Brooklyn Collective

Brooklyn Collective has re-opened in a bigger and better space that we here at Realty Collective rented to them. After the closing of General Nightmare, the folks at Brooklyn Collective needed a space they could call their own and we stepped up to the plate to help them find their new home.

Brooklyn Collective is more than just a shop, it's an artisan gallery that houses designers whose work ranges the gamut and is unique in that all the members share the rent and keep 100% percent of their profits. They also host bi-monthly PR parties for artists to showcase their work and membership also includes a permanent page on the Brooklyn Collective Web Site.

Their new space is three times the size of their old digs which is great for their mixers, art shows and what's more in the new space they will be having a working studio in the back for artists and offering art classes!

Below are some photos we took of the new interior. Be sure to check it out! The new space is located at :
212 Columbia Street (between Sackett and DeGraw)
Hours are:
wed & thurs 12-6
fri-sun 12-8

Dubuque- 548 Court St

Hot off the press from Realty Collective! A new restaurant is under way at 548 Court St. The space is in its final touches and will be named Dubuque. We found this information on the space over by 9th St. written by our friends over at Brownstoner back in May:

"Here's an early word on what's to fill the space at 548 Court: a man working there said he plans on opening a burger place, with other open face sandwiches with some fancy touches like truffles. They were just approved for a building permit and construction looked to be in very early stages, but hopefully this place will measure up to the other popular restaurants on that lower stretch of Court." GMAP

Anything with truffles makes me salivate. We are looking forward to it! YUM!

Cucina 215

Columbia Street favorite Cucina 215, a hidden neighborhood gem, family-owned and famous for its large portions and decor (the walls were lined with photos of family members, the Sopranos cast, and a massive mural of Italy) was recently closed (as the above photo suggests). But have no fear carb-lovers, the business was recently sold and its new owner stopped in to our office the other day to say hello. He has informed us that he is giving the space a make-over and is adding a brick oven to the kitchen for pizzas and paninis! No exact date has been released as to when it will re-open, name change, etc. But we are very excited that the "napoletana" tradition will continue on this side of the BQE. We will keep you updated as more details become available!

The "old" Eton space is now. . . .a Dry Cleaners!

Just what the neighborhood needs! Yet ANOTHER dry cleaner!!!

Eton, Carroll Gardens' immensely popular dumpling and shave ice shack, moved to 359 Sackett St. (btwn Smith and Hoyt) a few months ago and it looks like a dry cleaners has opened in its original location 205 Sackett St. (near Henry).

How do all of these dry cleaners stay in business? I guess it just goes to show that New Yorkers:
A) Appreciate a finely pressed and starched shirt
B) No one does their own laundry!

Indoor Seating at Red Hook Lobster Pound

Hallelujah! Finally Red Hook Lobster Pound has indoor seating! If you look really close inside the windows of this photograph you will notice a happy family eating their yummy Lobster rolls on an indoor picnic table. This is great news for fall. But until the cold season sets in, there are multiple Brooklyn locations where you can get your lobster fix:

Lobster at the Movies:
Thursdays 5:30-9:30pm @Brooklyn Bridge Park (Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory)
Wednesdays 6-10pm @ McCarren Park

Brooklyn Flea in Ft. Greene, Saturdays 10:30-5pm

Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, weather permitting: Thursdays 5:30-9:30pm, Fri, Sat. Sun 1pm to 8:00pm (7:00 on Sun).

And they are open at the Pound in Red Hook Wed-Sun 12-7pm.

If you decide to visit their store, you have your choice of the traditional Maine-style cold lobster salad roll with a touch of homemade mayo (or not), a bit of celery and spices or Connecticut-style, served warm with just lobster and butter. Both sandwiches are served on yummy buttery toasted top-split buns straight from Biddeford, Maine.

There's only a few weeks of summer left! Go get yourself some "lob-stah"!

Calling all gamers! Will Wright's new TV series filming on Atlantic this week!

Spotted on Atlantic and Henry Street was this NO PARKING sign. It looks like a project entitled The Creation Project will be shooting in the hood Monday through Thursday of this week. Apparently it is a new television series that will air on Current TV created by videogame master, Will Wright (SimCity).

According to IGN:

Set up at Current, The Creation Project teams Wright with producer Albie Hecht, former president of Spike TV and Nickelodeon. In essence, The Creation Project is a TV series about the creation of a TV series.

What we've seen suggests users will submit story ideas online and via mobile devices. This will lead to the users than discussing the submissions and voting for their favorite. Finally, the winning storyline is actually produced and will air as two half hour episodes.

The Co-Op on Atlantic

The Co-Op on Atlantic joined the neighborhood's coffee shop collection about three months ago. Since I moved a few blocks away in February, I hadn't noticed the new space until recently. The location, a gorgeous antique space at 139 Atlantic Avenue (btwn. Henry and Clinton) had been vacant for a long while so I when I saw the sandwich board out front I immediately went inside to check it out.

