16th
Review: Nana? More like No-No.
Last night Matt and I were hitting up a co-worker’s housewarming party in Park Slope. We were going to go to Brooklyn Fish Camp for some yummy lobster rolls, but the wait was too long and I was worried we’d show up to the party too late. Instead, we headed to Nana, a pan-Asian eatery a block away from the party.
From the start, it looked promising. Nana has a funky interior, with exposed brick and a giant tank filled with koi in the front window. We scored a table in the back garden, which was packed.
Nana’s menu had both sushi and Thai options on the menu. I generally will only eat sushi at eateries that exclusively serve Japanese food, and besides, Matt and I had eaten at the very excellent Taro Sushi the night before, so sushi was off the table. I decided to go for the tofu teriyaki, and Matt opted for the Malaysian curry beef, and we wanted to share the steamed vegetable dumplings to start.
The first sign that something had gone awry was when a few minutes after ordering, a different waiter from the one who took our order presented us with a plate filled with logs of fried tofu that resembled rectangular mozzarella sticks. “Tofu Tod,” he said, which apparently was the name of this dish. I told him that we hadn’t ordered fried tofu.
A few minutes later the vegetable dumplings arrived. The texture of the dumplings was gluey, and the filling didn’t have a remarkable flavor. I noticed the waiter who had brought us the fried tofu logs walking around the inside of the restaurant still holding the plate, looking confused.
Next Matt’s beef arrived. The waiter who took our order returned, and asked me, “Didn’t you order the Tofu Tod?” No, I replied, affirming that I had ordered the tofu teriyaki. “Oh,” he said, scurrying back into the kitchen. At that point I realized that it would be a few minutes before my tofu teriyaki materalized. Matt meanwhile dug into his beef, which he called “low grade, slimy” and later declared that “it was the worst meal that he had eaten in a little while.” While I didn’t get to experience the Grade D-like beef myself, I tried a string bean, and wasn’t a fan of the sauce at all.
Finally, my tofu teriyaki appeared. Sitting on a bed of bok choy and broccoli and other vegetables was… the same fried tofu logs I had sent away because I hadn’t ordered them. (I only wish I had photographed this as evidence.) I’m about 99 percent certain that the tofu in the dish wasn’t supposed to be deep fried, but rather, lightly-sauteed, and the restaurant tried to pass off the rejected dish on me. I wasn’t really in the mood for mozzarella-stick like tofu in my dinner, so I ate the vegetables and sent back all back one of the tofu logs. (I had to try one. Indeed it was golden-fried and greasy, but mostly flavorless.) Matt and I had decided not to send back our meals, but we didn’t tip. Ahem.
There are tons of great restaurants in Park Slope, especially around 5th Ave. While we have yet to find our favorite Thai restaurant since moving to the neighborhood, we won’t be going back to Nana.
- Nana, 155 Fifth Ave., Brooklyn, 718-230-3479/8
