Batata Raises the Windy T’s Lunch Game, with Sweet Potato Falafel and Schnitzel and Waffles
While it doesn’t frequently factor into regular breaking food news, low-key Windsor Terrace has been on quite a roll lately when it comes to restaurants, from East Wind Snack Shop and its dry aged beef potstickers, to Krupa Grocery’s bacon-dotted breakfast gnocchi. Even the Kensington-adjacent area west of the Prospect Expressway — where you’ll often find volunteers walking dogs from Sean Casey — has seen its fair share of development, most notably, the Israeli-inspired Batata (Hebrew for “sweet potato”) which opened its snug and sunny storefront this past December.
Primarily a pita and smoothie bar, in the vein of Einat Admoney’s acclaimed Manhattan staple, Taim, we’d pit Batata’s silky sweet potato falafel against Taim’s Vendy-nominated chickpea patties any day of the week. The pebbled, flamboyantly orange orbs are nudged into pliant, fleshy pitas, lined with salty, nutty swaths of hummus, tahini and feta, and finished with a rainbow riot of pickled cabbage, Israeli salad and beets (always say yes to a drizzle of the tangy mango condiment known as amba as well, along with the traditional Yemeni chile relish called schug).
Zaatar spice-spiked eggplant paired with labne, and chicken schnitzel topped with sautéed mushrooms and fried onions both prove equally worthy sandwich fillings, although you’ll probably be tempted to order your crispy pounded cutlets as a plate. Not that the borough’s hurting for yet another riff on chicken and waffles (see our previous post on the city’s best), but Batata’s schnitzel is an undeniably clever addition to the over-crowded field; accompanied by a quartet of housemade coconut milk waffles, hiding puddles of honey chili butter and pure maple syrup in their tender crags.
And just think of how easily you can walk those calories off after lunch, by simply hitting the streets with a sweet-faced rescue pooch from Sean Casey.
3021 Fort Hamilton Pkwy., Windsor Terrace