Three South Brooklyn Halloween Parades.

This weekend will mark the start of Halloween celebrations!  As you already know, unless you're new to this area, we really do it up for Halloween in our hood.  There are so many activities for kids starting this Saturday.  And three parades! You could probably hit them all if you wanted.  Carroll Park will have one on Saturday at 11:30am, Mother Cabrini Park's (above and below) will be on Sunday the 27th starting at 10am and the annual Halloween Parade that's actually on Halloween is at Cobble Hill Park and starts promptly at 4pm.

SB Children's Garden Pics.

The South Brooklyn Children's Garden, on the corner of Sackett and Columbia Streets, has come a long way.  They had a bake sale last weekend and the turn out was really great!  We took a pic of their spread of baked goods as well as hot foods at the table in the background and took this opportunity to take some more pictures of the garden's recent improvements as well.  They've decorated for fall, putting out bails of hay to sit on.  The picture at the very bottom shows the gardening tool area with freshly decorated pumpkins drying. 

Beer Garden!

What does this neighborhood need?  Really good Chinese food? Yes. A delicious Indian restaurant? Sure.  Well, while we're waiting for those two wishes to come true how about a beer garden? Yes, please!  This beer garden and restaurant (pictured above in the early stages) is coming to Summit and Columbia Street.  We'll share more info as it comes our way.

Our New Neighbors.

Right next door to our Columbia Street office, at 221 Columbia, a new space is now open to the public and has been for a little over a week now.  As you can see from the outside "Juice, Yoga, Art", this is a multifunctional space.  The restaurant that used to inhabit the space, Fultummy's, has been gone for a while, it's nice to see the spot up and running again.

La Bottega on Columbia.

We are so sad to see Caselnova go.  They were our neighbors at 215 Columbia and the food was delicious.  The new sign up says a place called La Bottega will be opening in this spot.  This Italian Restaurant, which serves mainly paninis, has several locations throughout New York.  Good news for those of you who are gluten free, they have entire menu dedicated to you. 

Columbia Waterfront Fall Fest Pics!

The kids were happy, which means our table at the Columbia Street Fall Festival last week was a success! Columbia waterfront resident, Sharon, had balloon animals, face painting and glitter tattoos.  We had a great time.  Thanks to Sharon and everyone who came out!  Enjoy the pics.

New Liquor Store on Columbia.

With the Clockworks Puppet Theater out of the space for a while now, 196 Columbia has opened up with a new tenant.  It's a wine and liquor store.  It's been having it's grand opening for the last week or so.  We were definitely sad to see something like the puppet theater (such a unique and creative place) go but hopefully these new tenants will do well here!

PortSide NY September Happenings.

PortSide will be around for a couple of events happening in the neighborhood this month.  One being tomorrow at Pig Island at IKEA Red Hook.  The other September event , Columbia waterfront Fall Festival, will happen on the 14th between noon and 6pm.  For both fests they will have line-throwing for kids and adults.  Here's a video you can watch of a previous event where they offered line-throwing. 6pm. 

Best Grilled Sandwich in Brooklyn!

We've all been to BBQ contests and there are plenty of contests for baked goods of all sorts, but have you ever been to a "Best Grilled Sandwich" contest?  You may have since this years will be the third annual but if you haven't you can this Saturday 3pm at The Amazing Garden (Carroll and Columbia).  It's $15 to get in and all revenue will go to beautify the garden.  Competitors this year are Lauren Rauh of Iris Cafe, Josh Kaplan of Dassara, and Morgan Jarrett of Nightingale 9.  Hosting the event is Dan Pashman.  Come out and you be the judge!

Burgers in the Hood.

Burger joints have been popping up in the neighborhood in recent years like crazy. Some have stuck around and others have come and gone (farewell five guys).  Here's a list of our favorite neighborhood burgers. 

The Obvious Choice-
Prime Meats Bacon Cheeseburger.  Adding the cheese and bacon to this already pricy burger is well worth it.  Hands down the ultimate in meaty deliciousness.

For the kids-
Mooburger is both tasty and has a great atmosphere for families.  They use organic and natural ingredients as well.

The Not-so-Obvious Choice-
Karloff, which specializes in Eastern European fare has a surprisingly amazing burger.  It's really flavorful and has that great combo of charred crispiness on the outside and juicy on the inside.

The Newbie-
Vekslers has only been around for a few weeks now and their burger has made our list because not only is it a decent burger in and of itself but the homemade cheez whiz sauce they put on top knocks it into the excellent category.

What's your favorite? Feel free to add your own fave if we haven't already!

A Night at Vekslers.

This bar and restaurant at 521 Hicks just opened up and we decided to give it a try.  The verdict? Yum!  It was a very quiet opening so we weren't surprised that there was no line at the door or people crowding the bar during our visit but we think the more people try it the busier they will get.  We ordered the two entrees pictured.  The burger with house made organic cheez whiz and fries and the Atlantic squid with fingerling potatoes.  Both were delicious.  That cheez whiz is awesome and really adds something to the burger, (maybe nostalgia?).  The squid was tender and packed with so many layers of flavor (warning: not for the spice wuss).  That stuff on top isn't lettuce it's fried onions!  So good.  Definitely give this place a try!

There's a Snake in the Library!

