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You can’t judge a restaurant by its entrance. This one, you access by the front door of Rose Live Music, through what looks like a fire exit, down a flight of stairs, past the bathrooms—et voilà, a subterranean dining room that’s as charming (candlelit, wood-beamed) as it is unexpected. It has a sort of wine-cellar appeal, which makes sense, since every bottle on the list is available by the glass and quartino as well. The chef works in a culinary idiom that’s part Mediterranean, part Brooklyn: Room-temperature Spanish-mackerel escabèche is crispy-skinned and spice-rubbed, garnished with Cara Cara oranges and basil, and there’s Mast Brothers Chocolate in the airy mousse. Winter’s creamy cauliflower gratin has made way for summer’s green-tomato version, and pole beans have replaced asparagus as an accompaniment for the whole roasted poussin, a flavorful bird that’s also served with buttery spaetzle as crisp as French fries. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

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