Brooklyn Ball Factory
“I purchased the Grilled Salmon Bento Box and ate it on the roof top deck on a beautiful day !”
“I'm in love with japanese curry and once i saw it on the menu i had to order it.”
“You walk into a serene, Japanese hipster coffee shop on the bottom.”
Brooklyn Ball Factory
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Stuck between a three and a four star review for Brooklyn Ball Factory, I decided to lean towards a four star review this time. I found the food to be a three star quality, but the concept, organization, and ambiance of the place to be a four and a half star quality as reflected on yelp.
FOOD: I got the bento box with the tempeh quinoa to continue on replacing some of my meals with vegan/vegetarian options. The bento box itself was nicely done and reminds me of times when I would get bento boxes in Japan/Taiwan. A salad, soup, pickled vegetables, grilled vegetables, rice (and quinoia in this case), and the tempeh was included in the bento lunch special. The sauce used in the tempeh was pretty strong, but not bad. I thought it could have toned down the salt. The rice/quinoa mixture on the other hand was a bit dry in my opinion. Perhaps the quinoa absorbed more of the moisture, but picking up the rice made it difficult to eat with chopstick.
SERVICE: Great!
Overall, the ambiance is very Brooklyn and the cafe speaks to its demographic in Williamsburg. What a great find!
Had some incredible lunch today at the Brooklyn Ball Factory. The Service counter girls are friendly. The place is a little small inside due to the large work area in the back of the restaurant, my other gripe is the chairs and table are not comfortable. But the food is really good for Asian fusion. I ordered the pork belly bento which was worth every penny and my girlfriend had the Japanese fried chicken bento all I have to say is yummy! great use of seasoning that creates delicious food.
Very unique – confluence of awesome coffee, relaxed vibe, Japanese flare, friendly service and a rooftop! Hello Brooklyn. I had the veggie sandwich which was not bad – good portion sizes relative to the cost. The rooftop is more akin to someone's apartment building roof as oppose to what you would imagine in a retail setting. It's chill though. Not a lot of space downstairs. Saw some people working there though. Come for the coffee stay for the rooftop?
It makes me smile just thinking about the whole process of taking the bento boxes in a basket and carrying it to the rooftop. It's a really cute place for something simple and light. Very cute setting and I definitely had a good chat there. In terms of the food, the pork belly shabu shabu is a little bit boring but I loved the grilled pork belly- so tender and soft that everything just melted in my mouth. I ordered iced sencha thinking it was hojicha and realized that I was wrong after my first sip. But it was pretty refreshing for a hot summer afternoon.
Japanese meatballs on a rooftop in East Williamsburg? This place is as great as it is random.
The small spot has a few seats as you walk in, right in front of the counter/kitchen where you place your order, but it's more fun to enjoy your meal in the rooftop garden. It doesn't have the nicest view (mostly neighboring projects), but it is a very nice, pleasant way to enjoy the tasty menu of Japanese staples and other random stuff cooked fresh by the very friendly Japanese staff:
– Meatball Sandwich ($9)
Given the name of the eatery, this was appropriately the best thing we had, by far. Still, the name of the place is misleading as this is the single meatball item you can order here. Anyway, this gets you a sturdy hero roll stuffed with two massive meatballs, topped with fermented apple sauce and some greens. The meatballs, a mix of chuck and short rib, are so juicy and flavorful, and are the one must order item.
– Pork Shabu Shabu Bento ($12)
Consisting of a decent-sized pile of the thinly sliced, fatty meat, along with soup and some salad and a hearty scoop of rice, this was another solid option, but not quite as tasty as the sandwich. I'm not the biggest Shabu Shabu person, so I probably should've chosen one of the several other available proteins instead.
– Japanese Curry Rice ($8.50) with Chicken (+ $3)
This was nearly identical to the bento box, but just with some curry sauce on the side instead. The chicken was much tastier though, making this a much better option.
– Milky Toast ($3)
These 3 long strips of sweet, crusty bread are great. This is a nice item to enough on the side, especially if you don't get a sandwich and want some bread to go with your rice.
– Rosemary French Fry ($4)
This was the one major failure, a carton of shockingly undercooked and soggy fries. There was an occasional one that was at least slightly browned and worth eating, but they were mostly pale and nearly raw.
– White Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookie ($1.50)
On our way down after the meal, we tried one of the few varieties of cookies available at the counter. This was a pretty decent cookie, with huge discs of white chocolate and a faint cranberry flavor.
After a good sampling of the menu, I think I see now why they named this place the Brooklyn Ball Factory, as the meatballs were the best. I would come back, but probably just to get the meatballs again. And maybe to try the Shaved Ice for dessert.
All of the restaurants in this mini empire of restaurants bare some elements of the "Japanese hipster" trend, but at the Brooklyn Ball Factory, things really take flight.
There's an expensive water filtration system designed to remove certain minerals in the cooking and coffee, an expensive machine to make said coffee and management straight out of a Muji catalog.
It's all a bit silly, and would completely fall under the weight of its own pretension if the product wasn't up to snuff. I don't drink coffee, but I have sampled my way around the slowly evolving menu. On a recent visit I wasn't able to sample the curry (I remain surprised at how often this professional operation is out of certain food items) but instead returned to the meatball rice plate.
Not a traditionally Japanese dish by any means, the very hearty and slightly sweet balls come with a large, bitter salad, plenty of rice and an elevated take on miso soup. It's a very good deal, even more surprising considering the rather steep coffee prices.
Less innovative dishes and Japanese classics available here at the same level. There's no evidence of the boring flavors and dry meat that led to Samurai Papa a few blocks away being a massive letdown.
The best thing about the Ball Factory it is roof space. I don't think many guests realize that the Ball Factory serves alcohol, but they do have a beer on draft on a couple on bottles. Coming out here on a spring afternoon, with the wrap around wooden benches and fresh breeze, the most surprising thing is that there aren't more people here.
Don't tell anyone.
I'm gonna be honest from the outside it looks like shit. But if there's anything about what makes Brooklyn so special is the hidden gems with spectacular product. This place is one of them.
5 stars for how great they make coffee. The girls who work here are super cute, Japanese and amicable. I usually go for a black iced coffee but opted for the unusual sounding maple coffee. Amazing! The amount of mindfulness they put into every cup is amazing. Totally worth $4. I wish I was hungry because everyone here seemed to be chewing down on some delicious grub. The kitchens smelt smoky and amazing.
FYI – 8$ minimum for credit but there is an atm machine.
This place may be the cutest place EVER. My friends and I came here after a hot summer Saturday. You walk into a serene, Japanese hipster coffee shop on the bottom. We all got the iced yuzu ginger tea (DEFINITE recommend) – it was just so refreshing.
We ended up hanging out upstairs on the rooftop. Nothing too fancy, but a great place to just hang out with friends and chat.
Love love love.