Le Pain Quotidien opening soon.

Brooklyn Heights, 121 Montague between Hicks and Henry Streets to be exact, will soon be getting their very own Le Pain Quotidien. It's a good sized spot formerly taken by Jennifer Convertibles. This chain, which means "The Daily Bread", sells pastries, sandwiches, and breads mainly. It's supposed to open this month, but we always insist on seeing before we believe when it comes to opening dates. We are sad to see Jennifer Convertibles go. There aren't many stores that cater to the cozy New York apartment lay outs for such affordable prices. But we believe they still have locations at 229 Livingston and one in Park Slope at 418 5th Avenue, which are both pretty close by.

PS 58 Save the Date!

Saturday March, 24th will be the PS 58, AKA The Carroll School, PTA Spring Celebration and Auction. You can help out your neighborhood elementary school by coming out to The Invisible Dog Art Center from 6:30-10pm and participating in this silent auction. If you need more incentive then helping out adorable elementary school kids (geez, you need more incentive than that??) there will also be a cocktail reception. We aren't quite sure what to expect at this auction but we'll give you details as we hear them. If anyone out there has any more to share about this event please comment and let us all know!

An Informed Vote.

Later this month voting will begin to decide how we're going to spend 1 million dollars for projects for the area. Community leaders and members have already been hard at work sorting through the many many ideas for what to do with this budget and they've come up with project to put on the ballot at the end of this month. If you aren't already savvy to these plans you can attend a meeting to find out more. More info about this meeting below.

Serving the neighborhoods of Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Park Slope,
Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, and Kensington

The ballot will include everything from new technology for district schools to improvements to local parks. There are voting locations all across the district and early voting at my office, so there should be a location that is accessible to you. And join us for the Participatory Budgeting Expo on Wednesday, March 14^th, from 6:30 - 8:30 PM at the Park Slope Armory, to learn more about the projects that will be on the ballot (visit BradLander.com/PB for more information).

Get Ready to Scrabble.

We've seen the usual pub trivia nights, open mic nights, and live music at our bars in the neighborhood but here's something new. PRB (People's Republic of Brooklyn), a bar and restaurant at 247 Smith Street, is holding weekly Scrabble tournaments. Every Tuesday you can drop some letters while downing some brews and snacks. We can't find anything about a start time. Their website still has Tuesdays listed as Karaoke nights, so this scrabble thing must be a new venture. They do request you sign up though so you can ask for a go time then. If you want a spot email tuesdaynightscrabble@gmail.com. Not sure if it's something you can just show up for so definitely email if you're sure you want to play and not just watch.

Sweets on the Move.

We covered some pretty sweet topics this week so far, doughnuts and ice cream. What's missing? Cake, of course. Well, we have some news on that front also. Kakes, a wedding and concept cake bakery located at 187 Sackett is moving and the space is up for rent. No news yet as to where they are moving but the sign out front says to tune into their facebook page for updates. There is where you can also see some of their beautiful creations. We loved walking by their storefront and seeing the wedding cake display along with some very fun alternatives. As you can see in the picture above, right now they have a hamburger as well as giant doughnut and coffee cup to name a couple. We will miss these sweet sculptures!

$1 oysters in Carroll Gardens!

According to grubstreet new york, one of our very favorite blogs, The Bourgeois Pig has just started a new Sunday promotion. $1 oysters from 3pm until close! Now, you can go to this recently opened restaurant, located at 387 Court Street, on Sundays and feel very bourgeois while sucking down oysters without paying bourgeois prices. No word on how they are doing yet. We haven't been by their during peak hours yet, but this new oyster offering is sure to pack the house on Sundays at least. Also, last week they had $2 off martinis and tapped a special leap day Tallgrass keg. Check out their facebook for more specials.

The great doughnut debate.

(photo above taken from villagevoice.com)

Dough Doughnuts, a relatively newish bakery located at 305 Franklin Avenue in Bed Stuy, is making it's rounds in our hood. Stinky Bklyn started carrying these decadent baked goods a little while back and this past weekend Farmacy was also selling Dough Doughnuts instead of their usual Peter Pans. Now, there is no question that these doughnuts are delicious. They are the new "it" doughnut one could say with a large selection of very unique flavors such as Cafe au Lait, Dulce de leche, and Hibiscus. Still some were disappointed when they walked into Farmacy on Saturday craving a Peter Pan doughnut and found the new Dough variety instead. Farmacy said it's something they are "trying out" so we'll see if the Peter Pan's come back. Here's the debate. Cake or yeast? What are your thoughts?

Spring is coming! Bring on the Ice Cream!

Okay, so we have good news and we have bad news and we have some more good news after that. The good news is spring seems to be well on it's way. Highs are set to be in the 60's later this week and, although we don't want to jinx anything, it seems we have evaded a harsh winter and can start to look forward to springtime! Now here's a bit of bad news. We heard that Blue Marble was giving away free ice cream last weekend but we heard a day too late. (Booo.) On Saturday they gave away 50 mini marbles and soft serves. Now back to some good news. This giveaway was to celebrate their reopening for the season!!! So, you can now head over to Blue Marble, at 196 Court Street, and get a high quality delicious scoop or two.

Party at Camp.

Camp, a bar at 179 Smith Street, is one of our favorites. It has a woodsy cabin theme with lots of dark wood, brick and a fireplace. That along with the fact that you can make your own smores, play big buck hunter, and have a board game night with your friends, makes for a warm and cozy atmosphere and is aptly named. Well, this Saturday, March 3rd, they're having a party. They normally have a great selection of music but this weekend they're doing something special. They're promising British rock, freakbeat, northern soul, and rare groove at this party called Move on Up. No word on what time this all starts but we're assuming it'll go on throughout the night. Go get you fill of brit rock while roasting a marshmallow or two!

Dr. Seuss Event!

Here's another great event going on at the Carroll Gardens branch library. This time it's for kids. To celebrate Dr. Seuss's 108th birthday, this Friday March 2nd, the library at 396 Clinton Street will hold a read-aloud of all our favorites. Bring your kids to the auditorium in the library basement from 4-5pm for this special story time. They're promising a surprise during the event but hearing Dr. Seuss read aloud should be reason enough to come out and join in on the fun!