The Co-Op is unique, it's not just a coffee shop, the space serves as a facility that is being developed as a resource for all kinds of vendors. Everything in the space is for sale (except the espresso machine) and includes vintage furniture (which also doubles as cafe furniture), armoires filled with clothes, and shelves stocked with flower teas and locally produced groceries like McClure’s Pickles and Early Bird granola.

The coffee comes to us from Crop to Cup, quality family farmed coffee (Uganda-grown, Brooklyn-roasted beans) which until now, had only been sold at the Brooklyn Flea. It's a pretty amazing organization who maintains that "one pound of Crop to Cup coffee provides a 20% increase in farmer wages and a 55% increase in overall community benefit." If you check out their website you can learn more about this progressive organization.

The scrumptious baked goods are all baked in-house from scratch and are branded "Bread Meats Bread." Some yummy selections include gruyere croissants and strawberry-rhubarb muffins. They also make savory sandwiches for lunchtime and offer combos like the "Sunrise Combo" for $4, a bagel with cream cheese and a medium coffee, and for the summer months the "Park Combo" for $10, an organic sandwich and iced coffee. And for dessert you can also pick up a mini cupcake from the famous Kumquat Cupcakery.

It will also be a delivery spot for people who sign up for Basis’ Good Food To You drop-off program, a weekly service that delivers locally sourced fruit, produce, meat, and dairy. Their website states that they deliver "100% traceable food directly from family farms to your home or office at prices that are often lower than commodity fare at the supermarket."

There's also talk about community dinners and classes to be held in the space as well. As it is only a few months old, I look forward to the future of the Co-Op. I think we have a lot to look forward to. Pretty cool stuff. I'm sold.

Portside Events! Only 11 days left!

Events thru 8/23 - we leave Pier 11 on 8/24

TankerTunes:
Fri 8/13, 8:45 PM  "Smitty & Co" featuring Smitty playing steel guitar, Tim Givens on upright bass and Pat Daugherty on various keyboards. Wicked steel guitar...the whining side of Mississippi delta blues... traces of bluegrass, country, Tejano and Hawaiian... truly hot and really cool. $10 Cash bar w/beer+wine. http://tankertunesmittyandco.eventbrite.com
Wed 8/18 8:30pm - Jalopy Theatre brings their weekly Roots & Ruckus show to the deck of the Mary Whalen with Two Man Gentlemen Band AND Stephanie Nilles and Dayna Kurtz and Feral Foster. $10.  Cash bar with beer and wine.  Buy tickets here or at the doorTall Ships:

Thurs 8/19 - Mon 8/23
We make history by hosting the tall ship Gazela, the oldest wooden square-rigger in the USA still sailing, which has tried to come to NYC for years. Daytime tours at the dock: Thurs, Fri, Sun, Mon (no Sat) $5 donation requested. In the evening, 2 shows of pirate cabaret burlesque aboard (t'aint just about sailing pirates, the pirates of Wall Street make the story line) on the deck of the Gazela with soaring masts overhead. $25 for 8 or 10pm show.  Tickets here.
You can make history too and be named the sponsor of the Gazela visit by bidding on the eBay sponsor auction. See http://bit.ly/cCFJhl. No corporate sponsors have been found for Gazela's visit, so please help PortSide cover the costs of rental generator and dock fees for the Gazela by bidding now!
TankerTalks:
Sun 8/15 - 11am local resident Seth Goodwin with captivating show n tell about knots, rope and the history of their uses. FREE reserve here
Tue 8/17 - 8:30- 8:45pm Pratt Inst Chief Engineer Conrad Milster on the romance, commerce and technology of steamships of the Hudson, a slide show & talk.  FREE, reserve here

WaterStories:
Sat 8/22 11am Walking tour, Norwegian American history of Red Hook.  FREE reserve hereTankerTime: (as featured on Grub Street)

Sun 8/15 and 8/22 - 5-9pm TankerTime - make the ship deck your own. Bring dinner, drinks, the kids, your dog and enjoy sunset. FREE.  Also on Wed morning 7-11am.

Event info and fotos at www.portsidenewyork.org/PortSideNewYorkSummer2010programs.htm

See what we've been doing More photos and videos coming soon Event photos video TankerTunes Lewis+Clark video BlueBQ FunRaiser video TankerTours in Sunset Park article Memorial service for maritime journalist Don Sutherland

Please donate Please support us by donating via PayPal here, bidding on the Gazela sponsorship auction here or sending a check to P.O. Box 195, Red Red Hook Station, Brooklyn, NY  11231

Volunteers needed!!! Volunteers needed during events, especially Gazela visit, and to help us pack up and leave on Tues 8/24. Please email Diane

5 Burro

Yes, it's true! Columbia Street has a third Mexican restaurant to add to it's resume, 5 Burro is open in the old Pit Stop locale, just a few blocks from the trendy food-truck-turned-restaurant Calexico and the sophisticated panoramic view of the Manhattan skyline favorite, Alma. 5 Burro has been a Forest Hills institution for twenty years and now its owners, Marla and Jorge Cornejo, have opened a sister restaurant in Brooklyn. The space boasts a large outdoor seating area in the backyard (rumor has it they will cover it and heat it for the winter months) and the large menu includes aperitivos, sopas, ensaladas, quesadillas, nachos, fajitas, entradas, and especialidades like the Chuleta en Salsa Verde for $18: 2 Grilled Pork Chops Topped with Spicy Green Sauce with Mexican Rice and Vegetables, and the Camarónes Veracruz for $18: 8 Jumbo Shrimp Sautéed with Tomatoes, Onions, Mixed Peppers, Olives and Capers.

