Shen Beauty

This new cosmetics store in Cobble Hill has an array of both affordable and high end beauty products. Owned by Jessica Richards and Jules Stringer, the boutique has been open since October 2nd. It has a very stylish and feminine atmosphere, yet not overtly. Okay maybe a little overtly. It is very pink. It smells wonderful when you walk through the threshold but not overwhelmingly so. Co-owner, Jessica, mentioned in a recent interview that she lives here in Brooklyn and didn't feel there were any good beauty stores in the neighborhood so she set out to open one. After meeting her partner, Jules, months later her idea became a reality. Shen Beauty is located at 315 Court Street.

Eat Pie and Shop!

On December 5th from 11-5 there will be a pie social and holiday gift fair at PS 29 on Henry and Baltic. All proceeds help support the school. Not only can you eat pie, of several varieties, but you can either watch or maybe even join in on eating pie competitively. Yup, a pie eating contest! The panel consists of several celebrity judges, including Brooklyn Borough Prez Marty Markowitz. The contest starts at 1pm.

So, although you may have had your fill of pie and shopping after Thanksgiving and Black Friday (who's kidding who, you can never have enough pie), it's time to break out the wallets and your appetite one more time..for charity of course.

Court Street Grocers

Sweet baked goods (brownies, rugelach, danishes), breads (Orwashers wine bread, brioche, croissants), and freshly made to order sandwiches (grilled cheese and apple, Catskill roast pork, corned short rib reubens). Did I reawaken your appetite after having been put to rest after your bingefest yesterday?

Court Street Grocers, at 485 Court Street right next to the Avon store, recently opened it's doors. It's a cute little market, kind of pricey, but their menu looks pretty enticing, even after being in what you think may be a permanent food coma. An especially unique menu item is the Media Noche sandwich. Kind of like a Cuban sandwich but on sweeter bread. Haven't seen this one on too many menus.

Open Daily from 8AM-9PM except Tuesdays (for now). Made to order sandwiches from 11AM-8PM.

Be Thankful!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! This is the day to be grateful and thankful for what we have. You can go one further and decide to help those who may not have quite as much this season. Below is a list of places to donate to the Toys for Tots Foundation, who collects and delivers new toys to children in the community over the holidays. So, if you're out shopping for friends and family tomorrow, why not pick up something to donate as well.

Dime Savings Bank
188 Montague St
(718)855-1942

T-Mobile
76 Court St

ToysRUs Express
345 Jay Street
(718)855-1761

Brooklyn Boulders
575 Degraw St
(917)716-3307

Fitness Together
382 5th Ave, Brooklyn
(718)369-0707

Dental Spa of New York
398 5th Ave, Brooklyn
(718)965-6298

Go nuts for Doughnuts!

Peter Pan Bakery was already famous amongst Greenpoint residents but was made even more so after Tina Fey's Esquire magazine interview when she claimed they not only made the best doughnut but they are so good that if she were a guy she would do more than just eat these holey treats. Well now you don't have to get on the G train to see what all the fuss and crude yet funny comments are all about. Peter Pan doughnuts are served right here in the neighborhood every Saturday morning starting at 10 AM at Brooklyn Farmacy, which is located at Union and Henry. But forget just a plain old doughnut, Peter Pan has a pretty amazing dessert that goes one step further into deliciousness...the doughnut ice cream sandwich! Not sure if Farmacy will make these but they have the doughnuts and the ice cream so you can always combine the two yourself. If Tina Fey ever discovered this combo she'd..well she'd be very excited.

Burger Joint Now Open!

Just arriving on 548 Court and 9th street is a new casual restaurant named Dubuque. It seems the name of this place has a double meaning. On their menu under the restaurant name it says "Down Under the Brooklyn Queens Expressway" yet the owner also says that it's named after Dubuque, Iowa because it's an American, or rather a middle American grill. Either way it's open and ready to serve up some food, more specifically burgers. They have beef, lamb, pork, and even a cod scallop burger. They offer more than burgers though. Some items on their menu include an oyster poboy, deviled eggs, and a grilled tuna sandwich with black olive pesto.

Hours of operation: 5pm-10pm Tuesday-Sunday, Open late on Saturdays (until 11pm), closed on Mondays.

Visit them on facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dubuque-Restaurant/132912063407018

The shack is coming!

It's really happening! Downtown Brooklyn is getting a Shake Shack. It was published in the Observer recently that it will be opening at Fulton Mall but not until 2011 so let's not get too excited. The very popular restaurant will open on the corner of Fulton and Adams streets taking over a space that used to be Tony's Famous Pizza.

Some neighborhood residents are anticipating the opening with great excitement while others are afraid the arrival may hurt small businesses in the area. Marty Markowitz is thrilled about it. According to the New York Daily News he responded by stating ""It's about time!...I've been pitching [owner] Danny Meyer to come to Brooklyn for years and have always felt that Fulton Mall would be a great location." For better or worse it's coming. Yummy burgers, amazing shakes, and really long lines to prove it.

Tio Pio on the way.

On the corner of Court Street and State Street there is a big commercial space, which used to be a deli called F. Martinella then Danny's on Court (both short-lived), that has been unoccupied for quite some time. We've been wondering what might open up on that corner. Well, the wait is over because there is a new sign up and it's pretty hard to miss. A bright red sign with a picture of a chicken wearing sneakers has gone up and we now know the space is now going to be a Latin-American rotisserie chicken chain restaurant called Tio Pio. Considering there's a pretty big lunch crowd around this area and not too many quick places to eat aside from fast food chains like McDonalds, there is a Chipotle around the corner which does very well, this place might outlast it's predecessors.

