Andrew Tarlow's Greenpoint Bar Achilles Heel Has Closed

"Achilles Heel, the casual Greenpoint bar from Andrew Tarlow, has closed after 13 years. The restaurateur behind the wildly popular Borgo in Manhattan who established a new Brooklyn aesthetic for dining with Diner and Roman's, announced the shutter on Instagram, Sunday, February 8 was the restaurant's last day of service. "The business has faced a protracted period of financial hardship, and we've reached a point where it is no longer viable to continue operating," the post reads."

"Located at 180 West Street, near Green Street, Achilles Heel opened in 2013 as a neighborhood gathering spot with a straightforward menu of sandwiches, salads, and snacks alongside coffee, wine, and beer. Tarlow told Eater he opened it when the landlord approached him about doing something with the space. It had been a tavern from the early 1900s to the 1960s, but sat vacant for 40 years, he said."

"Lee Desrosiers, a former meat cutter at Tarlow's butcher shop, Marlow & Daughters, helmed the kitchen when it opened and earned the restaurant a one-star review from former New York Times critic Pete Wells. He praised tartines with lardo and Sichuan peppercorn, black trumpet mushrooms, and salt-cured fluke. Desrosiers became known for " Hell Chicken," a Sunday backyard special where spatchcocked birds were hung and smoked over a custom wood grill before being steamed in cast iron and finished with char."

Achilles Heel closed after 13 years, with its final service on Sunday, February 8. The closure resulted from a protracted period of financial hardship that made continued operation nonviable. The venue, located at 180 West Street near Green Street, opened in 2013 as a neighborhood gathering spot offering sandwiches, salads, snacks, coffee, wine, and beer. The space hosted pop-ups, residencies, and community events, including a residency by Banchan by Sunny. Lee Desrosiers led the kitchen at opening, earned critical attention, and became known for the weekend "Hell Chicken" smoked-and-steamed special.

Read at Eater NY