I went with some Realty Collective friends last week and I have to say I was less than impressed. The quesadillas were bland and un-inventive, the Peños Rellenos were greasy and just tasted "fried," the salsa was mediocre and the entrees were extremely overpriced. My assessment? Better food at Calexico, better atmosphere at Alma, better prices at both of the neighborhood's more senior establishments. What I will go back for? The bar special. 2 for 1 drinks every day and night if you sit at the bar. And the bartenders are pretty entertaining, not to metion easy on the eyes. The bottom line: go to get your drink on, eat if you're drunk or if you have a groupon. What do the rest of our readers think? Have you tried 5 Burro yet? Let's get the conversation started, please comment away!

Broken English

And yet another new restaurant hits Cobble Hill, Broken English on Bergen St. On first glance one may assume that this spot is a British Pub complete with ales on tap and fish and chips. Nothing could be further from the truth. Broken English is an Italian eatery who's focus is on simple Roman-esque dishes. Co-owners Roy Marino (formerly of Village hotspot Morandi) and Antonio Pergoli hail from Salerno and Rome respectively and the restaurant's name is an inside joke, paying homage to their friendly banter in "broken English." The real question remains, does our hood need another Italian restaurant? The yelp reviews are mixed filled with clashing opinions ranging the full spectrum, most with the conclusion that this place will "grow in to itself". Have any of our Realty Collective family members been yet? Please comment away!

Strong Place

270 Court Street, once home to the adorable trinket shop Shakespeare’s Sister, re-opened a few weeks ago and is now home to Strong Place. Strong Place is brought to us by the chef and owner of Bocca Lupo on Henry (one of my fav Italian tapas places in the hood) and healthy juice-bar Nectar on Court Street. The new restaurant is an American Bistro or "gastropub" (that's what the cool kids seem to be calling it these days) complete with a raw bar, charcuterie and lots of "medium-sized" plates all priced under $20. A few of the mouth-watering menu options: Crispy Duck Leg Confit, Grilled Lamb Burger with Feta, and Fried Ipswich Oysters. . . . . yum! They also have a great wine selection with all bottles priced under $40 and for all you beer lovers, there are 24 selections on tap starting at $5. If you'd like to read a review from a nabe foodie (Eat It: The Brooklyn Food Blog), click HERE.

Tuesday Night Recession Specials: For Those of You Who Are Thirsty. . . .

If an outdoor movie isn't your thing, we here at Realty Collective have dug up a few other Tuesday night "recession specials" to get you out of your apartment and out enjoying the neighborhood. Here are a few ideas:


1. 1/2 price Bottles of Wine @ Apt 138:

Head on down to Smith St. for a delicious dinner and a half-price bottle of wine (or two). Apt 138 has an eclectic menu which is sure to please even the pickiest of eaters ranging from sliders to pressed sandwiches, seared scallops and home-made meatloaf. After your belly is satisfied, head on down to the Bklyn Group's other Smith St. property Camp, for Tuesday Night Karaoke. While you're there be sure to enjoy their signature make-your-own S'mores for dessert (complete with an open flame for melting), play a few board games, and try your best at Big Buck Hunter, awww yeah!

2. Pint Night at Brazen Head

Stop on in this Atlantic Ave. fave for a pint of your favorite brew. All Drafts (incl. cask ales) are only $3.75 all day/night!

3. $5 PBR and Jim Beam Shot at Canal Bar

Canal Bar is located on the 3rd avenue stretch of new-ish bars and restaurants in the ever-gentrifying Gowanus area of Brooklyn, steps away from the infamous canal. And I mean really, who doesn't want a shot of Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey to wash down their can of PBR on a Tuesday? Sounds like an amazing recession special to me!

Tuesday Nights: Valentino Pier Summer Movies

The Red Hook Summer Movie Fest may have started on July 13th, but have no fear you've got 6 more Tuesday screenings left to enjoy before summer is officially over (series runs until September 14th). Tonight's film selection is The Secret of Roan Inish, written and directed by John Sayles. It was released in 1994 and is based on the novel The Secret of Ron Mor Skerry, by Rosalie K. Fry. The film has been praised for "its breathtaking cinematography, filmed by Haskell Wexler." Amazing cinematography coupled with breathtaking views of Lady Liberty all while curled up on a blanket with your loved ones. What could be better on a Tuesday night? So go ahead, pack a picnic but be sure to save room for the $1 gourmet popcorn from Home/Made. Set up and seating begins at 8pm and the movie usually screens around 8:30pm. And the best part? (other than it being FREE) Well-behaved pets are welcome to join you on-leash. For directions, more info and a complete schedule of films, visit the official website HERE.