Corner Shop at Henry and Baltic

The corner space at Henry and Baltic has been totally gutted. Work being done a couple of days ago included detail work on the outside. Peeking inside one will notice that there is still a long way to go before this place opens and you wouldn't really be able to tell what it might be. So we asked. The man doing the detail work told us it was going to be a sandwich shop. This could mean a corner grocery with a deli or a little cafe. I guess we'll wait and see.

From Laundromat to Restaurant

Previously the V&F Laundromat at 410 Court Street in Carroll Gardens, this space is undergoing a major renovation and being turned into a restaurant. Not really sure what type of restaurant. We were told "fast food" by one of the guys working on the place but that seems a little vague. We heard that it's owned by the same owners as the Dunkin Donuts/Baskin Robbins around the corner, so fast food makes sense. Whatever it is, it's going to be big. The space looks nearly the size of the CVS across the street. It looks like there is a lot of work to still be done so I guess we'll have to be patient to find out. Unless anyone out there who's in the know would like to share this info with us?

B'tween

A store just for tweens? What a great idea! This relatively new store opened at 354 Degraw between Court and Smith. It's a small boutique selling clothing and accessories aimed at 7-16 years old girls (so not just tweens but actual teens as well). On their website they call it a "lifestyle boutique". I guess tweens do have their own genre of lifestyle. The store is very nicely put together. They have a bright purple and yellow sign outside and a colorful array of clothing, accessories such as sun glasses, pajamas and more neatly displayed inside. Very inviting, especially if you happen to have a Justin Bieber poster on your wall.

Turkey Day is Fast Approaching.

Here are a few spots to get some delicious Thanksgiving Turkeys for your feast!

DiPaolo Turkey Farms sells certified organic free-range turkeys and you can find them at the Bourough Hall or Carroll Gardens Greenmarkets. They also donate Turkeys to needy families on Thanksgiving so they sound like a good local business to support. Priced at $3.39 per pound you can get pretty plump Turkeys (up to 29 pounds!).

Of course Fairway market in Red Hook also comes to mind. They have everything! As far as Turkey goes they offer Murray's all natural free-range,Grateful Harvest organic, as well as their own Fairway brand either fully seasoned and ready to stick in the oven or plain old do-it-yourself Turkey.

And here's one to remember for next year:

Stinky, at 261 Smith Street, had a sign outside that asks passersby to stop in and pre-order Turkey. They get their Turkey from a farm in Vermont. It's free-range and described by one Stinky employee as a "good bird". Unfortunately they went quickly.

Weekend Pop-Up Shop

Artscetera, an art studio/classroom mainly for children, used their space to display and sell locally made arts,crafts, and other homemade products this past Sunday. This was the grand opening for a new weekend market they call the Pop-Up Shop. The vendors featured this last Sunday included Overall Baby (children's overalls), Kataplin (baby, kids and adult clothing), Lio and Linn (jewelry), Nordea Soaperia (handmade soap..duh), Barefoot Books (children books), and PurtyBird (little knickknacks including bird figurines). Many of these vendors come from the Etsy community.

The studio/shop is located at 212 Smiths Street in Cobble Hill and the Pop-Up Shop is open on Sundays from 11AM-6PM. Vendors change weekly so if you'd like to check out who will be there in advance or for more information you can visit their website www.artscetera.com

New and Improved Corner Grocery

Express Grocery at 156 Union Street got a complete makeover. We noticed carpenters sawing and sanding outside a while back. Renovations were going on weeks ago and we were wondering if it had changed ownership but no...it was just getting spruced up. They've got big bright green letters spelling out "Organic Products" on the sign, capitalizing on the whole organic trend. It looks nice inside. It's a small space but now a clean and organized corner convenience store. That's pretty refreshing!

Grand Opening of Athena Restaurant

It's hard to miss all the colorful "grand opening" flags and signs when you walk by the Athena Mediterranean restaurant in Cobble Hill. While walking by something may catch your eye...besides all those gaudy flags. The sign outside says "Belly Dancing Every Thursday Night". We were just thinking that this neighborhood desperately needed some belly dancing and it has arrived..haha. It does sound pretty cool. Definitely unique. We didn't see the inside but it seems to be both a restaurant and bar/lounge. There is a back room lounge complete with white leather seating where it would be easy to imagine people hanging out in drinking Cosmopolitans under neon or black lights.

So, if you want a gyro, a drink, or to ogle some bare bellies head over to 213 Smith Street.

New Barbershop on Smith

Persons of Interest, a new yet old barbershop that opened at 299 Smith Street a couple of weeks ago, has a great retro feel because....well...it is retro. The space had been a barbershop for decades before the new owner took over and kept the original chairs and mural on the back wall but fancied it up otherwise. There is a great vibe when you walk in. Maybe it's the tropical mural on the back wall or the smell of aftershave in the air, but it's very relaxing. Probably more expensive than the previous barbershop but I'll bet there's a bit more pampering as well. A list of their services is below.

Haircuts: $40
Clean ups: $20
Beard Trims: $15
Shaves: $30
Buzz Cuts: $25

Library Chess Club

A few weeks ago the Brooklyn Public Library Carroll Gardens Branch, located on the corner of Clinton and Union Street, started a chess club. Every Wednesday night you can go get your chess on with National Chess Master, Manuel Ugarte. This sounds like a very interesting and unique thing to do on a weekday evening and, because all ages are welcome, a fun thing to do with children or teens. This event is for all levels as well so if you're pretty decent at chess Manuel can improve your game and if you don't even know how to play you can learn.

If anyone is interested it's from 6-7pm every Wednesday at the Carroll Garden library, which is located at 396 Clinton Street.