Cafe Lore

I saw this place a couple of times when I was in the neighborhood and finally decided to give it a try. It was was way past breakfast time but the kind man behind the counter served me breakfast anyway. I had the french toast with a side of eggs and bacon. It was absolutely delicious, starting with the the french which was served with maple syrup. The eggs were cooked just the way I like them and the bacon was amazing. Plus my coffee was served in a Homer Simpson’s cup which I thought was really cool.

Really good food and what’s amazing is, it is never packed. I think people don’t come here because of the ugly furniture. Plus, it’s awkwardly decorated. If I’m going to spend money and dine out, I want to go to a good looking place with my boyfriend and not somewhere that makes me feel uncomfortable because it’s dead, dark like a funeral parlor or poorly decorated.
It’s a shame because I know plenty of restaurants that do better but they can’t cook as well. However, the owner refuses to change or put any time or financial investment into it no matter how cheap it may be, like a can of paint and plastic cloth-​like table cloths even though Unilocalers repeatedly say the place is dark, drab, and awkwardly decorated so, more café’s open up in the area that’s better looking and the business goes elsewhere.
If only the owner would turn up the lights a little, make the place look open and inviting, trash all the outdated black furniture and buy all new cheap table and chairs from Ikea. Or at the very least, get rid of the black table cloths (no one uses table cloths anymore except outdated Italian establishments), give the black tables and chairs a fresh coat of paint that is NOT black thereby bringing the restaurant to life. Even plastic red and white table cloth-​like spreads from a 99c store would be a hundred times better being that the black furniture with black table cloths even looks like it came from a restaurant that went out of business.
Sunset Park is getting more hip. If you don’t learn to embrace change, you will become extinct as in go out of business. There is simply no reason to hesitate or be stubborn. Do you want to succeed and have a thriving business? Or do you want to hang on and look like a dying one? Listen to your customers. They obviously care. Read all your Unilocal reviews. Have a paint party! You are not alone in this. Make it a community effort.
Décor and ambience: 1 Star, Food 3.5−4.

The food is amazing, it is the freshest. It tasted like home cooking too that it wasn’t too much flavor. The music and ambient is also very soothing and relax. It is definitely one of the best place you can dine in Brooklyn.
I used to like this place until one day, when I go back to eat. When I check out, I told them I have an expired Unilocal deal, it was a $ 20 for $ 40 deal. It was expired long ago, so I was just going to use the $ 20 that I paid before to pay for part of the bill. Then all of a sudden the chef got angry at us. He said why didn’t I tell him in the first place. I thought, does this matter? I am not using the deal, I am only using the value that I paid before ($ 20), and if I tell you early, you are going to serve me a smaller serving?
He even told me to think about it if I did something wrong. So I told him, no, I really do not understand your view. I am only using the cash value now, it is just like cash.
After that, he told us to get out. I was so surprised. I liked this place and their coffee.
I forgot my glasses, and went back to get it, at least he didn’t throw it away. Thanks for that.

Wonderful food and great service. We had the pizza, tortellini and zucchini. Looks like live music occurs regularly as well. We especially enjoyed the intimate setting and getting to know the owner.

Great food, this is me and my sister’s favorite brunch spot in the area. Always great, and super cute outdoor dining

I ordered for delivery a caprese appetizer with chicken parmigiana and the pumpkin ravioli. They included some bread with our order free. The food was hot and delicious. The ravioli was very rich and creamy. The chicken parm tasted freshly breaded & cooked. They used quality mozzarella on the chicken parm and the sauce was great. I look forward to dining in here soon.

Despite the great reviews, I still had to find out for myself. Seriously, this place will surprise the shit out of you. When you see the kitchen, you dont expect them to put out such good food. I really do love the setup of the dining /​music area. You dont find stuff like this too often any more. Add in the fact that Brian and Michael are good guys and you got a recipe for a nice dinner. I’m looking forward to checking out their shows here one day. Definitely want to try breakfast, too! These guys are musicians AND good cooks? They probably got the ladies knocking down their doors. Keep up the good work, guys!

Great atmosphere. The staff was friendly and on point.

This is a true gem of a restaurant, and our favorite place in the neighborhood. All the food I have had here is stellar, abundant, and reasonably priced. The raviolis — have tried pumpkin, and sausage and pepper– are delicious, the roast beef is rich and succulent, the pizzas have a perfect crust, and the vegetable sides are phenomenal. Also a must are the desserts, the fennel pie especially. The very friendly owner serves the food and makes you feel at home. The perfect place for a casual evening out.

