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Liza Queen's unassuming, tiny Greenpoint restaurant is already tough to get into on a weekend night — maybe owing to all the rave reviews and its recent selection as Best New Brooklyn Restaurant by Time Out — so it's not like we're ruining anything for anyone here, okay? No, the "hideaway" has been un-hidden for a while now, owing to its yummy seasonal home cooking, ever-changing menu, and refreshingly appropriate prices. We like all those things too, but they're not why we love the Queen's Hideaway. We love it because it's the most bullshit-free restaurant in New York.

Here is a story that sums up the QH's awesomeness in a nutshell: during the first six months of the restaurant's existence, they served one of the most delicious weekend brunches ever. Fresh from the oven popovers served with homemade preserves for $3, pork and fried egg tostada = heaven. Yum. The only problem, though, was we weren't the only people who felt this way. The brunch crowd was always moblike and the poor little new restaurant couldn't keep up (esp. with only waitress). We sensed that our days of pork tostadas were numbered, and these suspicions were confirmed one day as we walked down Franklin Street towards the Hideaway. We watched as an enraged-looking waitress emerged from the front door, slapped a sign on it, and stormed back inside. This is what the sign said:
WE ARE NOT SERVING BRUNCH.
EVER.

Nice, right? Much as we loved the popovers, we love honesty more. And we can still go to the QH for dinner and know we'll never be upsold or lied to about a dish's desirability. The waitress will never tell us her name or affect a fake chipper attitude or insist on telling us about specials. There will never be any nonedible garnish or squiggle of sauce on a plate. And while part of us prays for brunch's return, most of us wants them to stick to that "ever." It's hard to find a restaurant that won't lie to you these days.

Earlier: TODO: The Complete New Yorker

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