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June 3, 2009
Brooklyn Food & Drink Round-Up

Cafe Tapeo Becomes Cyprus Avenue
52 5th Avenue, Park Slope
Tipster dwarbi reports that tapas joint Cafe Tapeo has reopened as an Irish pub: "Tapeo was struggling for a while almost always empty. Every time we walked by it we wondered when it would close." The new pub, Cyprus Avenue, is presumably named after the Van Morrison song about the street in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Has anyone stopped in yet?
Upcoming Brooklyn Food Events
This Saturday, June 6 from 6-9pm, stop by the BKLYN Yard for music from Finger on the Pulse and $7 BBQ plates from Hapa Kitchen... Plus, tickets are available now for Brooklyn Based's screening of Food, Inc, a new documentary about the American industrial food system, at the Bell House on Wednesday, June 10. Doors are at 7pm and snacks will be provided by Roebling Tea Room, Sweet Deliverance, Nunu Chocolates, and McClure's Pickles, and there's a pre-show open bar courtesy of Brooklyn Brewery. Following the film, catch a Q&A with director Robert Kenner and author Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), who also appears in the film.
Closings and Bankruptcy
A few Chowhounds are mourning the approaching closing of Park Slope favorite Tempo (Saturday will be their last night in business), while Zagat reports that "Garden Cafe, the No.1 rated Brooklyn restaurant in Zagat’s NYC Survey, closed last week after nearly 25 years in operation in Prospect Heights." And Crain's says that Elementi in Park Slope "filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection" but remains open for business.
After the jump: Openings in Bed-Stuy, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope, Williamsburg, and Bushwick; reviews of Cafe Pedlar and Farmer in the Deli...
Openings Around the Borough
Grub Street dishes the details on Saraghina, an artisanal pizzeria set to open on Monday at 435 Halsey in Bed-Stuy... Chowhound bklynite shares a rumor that Park Slope's Union Market might be opening in the long-shuttered Blockbuster space on Court Street near DeGraw... Gothamist says that Bar Tini is coming soon to 1302 8th Avenue in Park Slope... Zagat says that Williamsburg's Sweetwater "is prepping to open a bakery two blocks down in the old St. Helen space." ...Time Out New York reports that Bushwick is getting its own Beauty Bar at 21 Broadway at Melrose Street... FREEwilliamsburg says that Mesa Coyoacan is now open and serving traditional Mexican fare at 372 Graham Avenue: "You can expect Coyoacan to finally turn the former Pampa Grill space in Graham Ave’s 'Fish Tank' building into the destination those architects clearly meant it to be."
Recently Reviewed: Cafe Pedlar and Farmer in the Deli
Today's New York Times review of Cafe Pedlar (210 Court Street at Warren Street, Cobble Hill) says the eatery serves "proper German pretzels" that pair well with their Stumptown coffee, as well as pastries that "cost $2 to $4, and vary from a tiny loaf made with stout to olive oil and lemon cake to a jammy linzer torte." ...And the paper's recent review of Farmer in the Deli (357 Myrtle, at Adelphi, Fort Greene) says that "Farmer revealed itself to be a master at creating simple sandwiches that rely less on dazzling artistry or expensive ingredients than on an attention to detail that results in consistently tasty and uniquely inexpensive sandwiches."
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Comments
i did see on eater that garden cafe closed. so sad...i hope that whatever replaces it is as high quality.
Posted by: i disagree at June 3, 2009 11:49 AM
"And I'm caught one more time/
Up on Cyprus Avenue.
—Van the Man
Posted by: Fjorder at June 3, 2009 11:58 AM
so difficult to understand the overheated praise of Garden cafe: bland and thoughtless (and not cheap either) fare.
Posted by: Akidovic at June 3, 2009 12:36 PM
Tapeo had great sangria and was my go-to place to bring a date.
Posted by: infinitejester at June 3, 2009 12:54 PM
I am really upset to learn that Tempo is closing.
Best restauraunt in Park Slope IMHO.
Posted by: benson at June 3, 2009 1:10 PM
Garden Cafe was good for its time (80s) but with places like Saul in th e last 10 years, it was bypassed in quality and ended up overpriced ...
Posted by: BH76 at June 3, 2009 1:11 PM
Tempo: Pretty good, but a bit pricey as their rent is absurd. I rather eat at Al Di la for less money and better food.
Cypress Avenue: Corney sign, corny name - sounds like UES. I rather go to the Black Sheep directly behind it for phooze ball, $10 pitchers, and a juke box.
Posted by: IronMaiden at June 3, 2009 1:18 PM
Rereading all these openings reminds me again how much I love living in this city.
