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June 7, 2007

Fresh Produce, Cheese for Greene and Grand (Ah!)

The folks who brought salvation to Clinton Hillers last year in the form of espresso, pastries and prepared foods at Choice will be opening a new spot with complementary fare two blocks away in the former laundromat at 214 Greene Avenue. (Full Disclosure: Choice used to advertise on Brooklyn Record.) The lease started yesterday and we got a sneak peek at the space last night. Our first impression was that it was much bigger than we expected; our second impression was that they've got a lot of work to do. That said, the raw material is there: There's an old tin ceiling that will add beaucoup d'ambience and a cute backyard. When it opens (hopefully by Labor Day), the as-yet-unnamed store will offer fresh local produce, lots of high-end cheeses and charcuterie, fresh cut flowers and a whole lot more. Still up for grabs is the former barbershop next door. GMAP

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Comments

i hope they retain the services of the old lady who used to work the laundromat; if she was in a bad mood she'd lock the door so you would either be trapped in or outside.

i'm still confused about the new building around the corner on grand. it appeared to be two storefronts but whatever happened with it?

Posted by: Jimmy Legs at June 7, 2007 11:03 AM

Sweet now I can wait 30 minutes for a slab of cheese as well as a cup of coffee!

Posted by: anon at June 7, 2007 11:08 AM

Jimmy,
That's actually one residential condo. For zoning reasons they couldn't make it a commercial space. Pretty silly, but there you have it.

Posted by: Brownstoner at June 7, 2007 11:23 AM

BOO. bring back the laundrymat. this sucks.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:33 AM

Raw material is right. The garden might be attractive, but a lot of Dry Cleaners' yards end up being very toxic. Let's hope it's not a mini-brownfield site that might threaten your dill havarti.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:33 AM

beaucoup d'ambulance?

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:36 AM

Wow, this is great news.

Posted by: mg at June 7, 2007 11:38 AM

Do you hear the Chamber Music playing in the background? That's the sound of Clinton Hill becoming white and turning into another Park Slope.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:42 AM

The idea is great, let's hope that with Choce experience they will be faster to cut a piece of cheese than 30 minutes for a salad! good luck

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:44 AM

Do you hear the Chamber Music playing in the background? That's the sound of Clinton Hill becoming white and turning into another Park Slope.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:44 AM

The idea is great, let's hope that with Choice experience they will be faster to cut a piece of cheese than 30 minutes for a salad! good luck

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:45 AM

Why blacks dont' like cheese and flowers?
get a grip!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:47 AM

11:42

How can you make that comment? Do you ever go to Choice and see the crowd there? Obviously not, because it is not an all "white" clientele. Why do you think black people wouldn't want a nice place in their neighborhood?

Posted by: Anon on Greene at June 7, 2007 11:47 AM

i don't think the laundry had any kind of dry cleaning on the facilities, so the worst toxins will probably just be spilled Tide and the simmering resentment of residents who can't afford expensive cheese.

Posted by: Jimmy Legs at June 7, 2007 11:48 AM

OVERJOYED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: jake at June 7, 2007 11:48 AM

Yes, and we all know that privileged, entitled, self-absorbed yuppies are OK as long as they're not white.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 11:58 AM

Don't even respond to racist or ill-informed comments on this blog. They make a good thread go down the drain quicker than you can snap your fingers.

Posted by: MJ at June 7, 2007 12:02 PM

We are SO EXCITED!! WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME!!! This is delightful news, and we will be absolutely frequenting this space, coming from BedStuy with LOVE!!!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 12:08 PM

This is good news, but someone really needs to tell the folks at Choice that they need to improve their service. I think the food there is great, but not only does it take forever to get simple things (a salad from the fridge) the people who work there are kind of rude. I know they are French and all, and I don't need a smiley "Have a Nice Day," but at least an acknowledgment that I'm standing at the counter waiting for service.

I actually avoid the place on weekends because it's so packed it's impossible to get food or coffee.

Posted by: Kim at June 7, 2007 12:12 PM

Great news. Hopefully the same sort of thing will start happening more on Fulton Street in Clinton Hill. The Former Bodegas is going to be something per earlier posts and the new bank etc...

