Fried Pizza for Brunch

I admit I was disappointed when Gypsy bar on Greenpoint Ave closed down. Even though one of the bartenders and I didn't always see eye to eye, I liked being around the corner from a bar that was home to Punk Rope happy hours, giant plates of mac 'n' cheese and long group Jenga games.

But then Adelina's moved in and wooed me instantly with five words: fried pizza with house-made mozzarella. Rob and I hit it up on a Friday night and even though Adelina's was clearly still working out the kinks service-wise, the pizza was pretty awesome. Think fried dough pizza from the fair, only with real, chewy mozzarella instead of soggy Parmesan mess that usually ensues.

Brunch was better, if only because it was much emptier. Maybe people still see it more as a bar than a morning restaurant, or because they play heavily on the wine bar thing. I have to say that I like this wine-on-tap thing very much. At night, of course.

The brunch menu, like the dinner menu, is very reasonably priced. For around $12 they offer a prix fixe with a super-charged Americano, a fresh squeezed OJ and entree. Their pizza special on Saturday included speck with the fresh mozz and egg, adding a much-needed amount of saltiness that I thought was missing from their nighttime pesto pie.

Rob had the truffled egg with fontina and asparagus. It was tasty but on the small side and neither of us tasted any truffle. Stick with the pizza here. But go quickly, because this space has been about five different things since it was an Internet cafe when we first moved to Greenpoint six plus years ago.

Adelina's
159 Greenpoint Ave