Posted by: infinitejester at June 3, 2009 1:19 PM
Cyprus* ;]
I recommend Brooklyn Yard always for a good, outdoor time.
Posted by: IronMaiden at June 3, 2009 1:20 PM
Cyprus Ave is owned by the same people as Black Sheep. Im assuming they own the building because they owned Cafe Tapeo as well.
Posted by: Santa at June 3, 2009 1:36 PM
Sad about Tempo. Not my favorite in Park Slope but top 5 or 6. I actually think they were reasonably priced for the quality but agree al di la is better.
Lesson: pick a few restaurants you really love and make sure you're patronizing them while times are tough.
Posted by: basementalist at June 3, 2009 1:36 PM
@Santa: That's weird. I guess they're trying to cover multiple demographics. I thought Tapeo was good but never went back for some reason. I guess other people did the same.
Posted by: IronMaiden at June 3, 2009 1:40 PM
Yes, Black Sheep and Cyprus are owned by the same guy. I think Cyprus is going to be more of a true pub, Black Sheep is the local bar showing sports.
Posted by: infinitejester at June 3, 2009 1:51 PM
Wow, Elementi didn't last long.
Then again Park Slope needed another Italian restaurant about as much as it needed another sushi joint.
Posted by: SnarkSlope at June 3, 2009 3:05 PM
No harm in checking out Cyprus at some point... I enjoyed Tapeo when I went, but I think they had some trouble knowing what exactly what it wanted to be. I enjoyed the food.
I think Cyprus knows what it wants to be. An "authentic" Irish pub.
Posted by: dwarbi at June 3, 2009 3:10 PM
You know what 5th ave needs - a Thai restaurant.
Posted by: IronMaiden at June 3, 2009 3:14 PM
I always felt Tapeo was a higher-end kind of place...the beet dish was my fav of many items I liked. tons of cute women there all the time. The owner is Irish so I trust the new place will be real.
Posted by: infinitejester at June 3, 2009 3:29 PM
Mesa Coyoacan - the link says guys from Barrio Chino and Mercadito are involved (IMHO the two best mexican restaurants in manhattan)
that's pretty exciting.
the wave of successful manhattan restaurantaurs to williamsburg continues....
Posted by: dirty_hipster at June 3, 2009 3:43 PM
Tempo wasn't impressive in the least. Food was uneven at best, service was amateur and graceless, layout was odd and offputting. Garden Cafe, in truth, wasn't inspired and the decor and service definitely showed its age. But the food was always well-cooked and tasty, which is more than I can say for Saul.
Posted by: i disagree at June 3, 2009 6:26 PM
i disagree hit the nail on the head - Garden Cafe was not cheap but the food was always well cooked and tasty and it was always consistent. It will be sorely missed as there is not a restaurant in Brooklyn (or Manhattan for that matter) that provides that kind of quality cooking for the (reasonable, though not cheap) price.
Posted by: bkhabitant at June 3, 2009 9:59 PM
Hey guys,
I am the owner of Cyprus Avenue and Black Sheep. Cyprus Avenue will be an Authentic Irish bar and Black Sheep will remain as is.
Tapeo was going good up until last August and then the economy really began to stumble. I watched sales drop 10% every month and I decided it was time to go back to my roots and offer people something that I really missed from home and with a better price point. A genuine Irish Bar. So we are open now although construction has not began yet. I decided to do a soft opening since I have a sidewalk license and everybody loves to sit outside. Also its a good time to talk to the customers and find out what they would like to see as we remain open and build the bar around them.
It should be complete by september and you will see a whole new storefront modelled on Temple Bar in dublin. The kitchen shall be in the basement to make way for a new bar. I am putting a fireplace down the back and every Sat and Sun afternoon you will be able to enjoy traditional irish music sessions that you can also join in if you play an instrument.
There are some other surprises but I shall keep them for the Grand Opening. So please come by. We have a cut down version of the new menu and we are keeping happy hour pricing all the time until September. Thats $4 pints, $15 pitchers, $15 bottles of wine and Sangria and more.
Cheers
Posted by: 780425abm at June 6, 2009 12:54 AM
Hi Kara,
Thanks for mentioning the screening of Food, Inc. that will happen on Wednesday. The trailer may be viewed at www.takepart.com/foodinc. You may also be interested in the accompanying book, Food, Inc.: How Industrial Food is Making us Sicker, Fatter, and Poorer - And What You Can Do About It, which is available on Amazon.com. The book explores in-depth the problems and challenges raised by the film through 13 different essays, including one by Eric Schlosser of Fast Food Nation. Thanks again!
Posted by: Particpant Media at June 9, 2009 3:34 PM

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