularly, but other than that, no one tries to talk to me. Except at one point, when the barback comes around, holding 3 different hot sauces in each hand, and asks everyone eating food: “want some hot sauce?” THAT is a much appreciated interruption, sir.

Should You Drink Here Alone? Yeah. Lady’s is a really cool spot, where everyone is friendly and the drinks and food are solid. I have a feeling it’ll soon become very popular for this neighborhood. Coming to a new bar right when it opens is like seeing a show in previews, and I think their production will be a smash hit.

*UPDATE* Lady's is now closed.