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New York Magazine on Brooklyn’s Artisanal Boom
In a move rife with propitious timing (Brooklyn’s first mayonnaise store recently opened in Prospect Heights), New York magazine published a cover story investigating whether or not artisanal Brooklyn is a sign of the Apocalypse. In the article’s words, it’s “a world, or at least a borough, where thousands of salvaged-teak schooners ply the oceans, or at least the Gowanus Canal, bearing Mason jars full of marmalade made from windfall kumquats. It’s like a child’s dream. The supermarket aisles are lit by Edison bulbs, staffed by scruffy men in butcher’s aprons, and stocked with cruelty-free dog food and hand-pulped toilet paper.” The article features several familiar brands – and Flea favorites – that either found success or challenges. (McClure’s Pickles brought in over a million bucks last year; jam company Maiden Preserves, popular in the local market, failed to gain enough traction or profits to expand.) The piece also sets the stage for how the artisanal boom emerged from a bad economy, and the tension between the “small-is-good ideology and the growth imperative,” forcing many Brooklyn entrepreneurs to compromise their “locavore mission” in order to make it big.
The Twee Party [NY Magazine]
Illustration by Zohar Lazar via NY Mag
04/17/2012 10:00 AM
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Walkabout: Let’s talk about bathrooms, shall we?
(Hammam e Gangali Khan, Iran. Photo: jozan.net)
Topped only by the kitchen, the bathroom is probably the most important, and therefore most installed or renovated room in any house or apartment. 21st century Americans LOVE their bathrooms. We love them so much; we want to have lots of them. Full baths, half baths, powder rooms, en suite baths, master baths, steam rooms and saunas. The need for personal cleanliness knows only the limits of space and cash. Most of us know about the famous Roman baths, so we know this obsession goes way back, but how did we get from there to here? And what the heck happened to all of those years in the middle, or should we say, in the midden? Sorry – bathroom pun. Let’s talk about bathrooms, shall we? (more…)
02/16/2012 10:30 AM
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Bored to Death in the Slope
Bored to Death, the popular HBO series by and about Brooklynite Jonathan Ames, has been filming all over the borough recently. Yesterday a reader captured this close-up of actors Jason Schwartzman and Ted Danson between takes outside the Lyceum on 4th Avenue.
05/27/2010 9:32 AM
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How Many Times Have You Moved?
Martin-Christopher Harper, a 32-year-old hairstylist, has moved more than 40 times during the 9 years he’s spent in New York City. According to the New York Times:
When he lists the neighborhoods he has lived in — in chronological order — he sounds like a bartender reciting a long list of microbrews: “Brooklyn, Chelsea Hotel for a moment, Bronx, Carroll Gardens, Crown Heights, Red Hook, Carroll Gardens, Greenpoint, Chelsea, Crown Heights, Carroll Gardens, Williamsburg, Bushwick, Bed-Stuy, Williamsburg, East Williamsburg…”
The article discusses the psychological problems of the constant mover, noting that Harper has been “tackling the issue in therapy.” Sure, 40 moves in 9 years is extreme, but we know plenty of mentally-stable Brooklynites who’ve lived in a lot of apartments in search of the perfect place. Does anybody come close to this guy’s moving history?
The Psychology of Moving [NY Times]
Photo from prettyjjbean.
03/01/2010 10:31 AM
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Bringing in the New Year Right
Hoppin’ John and collard greens are an old African American and Southern traditional food for New Year’s Day. They are seen as good luck, and eating them will bring prosperity in the New Year. Hoppin’ John is a savory stew of black eyed peas and rice seasoned traditionally with ham hocks, fatback pork, or more often in this more healthy age, smoked turkey wings. Collard greens, or collids in my neck of Brooklyn, are also seasoned with salted and smoked pork or turkey. There used to be lots of flatbed trucks that sat on major intersections in black neighborhoods, selling salt pork, collard greens, Southern cured hams, pecans and other Southern delicacies. The trucks came up from South Carolina, Georgia and other states brimming with goodies, which disappeared fast in communities with strong ties to the South. As the Times reports, there are less and less these days, as people’s food shopping habits change, the economy fizzles, and old ties dissolve. My Mom, who was from South Carolina, made the best greens, and peas and rice, as we called it growing up. I can make them, but they are not the same as hers. Hers were much better. These foods are filling and nutritious and cheap, a pot of each can last days. Prosperity can last all year and beyond. Get cooking, and Happy New Year.
