Don’t let the Sunday morning line at Zaftig’s deter you from venturing into the Brookline eatery. The line moves fast and the service even faster once seated.
The restaurant creates a family atmosphere through their counter space that allows patrons to sneak a peak and whiff of the sandwiches and other entrees stirring partially out of sight. The remainder of Zaftig’s seating are large booths and intimate tables scrunched together to fit as many people as possible.
Yiddish for pleasantly plump, Zaftig’s Jewish-style cuisine sends feelings of grandma’s kitchen coursing throughout the restaurant. In fact, some of Zaftig’s items are derived from families. Their kugel (a noodle casserole) is now mass-produced using the recipe of a waitress’s grandmother. But the matzo ball soup still needs work, since it lacks the flavor and proper matzo ball consistency of mom’s soup.
The restaurant also offers a shmear of chopped liver, cheese blintzes, gefilte fish, potato pancakes and knishes.
Thrown in amongst the Jewish cuisine are American favorites, such as chili cheese fries, oriental noodle salad and their breakfasts of omelets, French toast and pancakes. It’s the banana-stuffed French toast that draws in eaters. The one thick slice of bread is filled with mashed bananas, fried in a bourbon-vanilla batter and topped with date butter.
And the large picture of the round woman on the wall is the grandma encouraging diners to eat ’cause they’re skin and bones. The dining experience will leave one feeling like the woman on the wall.
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