Bite Of The Day: Duck Wings, Tater Tots, Cocktails, And More At Fancy Nancy

Relying solely on word of mouth, Fancy Nancy (1038 Bedford Avenue, at Lafayette Avenue) has managed to already become a neighborhood favorite among locals along the Clinton Hill-Bed-Stuy border since opening six weeks ago in early September. And once you visit, it’s no wonder why.

Not only does the restaurant offer tater tots — often the only great thing about school lunches — but it features a seasonal and deceptively streamlined dinner menu (three options in each of three categories: Snacksters, Veggies, Plates) that surprises your tastebuds with flavor, creativity, and beautiful presentation. Top that off with a cocktail menu that is one of the most creative around (in both Brooklyn and Manhattan, in our opinion) and you’ve got a recipe for success.

Part of the charm of Fancy Nancy, though, is the utter lack of pretension, pure friendliness, and ridiculous culinary and cocktail skills of its owners, Jay Chan (chef), Kristin Walker (mixologist), and Ben Snider (CFO).

“We wanted to make the place we wanted to hang out at on our days off,” says Walker, the mixologist who manages to draw drinkers and non-drinkers alike in to the bar like moths to a flame.

Having learned her craft at the likes of Mission Cantina, Walker uses unique ingredients and flavor combinations that are both surprising and incredibly delicious. Most new customers will gravitate toward the challenge of The Hustle ($13), which the menu notes has a limit of two per customer and includes the parenthetical descriptor “legendary.”

“We wanted something fun on tap, something that could be our signature,” says Walker of the super-boozy concoction.

It’s somewhat similar to a spiked hot apple cider, but cold (and definitely strong — the two-per limit makes a lot of sense after the very first sip of the triple-rum drink), with a nice balance of sweet and herbaceous, and warm fall spices at the back.

The Gator Bate ($11) also features rum and juice, but to a very different effect — where The Hustle knocks your socks off with alcohol, this is almost deceptive, tasting simply like fruit. One of us took a few slugs and remarked: “I could just gulp this thing.”

Right in the middle of these two is the Funny Lady, a gin-based holdover from the initial opening menu that has that summery feel, with a hit of cucumber to brighten up its delicate creaminess. As part of the new cold-weather drinks menu, which was just introduced, the whole things looks like it will be a lot of fun to explore — the selection includes flavors like habanero-honey, horchata, cranberry-vanilla, and more.

Pretty much every drink goes with every item on the dinner menu, crafted by Chan, formerly of Mas, Mile End, and Northern Spy. However, we recommend starting with the Duck Wings ($10), which packs sweet and heat with a homemade habanero honey sauce that pairs well with the tender meat. Eat them alongside a basket of hot and perfectly crispy Tater Tots ($5) — which comes with spicy ketchup (or cheez and bacon bits for $1 extra each) — and it’ll be like your school lunch memories have gone classy while remaining comforting.

Like the duck wings, the Smoked Bluefish Dip ($9) is a standout snack. Served in a mound topped with pickled onions and fresh cucumber slices, surrounded with lightly seasoned shrimp chips, the dish is kind of a revelation. By itself, the dip is creamy, savory, and not fishy as one of us feared. With the bit of vegetables, it gets a refreshing vibrancy. But with the shrimp chips, it’s possibly our new favorite bar snack, perfect for date nights and football nights alike.

If you’ve never had shrimp chips, we’d normally say you’re not missing out on much, as the oily fried snack is more of a childhood snack for Asian American kids than a restaurant-menu item. But here at Fancy Nancy, Chan has somehow managed to elevate them into what has become one of the restaurant’s most popular signature dishes.

Another signature dish is the Roasted Beet Salad ($10), a surprisingly colorful and flavorful dish of juicy yellow and red beet chunks atop a bed of creamy/savory buttermilk ricotta sprinkled with crushed pistachios. We couldn’t eat this fast enough, which is what Chan was going for with the presence of this salad, a Hearty Caesar Salad ($10), and a comforting and packed-with-veggies Squash Risotto ($11) on the menu.

“We were sick of lines at Emily and Speedy Romeo,” says Chan, who said they love the food at both, despite the wait, but that “we kind of just wanted salads.”

The other two Plates options are Griddled Pork Belly ($18) atop sweet and sour lentils sprinkled with arugula and fried onions, and the Crispy Pressed Chicken ($17). Both take inspiration from flavors and ingredients used in Asian cuisines, while also providing the comfort of casual. For example, the tender chicken comes served next to a kale pan rice that adds the veggies to the meat dish, while a ginger-scallion sauce lends a flavor more commonly found in Cantonese dishes.

Fancy Nancy is named after Chan’s mom, Nancy, a prolific home cook in her own right who continues to inspire him, and now us, with her enthusiasm for tackling anything and everything in the kitchen.

The colorful space already feels like a comfortable neighborhood hangout, with a bouncy soundtrack playing (everything from A Tribe Called Quest to Cat Stevens) as the staff cheerfully greets familiar customers and newcomers alike.

And that energy extends into their menu — as they ramp up for brunch service, a paper hanging in the back room shows suggestions for dishes they got from customers over the past few days. They clearly want to hear from people about what they love, as they hope to make Fancy Nancy an extension of their family with a connection to their community.

Verdict: Clinton Hill residents Walker and Chan have a winner on their hands here and we have to make sure it stays around. A fantastic neighborhood joint for after-work drinks, casual-classy date night and work meetings — that you can also take your parents to. Classic Sunday brunch is coming soon, too, beginning on October 25. See you there!

FANCY NANCY
1038 Bedford Avenue
347-350-7289
Open Tuesdays-Fridays at 5:30pm to 11pm/midnight
Happy Hour from 5:30-7:30pm

With additional reporting by Mary Bakija.