Sahara? Pshaw! Taci's Beyti is the best Turkish food I've had outside of Istanbul. I guess Coney Island Avenue is too bleak for Zagat's.

Posted by: ditmasdancer at October 7, 2008 10:22 AM in response to The Best Food Is In Brooklyn

11:54, yes, thank you. Very well said. Jews and Muslims are not at all historical enemies. See the history of the Ottoman Empire for more. And here in NY, the divisions often break down as well. Which is why it's so great to live here.

As to the comment about "Arabs and Israelis" living in Kensington (and nearby Ditmas), a little geographical and cultural knowledge would go a long way here. The Muslims in this area are predominantly South Asian, meaning, from Pakistan and Bangladesh. They are not Arabs. Arabs come from the 22 Arabic-speaking nations on the planet. They are linguistically, culturally, and musically distinct from Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, and other countries with Muslim populations (and even from one another). It always surprises me that people can't tell the difference. Also, though some of the Jews here are Israeli, many are not - they're just garden-variety New York Orthodox Jews. And some are from Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan, too, which is neat. The mix here is a lot richer than meets the eye.

All that said, yes, it's very cool that Jews and Muslims (and a lot of other people) manage to all live here without slaughtering one another. That also includes Albanians and Yugoslavians, old-guard Flatbush residents and newly imported artists, and other traditional adversaries.

Posted by: ditmasdancer at October 22, 2007 1:27 PM in response to Kensington: The T-Shirt