Desy’s Clam Bar

If Desy’s seems like a slice of Little Italy in Williamsburg, that’s because it is—the restaurant shares its chef and owners with the now-shuttered Little Charlie’s Clam Bar, a 20-year veteran of Kenmare Street. Given its pedigree, it’s wise to go straight for the red-sauce classics. Baked clams oreganata are tasty enough, with briny mollusks and a savory stuffing of bread crumbs, lemons, garlic and Parmesan. But among the entrées, “sausage parmigiana” linguine borders on overkill, with its big chunks of spicy Italian sausage and al dente noodles blanketed in too much stringy mozzarella cheese. Though the service is friendly and attentive, the brightly lit space, paneled with laminated dollar bills, is more chintzy than charming. Displaced from Manhattan to this grungy block of Grand Street, the middling food and decor don’t have the same kitschy appeal.