Trudie’s Tavern Opens in Carroll Gardens

Before he opened Gertie and Gertrude’s, Nate Adler was a camp counselor in New Hampshire. During the summer nights he was off duty, he’d head to a spot called Peter Christian’s Tavern for cold beer, burgers, and hot pretzels with honey mustard. He’s bringing some of that same spirit to Trudie’s Tavern, the new project he’s opening (with partners Rachel Jackson and Emily Tripp) in Carroll Gardens. “The concept of a ‘tavern’ means a lot of different things to different people,” Adler says. “My boomer parents thought it was just a bar. For me, it’s really about combining a sense of occasion and a comfortable neighborhood restaurant.”

To accomplish that goal, the partners and chef de cuisine Eli Friedman are starting with the pretzel. At Trudie’s, it’s a brioche-enriched “pretzel service,” offered with homemade honey mustard and a pickle platter. The “Jew-ish” comfort-food sensibilities of the group’s other spots comes through in the rest of the menu in items like a large-format latke “for two,” schmaltz-fried rice, egg noodles with ragu, and lamb schnitzel with grilled Meyer lemon, dill, and blackberry sauce.

And of course there will be rotisserie chicken, a $38 half-bird entrée with roasted potatoes and dill-flecked cucumber salad that can serve as “a full meal for one.” At the restaurant, seasonal pairings might include rotisserie cabbage, grilled asparagus, and butter beans with tomatoes, while birds will also be available to go for neighbors, who can preorder them to grab on their way home. “I really think we’re going to be moving a lot more birds at Trudie’s,” Adler says.

But Trudie’s is not a grab-and-go spot. It is, for Adler, a destination. “This is my homage to a Keith McNally restaurant,” he explains. The restaurant, it’s worth noting, is moving into the corner space that was previously home to Buttermilk Channel, another low-stakes neighborhood place famous mostly for its fried chicken and its brunch. “I was like, ‘Okay, this place saw success for so many years,’” Adler points out, “so I’m going to take the bones already here and build a restaurant that can sustain more business for years to come.”

Inside, the dark wood-clad dining room pops with (freshly pressed) white tablecloths, rattan chairs with blush upholstery, and a mural commissioned from local artist Izzy Bulling. Thirty seats wrap around the building’s corner façade, in addition to the 70 others indoors. Drinks will keep the mood high, but the group is mindful of affordability. Wine by the glass stays under $20 while the bottle list is almost entirely below $100. (For martinis — as necessary for a new restaurant as roasted chicken these days — beverage director and general manager Meribelle Crisostomo will offer half-tinis, “regular” martinis, and sidecars for anyone who wants “a little something extra.”)

Once it’s up and running this week, Trudie’s will be, the group hopes, a true something-for-everyone place. Bar and lounge seats will be held for walk-ins, while a larger dining-room table can accommodate parties and groups. The restaurant is also going to open early, at 4 p.m., for families who need to drop in early (or for anyone who wants some oysters and a drink before heading elsewhere). Later this summer, brunch will arrive along with — in a nod to the space’s previous tenant — a plate of fried chicken and waffles.

Partners Rachel Jackson, Emily Tripp, and Nate Adler.
Photo: Liz Clayman