Here's a great free event for children that you should put on your calendar!  It's called "Erik's Reptile Edventures", (not sure if the misspelling of that last word is supposed to mean something or is simply a typo?)  At 1:30pm on August 20th, which falls on a Tuesday, the Carroll Gardens Library will be full of reptiles and amphibians.  Children will learn about these creatures and be able to handle them also.  Some of the animals on the list are Snakes, Lizards, Turtles, Frogs and Salamanders.  Pretty cool!

Kings Coffee Anniversary Party.

We received this flyer from Kings Coffee and thought we'd share it.  The 4th of August will be their one year anniversary serving in their space, 37 Carroll Street.  To mark the occasion they'll be giving out complimentary refreshments with coffee purchases between 9:30am and 6:30pm.  Not sure if you can read the flyer above but the bottom says "Thank you for all your support thus far and we look forward to bonding with you over brews and extractions". Sweet.

More than Burgers at New Restaurant Vekslers.

We've blogged about the new "burger shop" coming to 521 Hicks, which we found out about through Grub Street.  This place is way more than just burgers.  In fact, they only have one burger, "the quarter pounder with cheese", on their small but diverse menu.  We've made the photo below extra large so you can see the delicious menu descriptions.  Because it says opening menu for the week we're sure it will be subject to change.  Definitely excited to try this place.  It's affordable too!

New Mural Coming to BQE Underpass.

Where the BQE meets Atlantic Avenue we saw this sign above that states "Mural Coming Soon".  This underpass can definitely use some beauty.  Since Pier 6 opened up, this western most section of Atlantic Ave has gotten a lot more foot traffic and it's a great spot for artwork.  The note reads on "see www.groundswellmural.org for details. We checked this organization out and learned this: Groundswell "brings together artists, youth, and community organizations to use art as a tool for social change. Our projects beautify neighborhoods, engage youth in societal and personal transformation, and give expression to ideas and perspectives that are underrepresented in the public dialogue." Can't wait to see what they come up with.

PortSide NY Dinner, Tickets on Sale Now!

We blogged about the PortSide NY fundraiser dinner last week and we now have more news.  Tickets are now available for this July 30th event.  If you'd like to buy tickets click here! This event will begin at 6:30 at Fort Defiance, 365 Van Brunt Street. More info is below!

Tues 7/30/13 at Fort Defiance
365 Van Brunt Street

Red Hook, Brooklyn NY 11231 

6:30pm cocktails 

7:00pm dinner

Come join us as we rally the troops over dinner at the noted Red Hook establishment Fort Defiance, named for a waterfront fort which existed down the street during the Revolutionary War.  You will get a PortSide insider update, a cappella singing and fine dining.

  

To buy your tickets, donate if you cant make it, or donate on top of your ticket price, click here!     

From Manhattan, catch IKEA ferries from Pier 11, Wall Street:

• 5:20pm gets you here for cocktails
• 6:00pm gets you here for dinner
• 6:40pm gets you here fashionably 10 min late for dinner

We would like to thank our sponsors!

 

Fort Defiance and St John Frizell

Fish donated by Pagano Seafood 

Shuttle bus from IKEA to Fort Defiance donated by IKEA

Songs of the Sea performed a cappella by Ken Schatz, Frank Woerner, and Heather Wood

Graphic Design by Diane Painter Velletri of Design Diseno NewYork  

Whiskey Soda Lounge Sign Up.

We read back in December that Andy Ricker, of Pok Pok, was planning on opening up a bar down the street from his Brooklyn restaurant and now we have tangible evidence.  The sign is up for Whiskey Soda Lounge on Columbia and Kane!  Talk about cornering the market.  The droves that wait nightly for entry to Pok Pok can now go drink and snack at this bar while they wait.  Here's what they say about the Portland sister bar. "Whiskey Soda Lounge is a bar/lounge serving Aahaan Kap Klaem, the drinking food of Thailand." Bring it!

Cesar's Grand Opening!

The grand opening for Cesar's Garden Restaurant at 192 Columbia Street is this week.  We took the pic above last week and, although it looked totally set up, they weren't quite open yet.  They did have a sign saying they'd be opening July 1st.  Also noteworthy, they had a seamless sticker out front so we expect you'll be able to order online delivery from this place pretty soon.  Definitely a good way to try a new place out.

Brooklyn Herborium on Columbia.

We saw this signage in the window of 275 Columbia Street.  It's an herb and skincare shop started by two Brooklyn moms, Molly and Emma.  Right now they have a really nice website, where they sell their products.  This is the first storefront for this online company.  About the products? They say on their website that they "want to make the world a better place for our children, a cleaner safer place, one where we don’t have to constantly stress about products and chemicals that we expose them (and ourselves) to". 

New(ish) Coffee in Columbia Waterfront.

Isn't it strange how sometimes in Brooklyn you can live or work right around the block from a storefront and not come across it until it's been open for months?  Have you visited or seen Kings Coffee on Carroll Street between Columbia and Van Brunt? It's a very residential street so it's kind of a hidden gem but they've been open for almost a year now!  We got the scoop from the gentleman (pictured below) about where this place came from.  They apparently learned their craft from an old- school brew master (not sure if that's an actual term or if we just made that up, probably the latter) in Bensonhurst that wanted to close shop but pass along his trade secrets first.  It's a really cute simple spot with good coffee.  Check it out if you're around that area! Their hours are Mon-Fri 8am-8pm  and 9am-7pm on Sat and Sunday.