The food is so good, the owner/​chef/​waiter is friendly and funny, and the décor is… kind of nonexistent and half-​finished. This place is almost always empty, which I don’t understand, but I’m very glad they manage to stay in business anyhow. I’ve been here a few times for dinner and once for brunch and everything’s always been delicious. If they spend a day repainting and sprucing up the dining room a little I can imagine it being more popular? I’ve never been here for the live music, either, though I’ve been meaning to check it out. It looks very unassuming, but the food is delicious at a very reasonable price.

My boyfriend and I have passed by this place tons of times, and finally decided to grab lunch since it was a nice day. First off, the place was completely empty, which seems odd at first glance, but turned out to be quiet and cozy. It really is crazy how unlooked this place is, because the food is amazing. We had the tortellini and a personal pizza with sausage on it, and we were left feeling so satisfied and full. The chef/​waiter/​owner was hilarious, and a great person all around. I would definitely recommend to anyone that they should visit, because this place is truly a gem.

This place is awesome.
Came here on a Saturday night, the place was empty, which is a shame. This place is in every way amazing.
It’s BYOB ($ 5 corking fee), but they also have beer and wine now. So we enjoyed a number of bottles, yes.
Pizzettas, had two with mushrooms and pepperoni, fresh and delicious. Filling too. Nice thick crust.
I had the sausage and pepper ravioli, which were awesome. The filling also had sausage in it which made them extra delicious. The side of eggplant parm, is huge ($ 8) fresh cheese and marinara, yummy!
Dessert! Fennel pie, sounds strange, but was awesome. Like one of the best desserts I ever ate. Also had frozen tiramisu and brownie.
Highly recommended for authentic Italian food.

Have’nt been here in a while since they opened and for my mother’s birthday. Remembered that their portions were huge. We dined here because my wife forgot her key’s and kids were in school near by so she ended up there.
They were still BYOB but heard they are about receive their liquor license as it will make things easier. The owner chef is awesome and the place is always quiet with regular customers.
They also have live music on certain nights and during christmas, they have exterior lighting which the neighborhood kids point at as they light the whole building with neon lights.
I ordered the chicken cutlet which was huge with pasta. They gave me rigatoni pasta which is very good and I could’nt finish the plate. I eventually took it home but was able to feed myself for the next day lunch as well.
Very family friendly and nice. Price is very moderate and recommend to family with kids.

So I tried a few more items on the menu since my last review. Literally everything I tried was great. It’s so hard to find a good restaurant in Sunset Park, I’m really glad I discovered it. I highly recommend to come and give it a try, you won’t be disappointed.
My favorite dish so far was the eggplant parmesan, incredible!!!

Ayo, Café Lore is bomb. BYOB and fresh, homey tasting food? Sold.
Brain, the owner is a really kind man. You will definitely run into him because he’s the chef, waiter, and owner all in one. This man will make you feel so comfortable on your first visit here, you will feel as if you’re a frequent customer.
My first time coming here was with my friend and we had out nice little dinner but no alcohol because café lore doesn’t serve alcohol. We were advised to bring our own alcohol next time and this time it’s exactly what I did!
My date and I came with a bottle of wine, which brian happily opened and served to us. He then handed us the menus and told us what specials he had that day. We decided to take his advice and order the chicken pizzola [ not on menu] and then a pasta dish each. I have been dying to try the pumpkin ravioli and finally got to order it this time. My date got the fusilli with marinara.
I must say the chicken pizzola was really great, just the right flavor but a bit on the bland side for me. Salt shaker was on the side of the table, but my fault for not using it. My date said he liked his pasta, but I wasn’t crazy about it either because there wasn’t enough sauce for all the pieces. I am so sad to say this but my ravioli was good, but not amazing, like how I imagined it to be. Maybe i’m just not into sweet and salty savory combo ravioli. Bryan did come by to ask us how the food was and I didn’t feel like complaining about such trivial things. But just know that if you’re not a really sweet and salty kinda person, you may want to stick with the regular ravioli which is really out of this world.
Bottom Line: I would pay this restaurant a visit if I was in the neighborhood for breakfast, lunch, and dinner!