Bring on the bakeries and green grocers, more cafes and shops.

Any as for Choice, while it can be slow service, I'm always proud to bring friends there as the crowd is so diverse from a racial and age perspective - it's really nice to see.

Posted by: lp at June 7, 2007 12:20 PM

really, get new business to Fulton!!! get the methadone clinic out!!!!!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 12:27 PM

Has anyone spoken to Tish James lately on her efforts with the Waverly/Fulton methadone clinic efforts?

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 12:41 PM

OH MY FOOD GOD!!! I could not have prayed, sacrificed goats, or done a special dance for a better choice than . . . those people. They have phenomenal food. I don't care that their staff is often lazy and/or plain stupid (sorry, just the facts).

Fort Greene is officially the best neighborhood in the tristate area.

Bring on the racist, anti-yuppie, simpleton diatribes. If this kind of news is your problem, you need to pick your head out of your butt.

WOO HOOO

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 12:51 PM

It is Clinton Hill, isnt't it?
I hope we can have something similar on Myrtle Ave soon.

Posted by: anon at June 7, 2007 1:05 PM

You're right, it is CH. I guess I was just wishful-thinking -- I was picturing a different corner completely (one that is near my house). Like I said, wishful thinking.

But I don't mind making the trek out there. What a great drag that Grand Ave is becoming.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 1:22 PM

I've never found the staff at Choice rude; on the contrary they're well intentioned and cheerful. I eat there at least weekly. But they are glacially slow. Certain times of the day, (weekends, for example) it's not worth going if you're actually hungry now. Their set-up is badly flawed. The person on the register should not be the same one scooping carrots and cutting slices of banana bread. What are they thinking?

But the food's delicious and I think decent value for money given that it's freshly made, with quality ingredients.

Prices permitting, I'll be shopping at the new grocery but I hope they come up with a way to deal with the bottlenecks.

As for the naysayers, a visit to Choice any time of day proves it's been embraced by the entire neighborhood. And the fact that people are willing to put up with the wait shows how much it was needed. All power to 'em.

Posted by: TW at June 7, 2007 1:59 PM

I don't blame the employees as much as the system they have in place there. It seems that they could use an expediter between the counter people and the kitchen. It takes a person 5 minutes just to squeeze by in order to get to the back.

I agree that this place sounds great but these types of store always seem to have a rough go of it - Blue Apron & that place that was on Court Street by Kane for instance.

Posted by: Anon at June 7, 2007 2:11 PM

Hah--I would have scooped Brownstoner on this story had I not been a lazy bugger without a blog to call his own. I overheard the owner sitting with his lawyer/architect (?) and discussing a new lease in the neighborhood. He's always been a friendly enough guy to me, but I didn't want to pry by asking where exactly they were opening the new store. It's great news--whine about gentrification and sluggish service elsewhere, please. Was the corner of Greene and Grand so much better off when it was served by a laundromat? As a moderate-income renter myself, I'm quite sensitive to the vagaries of NYC real estate and the potential dangers of gentrification, but the new attention that Fort Greene/Clinton Hill/Bed-Stuy have gotten over the last few years has been a huge benefit to long-term homeowners of whatever hue in that area. Ask them if they're pining for the glory days of the late '80s and early '90s, when Lafayette between Washington and Classon wasn't quite so chic, and I suspect we'd get a different answer from what anonymous armchair revolutionaries would have us believe...

Posted by: CitizenO at June 7, 2007 2:19 PM

This type of store fills such a void in the neighborhood, I think their business will be almost guaranteed.

People seem to be clamoring for new business on Fulton St too -- what will it take? There's a building for sale on Fulton and Waverly, right?

Posted by: Lothar of the Clinton Hill People at June 7, 2007 2:25 PM

welcome!!! choice is great, food is delicious, the people who run it are wonderful and yes...the service is slow. but, really, when have you ever had such good food?? also, as an aside, it is totally different that the whitewashed pic some people who have clearly never been there are painting. it caters to a diverse crowd who show up day after day - mommies (black and white), students, people working in the area, etc...
anyone who says other wise just hasn't been there. (I go almost every day, so I def see the other regulars!

