Most 'Spectacular' Food, Views At This LIC Brasserie, Report Says

LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS — A Long Island City brasserie was credited with having views as "spectacular" as its food, which is cooked up by a Michelin starred chef.

American Brass, an upscale new American restaurant, was named among an exclusive list of seven "outdoor restaurants across the globe with spectacular views," reported by Architectural Digest.

The restaurant, located at 2-01 50 Avenue — directly across the street from Gantry Plaza State Park — is one of two New York City eateries on the list, both of which offer panoramic, waterfront views.

AD said that American Brass "stuns" with views of the nearby Long Island City park and Manhattan skyline at all times of day.

"Come for dinner to see the city lights glittering in the dark or during brunch to soak up the lively scene," the review reads, calling out the restaurant's brunch menu, which is a pandemic-inspired addition.

Indeed, the restaurant, which opened its doors in March of last year after a multi-million-dollar renovation, had to make additions when its grand opening — which was two years in the making — coincided with a pandemic that devastated the hospitality industry.

“It was a mad scramble,” American Brass owner Robert Briskin told the Sunnyside Post. The restaurant quickly pivoted to takeout, despite not initially being equipped for anything other than a sit-down menu, the site reported.

In June, American Brass opened for outdoor dining, adding a brunch menu in August in order to make use of its waterfront outdoor dining space at all times of day.

While brunch includes all of the classics — a menu of avocado toast and Belgian waffles that Briskin describes as "straight forward, elegant, [and] delicious" — American Brass gets more accolades for its dinner menu.

AD describes the food as "French cuisine with a twist," specifically calling out the "steak frites with gochujang butter and duck with polenta."

The brasserie's food program is spearheaded by Kevin McGinley, formerly of the Michelin-star Bâtard.

Briskin, who nabbed McGinley when Bâtard temporarily closed last year, said the decision to bring him on was a saving grace.

“We were thinking long-term – how do we come out of this even better," he told the Sunnyside Post.

Read the full Architectural Digest list here.