BROOKLYN — The battle of Brooklyn's best continues with the borough's picks for top artisinal fare.
Last Tuesday, DNAinfo New York’s version of March Madness pitted 16 sellers against each other in a maker’s showdown, with everything from handmade balms to probiotic hot sauce.
Organic, vegan nut cheese seller Dr. Cow suffered a rough loss against gourmet company Empire Mayonnaise, while Gowanus-based Twig Terrariums ran a close race with chocolate factory and distillery Cacao Prieto. The custom greeneries won out by just 12 votes.
Fans of Brooklyn Flavors’ neighborhood scents were no match for pickle aficionados who helped Brooklyn Brine move on to the next round, and whiskey lovers went for the win as Kings County Distillery beat out The Jam Stand.
Vote now in our elite eight roundup of the best artisanal spots and sellers.
Don’t forget to come back later this week and settle the score in the elite eight for our other March Madness categories, including Brooklyn's best burgers, best neighborhood bars and best desserts.
EMPIRE MAYONNAISE — 564 Vanderbilt Ave. The sriracha, white truffle and bacon-flavored mayonnaise at Empire Mayonnaise in Prospect Heights is so famous that "Saturday Night Live" included the store in a sketch poking fun at Brooklyn. The shop sells more than a dozen mayo flavors for between $5 and $10 a jar.
DOUGH — 448 Lafayette Ave. With flavors like Magenta Hibiscus, Tropical Chili and Chocolate Salted Caramel, you can’t have just one of Dough's treats. We can thank this bakery for helping spread the doughnut craze, as the Bed-Stuy business keeps people wanting more at Smorgasburg and recently opened a location in the Flatiron District. The confections are also sold in cafes throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan.
AMPLE HILLS CREAMERY — 623 Vanderbilt Ave. Salted Crack Caramel, Ooey Gooey Butter Cake and Mexican Hot Chocolate are just some of the ice cream flavors churned out from scratch here. A Prospect Heights favorite for years, the ice cream makers now have locations in Gowanus and Manhattan, an ice cream cookbook and nationwide delivery.
TWIG TERRARIUMS — 287 3rd Ave. Gowanus-based Twig crafts tiny botanical worlds encased in glass jars. A popular terrarium at Twig is called "Piss Off" and has a tiny figure of a punk rocker flipping the bird.
BROOKLYN BRINE PICKLES — 574A President St. Pickling has become so ubiquitous that it was a running joke on "Portlandia," but for Brooklyn Brine, pickling is a thriving business. The Gowanus business makes traditional cucumber pickles as well as herbed cauliflower, fennel beets and chipotle carrots.
MAST BROTHERS CHOCOLATE — 111 N. Third St. Chocolate from the Mast brothers — who are, in fact, two bearded brothers — has taken off since they started making it in Williamsburg in 2006. Foodie spots across the city, from Shake Shack to Per Se, have even offered some of Mast's single origin, artisanal bars.
KINGS COUNTY DISTILLERY — 63 Flushing Ave. This distillery in the Brooklyn Navy Yard pumps out gin, moonshine and whiskey. Booze — created in traditional copper whiskey stills, fermented in locally built wooden barrels and made with corn and barley grown on a small farm onsite — doesn't get more artisanal than this.
RAAKA CHOCOLATE — 64 Seabring St. Less than six months have passed since Raaka Chocolate moved its artisanal bean-to-bar factory to Red Hook, but the chocolatiers have already made an impression on the neighborhood with classes, tours and tastings. Raaka's "virgin" chocolate bars are made with unroasted beans and organic ingredients that are soy-free, gluten-free, nut-free and vegan. Its signature bars include Dark with Himalayan Pink Sea Salt, Vanilla Roobois and Coconut Milk.
VOTE FOR THE BEST ARTISANAL SPOT BELOW
— Reporting by Serena Dai, Janet Upadhye, Camille Bautista, Nikhita Venugopal, Rachel Holliday Smith, Leslie Albrecht. Graphic by Nigel Chiwaya.