Posted by: miss priss at June 7, 2007 2:33 PM

Because of this post, I went over and got sammies and cupcakes today at Choice, and I'm eating them right now, and they are absolutely DELICIOUS! Yay! But all the above posters are right about the RIDICULOUSLY slow service, and somebody should print out this thread and give it to management--yo, dude, *free* consulting, you're very welcome. I agree that it's a systemic problem, but it's also a staff problem, which is to say, TRAINING. You can learn how to read your customers, recall who's been standing there for 30 minutes, as I did today, and respond with a sense of caring (if not urgency) when people have been waiting too long. If you don't, even people who like your food will avoid you when they don't have an hour of their life to waste standing around. Also, for the record, the lunch crowd was as racially diverse as the neighborhood at large, and posters who think African Americans only want crap retail should really just be ignored--it's obviously untrue. Thanks.

Posted by: bob999 at June 7, 2007 2:34 PM

to o pl e a sed to ty pe

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 2:45 PM

SO happy to hear the news. It seems that (if prior threads are to be believed) fresh cut flowers are VERY high on the list for many of the residents, so that's a good decision, too.

Hoping against all hope that they'll figure out some way to speed up the service, too. I really almost never go to Choice because I don't want to spend the time. Which is shame, because Thierry is a hella nice guy and the food is delicious.

Posted by: houseowax at June 7, 2007 3:31 PM

IM SOOOOOO HAAAPPPPYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: anon at June 7, 2007 3:34 PM

2:19 -- great post.

PLEASE PEOPLE LOOK AROUND.

I don't mean just in your own backyard or neighborhood, but all of New York City. There is crap crap crap crap crap, dressed up occasionally as decent, but still CRAP.

We are BLESSED to have this crew of people, with their genuine love of food and inspired, artisitic take on presentation and atmosphere, gracing our particular corner of the world. It could have been anyone. It could have been some more CRAP, but we, for some weird reason, got Choice.

I wish there was a place like that for every community.

So just appreciate our luck. And if you can't, go elsewhere. There are plenty of laundromats to make your life oh so much more convenient and clean.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 3:44 PM

Their staff needs a crash course at Bagel Delite. Now THOSE guys know service. Maybe Thierry can just take some undercover videotape of rush hour at Bagel Delite and then screen it over cupcakes for his staff.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 7, 2007 3:46 PM

ditto the requests for fulton. i love choice as much as the next person, and agree that this store is a great addition, but if i could swing by quickly on my way home from the subway, it would really make my day

Posted by: Dahl at June 7, 2007 4:19 PM

with the new baby clothing store on grand and the recent gutting o.v. grocery at clifton pl., i can only assume that by the end of the summer i'll be tripping over strollers as i drag my laundry up to waverly. i love choice, but i also love the hang-out corner and am sad to think there might not be an annual wrestling match this summer.

Posted by: c. at June 7, 2007 4:23 PM

Not only is the service horrendous at Choice -

I've seen them grilling chicken breasts and putting them back on the same tray with the raw pieces on more than one occasion - marinade and all.

Posted by: Anon at June 7, 2007 4:39 PM

loving this news!!! loving it so much i can hardly type! bed stuy/clinton hill RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: anon at June 7, 2007 11:21 PM

Choice is great but if you want a coffee and a good sandwich and don't have all day go across the street to grand275 (the cafe painted red and green) Excellent brunch, great sandwiches, reasonable prices, and efficient service plus wireless internet.
The only thing choice has that grand doesn't is dinner-type stuff

Posted by: anon at June 7, 2007 11:38 PM

It seems to me.....There is a lot of anger in the neighberhood....maybe we dont need fresh produce...flowers...cheese...maybe we should keep the bodegas(drug dealers included).....have a whole lot to say....void of any names....and bitch about small business owners starting out....not realizing supply and demand....overwhelmed,delirious from overwork and have to read about how unhappy everyone is. Fresh food takes time, good help is hard to find.

Posted by: max at June 8, 2007 10:20 PM

NO not anger just young and unintelligent people who really don't get it. Like this thread.

Posted by: anon at June 11, 2007 8:03 AM

« Four Views Inside the Domino Sugar Factory Just Sold in Brooklyn »

June 7, 2007

Fresh Produce, Cheese for Greene and Grand (Ah!)

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