This summer, the Brooklyn Flea Smorgasburg and Prospect Park Alliance have joined forces to bring us the Prospect Park Smorgasburg every Sunday through October 11. Prospect Park Smorgasburg stars 100 food vendors with countless international delights from doughnuts, to duck confit, to pommes frites.
Located on Breeze Hill, in the southeast region of Prospect Park, Smorgasburg is accessible from the west side on the F or G train via the Prospect Park stop, the east side on the B or Q train via the Prospect Park stop or on the 2 or 3 train via Grand Army Plaza.
Image courtesy of Celeste Fondeur
#SpoonTip: If you’re looking for an all-day exploration of Prospect Park, try walking from Grand Army Plaza to the north.
The trip through the park to reach Breeze Hill is a sensorial thrill full of well-preserved bridges and greenery. It may be difficult to find the Smorgasburg grounds your first Sunday, so I recommend following the crowd that looks most hungry.
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
Once the trees open up to paved roads, you know you’re getting closer. Signs like the one below will start to appear.
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
As with any food market, you need to come up with a game plan. At this average priced festival, $40 is a safe budget for two.
With this budget in mind, my friend and I decided to try the moderately-priced Home Frite, splurge at Red Hook Lobster Pound, and check out the affordable eats at Rockville Market Farm.
Home Frite
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
While making the preliminary rounds, I noticed the line at Home Frite and decided these Belgian beauties in a cone must be mine. I was curious about the sauce streaming from its allocated dipping cup to the fries. I had to try it for myself.
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
The line behind this tent is consistently long and for good reason. The variety of sauces and finishes that accompany the frites are worth the wait. You can have your fries original (as pictured above), tossed in truffle, or Dutch, with classic Dutch finishes like curry ketchup and onions. With seven sauces to choose from, these fries are customizable, reasonably priced at $9, and perfect for any palette.
Red Hook Lobster Pound
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
Next to Home Frite was the Red Hook Lobster Pound. Here, you’ll find lobster on a perfectly buttered bun with an option of three styles: Maine (tossed in mayo, topped with paprika and scallions), Connecticut (served with warm butter and lemon), and Tuscan (tossed in a basil vinaigrette).
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
Choosing one lobster roll style was tough. We decided to employ the wisdom of the vendor who mentioned Maine was their most popular, so we went with that. Needless to say, Maine was the right choice. I’ll have the record show that I took a bite I couldn’t control myself for quality control. At $18, it’s a bit of a splurge, but this isn’t a McDonald’s lobster roll.
Rockville Market Farm
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
This Vermont Maple Lemonade sign in the blistering heat of NYC summer was all the encouragement I needed to stop by the Rockville Market Farm tent. There are plenty of fun ways to spruce up lemonade and Rockville is getting it right for $4 a cup.
Photo by Celeste Fondeur
We loved it so much we took one to go.
If you’re looking for a unique food experience in an idyllic setting, Prospect Park Smorgasburg should be on your to-do list this summer.