Brooklyn’s Flavor Route to the South [NY Times]
Brooklyn Style Collard Greens [NY Times]
Brooklyn Style Hoppin’ John [NY Times]
Photo:eatcheapeatwelleatup.com
12/31/2009 12:20 PM
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Last Day of the Sukkahs
Sukkot, the seven-day Jewish festival with origins as a celebration for the harvest, is ending today. One of the icons of Sukkot is the sukkah, a temporary hut built just for the week of Sukkot, reminiscent of the structures the Israelites built during their 40 years in the desert, following their exodus from Egypt. Here, we’ve put up ten iPhone photographs we took while biking around in Crown Heights and Williamsburg, home to large Jewish populations. You’ll notice that Jews carry around leafy branches and lemons with them during Sukkot. These come from a commandment from Moses: “On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days”.
10/09/2009 2:59 PM
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Open House New York: Much More Than Houses
The seventh annual openhousenewyork event will take place this weekend; all told, there are over 350 events in all five boroughs showcasing New York architecture and design, and the scheduled tours and talks span a wide array of cultural key points. The line-up in Brooklyn, for example, includes a tour of the Atlantic Avenue Tunnel, BAM, Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Lyceum, the City Reliquary, Tom Otterness’ studio, and a long list of historical sites that may or may not be on your radar, such as the Pieter Claesen Wyckoff House, the oldest home in New York City, or the St. Ann and the Holy Trinity Episcopal Church. For the full (very full) listing, check out openhousenewyork’s website. And did we mention that it’s free?
10/09/2009 10:29 AM
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Brooklyn’s Nod from the Daily Mail
The UK’s Daily Mail ran a story this weekend pointing to Brooklyn as New York City’s hot spot—a well-intended, albeit embarrassingly ill-informed, accolade from across the Atlantic. Ed Costa quotes Sarah Jessica Parker on how Manhattan has changed for the worse, and continues to list the celebrities who have filmed in or moved to Brooklyn. Besides his red-carpet fawning, Mr. Costa makes a couple references to the Williamsburg Savings Bank. Sigh. One Hanson Place is iconographic, sure, but it seems like Mr. Costa’s approach to understanding Brooklyn was to look at a Google satellite image and read Us Weekly.
Brooklyn Is New York’s Real Gem [Daily Mail]
Image by Colin Brice
09/22/2009 11:13 AM
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Brooklyn, the Frugal City?
According to online finance site Mint.com, residents of Brooklyn cut back on spending in 2009 in the first half of the year more than any other city in the United States. Compared to 2008, the average Brooklynite has spent 28 percent less this year, whereas the national average for spending per person dropped only 13 percent. One caveat: Mint.com collects data from its users; thus the sample pool for the spending data is self-selecting and most likely an inaccurate representation of the U.S. Even with Mint.com’s particular demographic in mind, it’s an interesting observation. Also, if you take a look at the graphic, you’ll see that the greatest decreases in spending for which Mint.com has data were in New York and California—states with cities that rank highest for cost of living in the U.S.
The Most Frugal Cities in America [Mint.com]
09/21/2009 10:45 AM
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HBO Does Fort Greene
Did anyone watch “Bored to Death” last night? The Local‘s Andy Newman ran an interview with the show’s writer and main character, Jonathan Ames, last week about the process of representing/misrepresenting Brooklyn on international television. Newman and Ames, who live in Park Slope and Boerum Hill respectively, talk about how the show takes place in Fort Greene even though Ames never lived there (the central character lives on South Portland), how the trailer showed only white people despite Fort Greene’s diversity, and Ames’ predilection for the ladies who frequent Smooch Cafe. The interview was light-hearted and full of banter, but some of the topics covered are hot-button issues for Brooklynites. Did anyone see the first episode? How did HBO’s Fort Greene compare to the real thing?
