Fort Greene's Red Bamboo

We finally got around to checking out the new Red Bamboo in Fort Greene, which is the new Brooklyn outpost of the West Village vegetarian spot, and found that it was generally to our liking. The restaurant has a cool Fort Greene vibe versus the more Manhattan/NYU feel of it's other side of the East River parent.

As for the food, if you've eaten at the Manhattan branch, you know what to expect. Meaning that if you have a hard time with fake chicken or meat, you're probably not going to like Red Bamboo. If, on the other hand, you don't mind vegetable products being made to try to seem like they are, say, chicken or beef, then you might enjoy it.

Us, we think the fake meat takes some getting used to, but Red Bamboo produces an acceptable Chicken Parmesean and Cheesesteak (if you keep an open mind). Their Soul Chicken is good (in either sandwich or entree form), although we've got say that the various fake fish dishes are best avoided. As appetizers, we enjoyed their Collard Green Rolls (a kind of spring roll with spicy collard greens and soy ham), but forgot that we're not big fans of their Cajun Fried Shrimp. Best of all, they serve Vegan Treats cakes for dessert, which are also available at two other Brooklyn veg spots, the V Spot on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope and Foodswings on Grand Street in Williamsburg.

The space occupied by the new Red Bamboo is great--there's outdoor seating in good weather, a nice dining room, and a lounge upstairs with an outdoor deck. Forget the irony that it was an Italian restaurant in a past life that is said to have been frequented by people with, um, organized crime connections.

The bottom line is that you're vegetarian or have a friend or significant other that is, you've got to applaud the fact that you now have another Brooklyn choice. You can click here for a positive review or click here for a less enthusiastic take. Red Bamboo is located at 271 Adelphi Street, which is at the corner of Dekalb.