The Comté tart at Chinatown restaurant Bridges is essentially a slice of cheese quiche that’s made fancy. During my dinner with my friend, the dish was her one “nonnegotiable” order for us. It’s the star of chef and co-owner Sam Lawrence’s electric menu, a menu rooted in European cuisine with global touches. And the place is resonating with diners: the restaurant opened in September 2024, and just a year later, it got its first Michelin star.
Bridges’ exterior is a cool one, signifying the changing tides of Brooklyn into Chatham Square; designer Billy Cotton was inspired by the nearby Chatham Towers: glass bricks, chrome lights with amber-hued uplights, grayish walls, cherrywood and leather booths and banquettes. The address had been Hop Shing, a longtime Chinese restaurant that closed in 2020.
During this particular March evening, there was a steady stream of diners, with lots of dates and friend groups — and apparently many celebrations, if the number of birthday tarts being sent out was any indication. Fun fact: Lawrence’s girlfriend, Eliza Dumais, based some scenes in her book Grape Juice on their relationship — it’s in my to-be-read pile.
The Bridges Bamboo cocktail ($20) was a wonderful mixture of various sherries, dry vermouth, and orange bitters; it was a light, clean-flavored way to begin the meal. For the main meal, I had the Weingut Tauss Rosé Opok from Austria, which worked well with the chicken.
The booths along the sides seem more comfortable than the two freestanding tables in the middle of the main dining room. Walk-ins get access to the bar and diner-style bar booths.
The staff makes art from its takeout bags: they fashioned an easy-to-carry bag from aluminum foil with a handle — my friend first thought it was my purse.