Bored to Death [Official site]
A Sense of (Semi-fictionalized) Place [The Local, NYT]
09/21/2009 10:14 AM
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Update: Dreamland to Reopen
As we mentioned yesterday, there were rumors that Coney Island’s Dreamland amusement park, closed on August 21 by owner Joe Sitt due to rent owed by operator Anthony Raffaelle, might reopen for Labor Day weekend. The Brooklyn Paper brings us the verified report that it will, in fact, open, due to the efforts of Councilman Domenic Recchia (DConey Island), who had denounced Sitt in the Daily News as a heartless person who only cares about money.” Even though Raffaelle admitted to owing over $500,000 in rent, he and Dreamland employees as well as local sympathizers expressed anger at the park’s closing, calling Sitt a bully who didn’t consider the children who would be disappointed. Stefan Friedman, a spokesman for Sitt’s company Thor Equities, said: Thor Equities is thrilled that Coney Island residents and visitors—particularly kids who start school next week—will get one final taste of summer fun at Dreamland over Labor Day.
The Fate of Coney’s Dreamland [Brownstoner]
Sweet ‘Dreamland’! [Brooklyn Paper]
Coney Island’s Dreamland Shut Down [Daily News]
Photo by Amusing the Zillion
09/04/2009 9:30 AM
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The Hole: Cowboys and Bodies in Brooklyn/Queens
The Hole, a section of Lindenwood along the Brooklyn-Queens border, could be an extremely unflattering name, except that the area truly is a hole: the land is 30 feet below grade, meaning the area is marshy in places and homes are built only a few feet above the water table, so they must use cesspools instead of the municipal sewer system. Nathan Kensinger compiled a photo essay of this neighborhood, which is famous for bodies and for horses: bodies because it was an old mob dumping ground, and horses because they used to roam the fields of The Hole. Some horses still reside there, as does The Federation of Black Cowboys. Kensinger’s essay captures a piece of New York that is both ancient and timeless, and it reminds us how diverse the land is within the boundaries of New York City. It’s a city with an island of pick-up trucks and lobster shacks, massive skyscrapers and financial juggernauts, beaches, forests—and The Hole, a neighborhood that harks back to the Wild West.
The Hole [Nathan Kensinger]
Meet ‘The Hole,’ [Curbed]
An Urban Frontier [NY Times]
08/26/2009 9:30 AM
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Sex and the Other City
The first rule of television seems to be: if something works once, do it again. Sarah Jessica Parker’s production company has reportedly optioned the novel Prospect Park West to turn into a TV show. The book, by former sex columnist Amy Sohn, who also wrote the companion book for HBO’s Sex and the City, chronicles the lives, urges, and dissatisfactions of four Park Slope mothers. Here’s how The Post summed it up this morning: “The book creates a scathing portrait of Park Slope’s mommy brigade — of which Sohn is a breast-feeding member — as a parade of unsatisfied thirty- and forty-something moms sizing up their plights relative to all the other stroller-pushers at the playground. Few are having sex — at least not with their spouses.” It’s definitely the Sex and the City formula, but who knows if it will take off? Gawker asks the more important question: will it ruin Park Slope? There is already a festoon of strollers; will Berkeley Place now be clogged with red double-decker buses?
Sarah Jessica Parker’s Sex & the Stroller Set Show [Gawker]
Treading on a Slippery Slope [NY Post]
Is Prospect Park West the New SATC? [BuzzSugar]
08/13/2009 9:00 AM
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Waterpod Docks in Brooklyn
Remember when artists lived on barges, growing their own food, collecting their own rainwater, getting power from the sun, free to float wherever a tugboat would take them? Oh, the good old days. Now it seems there is only one such barge left in existence: the Waterpod, currently docked in the East River south of the Brooklyn Bridge. Spawned by artist Mary Mattingly, Waterpod is an experiment in art, sustainable living, and just plain adventure. A rotating crew of four artists lives full-time on the barge, where they raise chickens; grow foods like eggplant, tomatoes, and peppers; store rainwater and recycle grey water; compost waste, including the use of composting toilets; collect solar energy; host seminars and lectures; and create art. Ultimately, we cannot convey the fantastic experience of walking aboard Waterpod and talking to its crew members, so go check it out: it will be docked at Pier 5 near the construction site at Joralemon Street until August 17. Check their schedule for open hours. GMAP
The Waterpod Project
Waterpod Comes To Park’s Pier 5 [Brooklyn Eagle]
Rough Ride for Waterpod Artists [NY Daily News]
08/10/2009 10:00 AM
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Spike and Jay-Z Do Dumbo
For much of the day Spike Lee and Jay-Z have taken over Main Street in Dumbo. We tweeted this pic at lunchtime and the Dumbo BID just posted a bunch of shots, including the one above, on Facebook. Anyone know what the commercial is for?
