MARLOW & SONS

Marlow & Sons, 81 Broadway (South of the Williamsburg Bridge, next door to Diner), Williamsburg, Brooklyn (718) 384-1441

A wonderfully worn, wooden bar, a cozy backroom and a storefront with fun kitchen supplies from honeys and cheeses to jams and pickled watermelon, Marlow & Sons also happens to serve some good food.

We started with a charcuterie plate. With bread and a glass of wine it started us off well, though Sweetwater Cafe does one better with olive oil and roasted pistachios and red peppers. But Marlow serves something missing at Sweetwater, oysters.

Oysters, I hadn't dreamed of finding them in Williamsburg, assuming I needed to sate my fix in the city. There's even an "Oyster Happy Hour," Monday-Friday from 5 to 7 p.m., and Saturday-Sunday from 2 to 6 p.m., where they're $1.25 each.

A meatball dish with salad and yogurt (left) skimped on the meatballs (only two), but the meatballs were tender, juicy and well-flavored and the yogurt, refreshing.

A lemon chicken dish (right) was tender and juicy-- dependable not exceptional.

That's the thing about Marlow-- nothing really jumped out as being exceptional save the surroundings themselves. Don't get me wrong, the food is good but it's the idea behind Marlow that would get me back. It's a place I can go for reliable, though not fantastic food, with a bar that feels as though you've sat at it time and again the first time, fun picket-plank tables, and a cozy back room that's a bit tight but fun in it's closeness and familiarity.

Most importantly, it's a place with fresh oysters nearby where I can grab a glass of wine or a refreshing beer and watch the world go by.

TOTAL SPENT: TK

20 WORDS OR LESS? For a cozy date, sidewalk-watching, reliable entrees or slurping beers, wine and oysters, you can't go wrong at Marlow.