This place reminds me of going to your single uncle’s house for dinner. There are all the basics necessities: tables, silverware, chairs, kitchen, maybe a bathroom and of course, your uncle running a one man show dressed in a t-​shirt and basketball shorts. Needless to say, the dress is casual. The décor is pretty basic and there is a piano as well as some guitars when the band comes to play.
Customer service reflects being treated like family. Although the customer service was great, what really blew me away was the food that came out of this small kitchen! TOP OF THE LINE stuff for sure. Everything made fresh and from scratch. Quality of food is definitely something that is valued here. We ordered the New York Classic Chicken with marinara and Chicken Alfredo. The portions are large! We also ordered a personal pan deep dish pizza as a starter. None of the food disappointed. Everything was delicious!
Expect to pay for quality though — $ 51 for the three dishes that could easily be shared. My date and I had plenty of leftovers to take with us. Well worth it!

I was in Sunset park, Brooklyn, and stumbled across this gem of a restaurant on the corner of 46^th st & 4^th ave.
We happily ate the personal pan pizza (made deep dish style) and then had both the spinach ravioli as well as the pumpkin ravioli. Everything was delicious and filling.
The staff is very courteous and friendly. The atmosphere is casual and comforting.

I love Café Lore!
Granted, it’s a bit odd compared to «regular» restaurants but the home cooked food sets them apart by miles! Especially here in Sunset Park where the options for food are mostly limited to pizza, Mexican, and fast food. I passed this place often and due to all the junk in the windows I never had a clue this was a café, despite the sign, and I never could tell it was open or not. Some days it’s empty and dark and only the open door let’s you know to come on in.
I have to knock off a star because the insist they do delivery and are listed on sites like grubhub and seamless yet they do not deliver and one time they called me to tell me they had no delivery person after I had paid already. Take yourselves off delivery sites or change to pick up only please!
The chicken parm and chicken franchese are my favorite dishes here and I always get it with a side of veggies and fresh pasta! Real Italian food in Sunset Park! I urge more people to look past the homely décor and simple surroundings and try what matters most… the food. You won’t be disappointed!

Don’t doubt this laid back hole in the wall, though the man who serves you wears gym shorts. IT IS DA BOMB, and the balm to your bad food rash. Sick of wheat tubes and strings that taste canned? Wish you could take a real bite out of the boot shaped land? YOU CAN. Here.
Hear:
— Wheat pouch filled with sweet gourd + cream sauce. It is on par with ice cream. You love it so much you give some to your date, and when he eats too big of a bite, you slug him with your fork. IT’S THAT GOOD, FOLKS.
— Wheat rings with cheese out the door. If cheese wed cheese and made kin, it would be the cheese in this dish. I put the rings on my nails and preached and praised the rings on the street.
For you to know: the spread for the bread was born in a land of War and Peace. You’ll go to war for it. Break me off a piece of that!
Don’t look at the list of wares – live on the wild side and get what the man who serves you says. It will come with you to your dreams. Plus, the man could sell you a chair you thought had three legs and it would turn out to be the best chair you had loved. He charms the way others breathe. FALL IN LOVE.

First off I have to start with the owner Brian! He is just a gem, awesome, nice, smart & great cook! Sounds like the perfect man to me ;) HAHA but lets get to the food part.
When you first enter this place is might not be as busy as you think and the décor isn’t all that up to date, old school style but its kind of like your having a dinner at your friends house so makes it more personal and homey feeling.
Brian was great introduced himself, gave us menus and told us specials and his favorite type of foods and what other customers seem to enjoy most.
We started off with Mac & Cheez which was a rigatoni pasta with a nice alfredo sauce and parmesan cheese which was great and we had small pizzeta which was like a deep dish dough and lots of cheese and sauce it was good too. Entrees we had pumpkin raviolis, so creamy and thick just love pumpkin you can’t go wrong with that then we had sausage and peppers which were grilled so nicely and just nice taste ager each bite, the pork parm. was so good I enjoyed that a lot and just so different then the typical chicken and the pasta linguini had lots of meat sauce I loved that, we also had meatballs and chicken franchise and everything was just really good! I could not complain about nothing at all! Brian was just a beyond cook and his partner! You couldn’t believe this man can make this all fresh by hand in his little kitchen in the back! The best part of the ending also was the dessert he offered on the house which was super nice and it was a chocolate cake which was to die for, super creamy and extra sweet right up my alley and a warm danish with sweet fresh raspberry filling and that was so good too. Everything was just worth the dime!
He says starting in May he will have live musicians and bands come and play great wonderful music from classical to jazz to soul which sounds interesting and something I would come back for which enjoying me a nice home cooked meal! This is a great addition to my hometown and something new and I hope more people come by and give this place a try they won’t be disappointed & i will be back!