08/04/2009 1:59 PM
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Bushwick Goes National
Like Williamsburg before it, the Bushwick brand is spreading beyond New York City’s borders. This weekend, The Philadelphia Inquirer brought news of the gritty but increasingly arty nabe to its readers in the City of Brotherly Love. “Over the last few years, the two-square-mile Brooklyn neighborhood has been attracting visionaries outpriced by neighboring Williamsburg or disillusioned by Chelsea’s artiste scene,” writes the paper. “Studios, galleries and spaces that defy categorization are appearing in former bodegas, 99-cent stores, and other unglamorous structures.” The ‘Wick manages to maintain its street cred with a killer quotation from Laura Braslow of non-profit Arts in Bushwick: “The Bushwick art scene is not about sipping wine and looking at white walls,” she said. A few of the recommended galleries include English Kills, Ad Hoc and Factory Fresh.
Art Grows in Bushwick [Philadelphia Inquirer]
02/02/2009 10:45 AM
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Photoblogging for Beginners: The Exhibit
A couple of weeks ago, ubiquitous Brooklyn photobloggers Tracy Collins and Adrian Kinloch, aka Brit in Brooklyn, lead a photography class at the non-profit Starting Artists (that’s not a typo: starting, not starving). The group helps under-served teens get into the arts. So behold a few results of the workshop. More photos are currently on view at their storefront at 211 Smith Street until January 15th. They’re also having a Holiday Silent Auction to benefit their free afterschool arts programs, Thursday, December 11th from 6:30 to 8:30pm.
12/09/2008 11:03 AM
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Red Hook Doesn’t Hook Real World Cast
Big, big news folks: not all of the cast of MTV’s Real World Red Hook took a liking to the neighborhood. While some of them were charmed by its post-industrial (well, and there’s plenty of industry still cranking away there) feel, others “didn’t seem to really soak up the local atmosphere during filming for the series, which debuts next month,” writes the NY Daily News. Their complaints: too far away for those who work in Manhattan (one cast member feared taking the subway after 8PM); not safe enough; and the bars are too small to accommodate the cast’s large entourage. What did they like about it? IKEA. Even a cast member who didn’t appreciate living in the borough clearly realized its caché; she named her dog Brooklyn. Meanwhile, if you’d like to get an up-close-and-personal look at the cast members and their Red Hook digs, Gothamist got an exclusive visit and posted a big slide show yesterday to prove it.
‘Real World’ Cast Not All Hooked by Nabe [NY Daily News]
Meet the Real World Brooklynites [Gothamist]
Photo by Dominic Ciccodicola for Gothamist.
12/05/2008 9:30 AM
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Brooklyn Is the New Hollywood
Apparently the hottest words on producers lips are “on location in Brooklyn,” reports the NY Daily News. What makes us so special? A little bit of everything: cobblestone streets, brownstones, Orthodox Jews, Russians, Chinese and West Indians. Besides the Brooklyn Bridge, folks have filmed Brooklyn College as Yale and Pratt as Harvard.
Photo by isaiahlt.
11/17/2008 10:15 AM
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Ribbon Cutting at Brooklyn Children’s Museum
[Gallery not found]
With a general public opening planned for this weekend, city officials and local schoolchildren got the ball rolling this morning at the new Brooklyn Children’s Museum. We provided a look inside the $49 million green building back in June when it still under construction, but it sure is fun to see real kids getting to use it!
Closing Bell: Children Museum’s Readies for Launch [Brownstoner]
A Look Inside the New Brooklyn Children’s Museum [Brownstoner]
Photos by Diane Bondareff
09/17/2008 2:03 PM
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adam_dahill
May 21, 2012 | 02:16 PM