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.

Taste of Red Hook is Tomorrow.

This benefit for Red Hook Initiative is happening tomorrow from 6-9pm at Pioneer Works, 159 Pioneer, and tickets are still on sale.  There will be drinks and food from dozens of the best local establishments.  Too many to name here but you can go to this site to view the list.  There will also be a silent auction. 

Black 47 at Rocky Sullivan's next week!

Irish Rock band, Black 47, will disband by the end of this year, it's last gig ever is set for New Year's Eve in Manhattan.  To see them in the hood for the last time you'll have to head over to Rocky Sullivan's next Saturday October 26th after 8pm.  $20 for seeing this awesome band in a perfectly intimate space...not bad.

Gowanus Open Studio 2013.

We've blogged about the Brooklyn Studio Tours, which was based in the Red Hook and Carroll Gardens area back in June.  Now Gowanus is having a an open studio tour as well.  It is what it sounds like.  Artists open their studios to the public.  The dates are October 18th-20th.  Studios will be open over the weekend from noon-6pm.  Click here for more info.

Hometown BBQ Review.

This review has been a long time coming.  The place has been open for about a month now and as you can see it gets pretty packed.  The line was nearly out the door when we arrived (see below).  How it works, much like most BBQ joints, is that you stand in line to order your food then grab a seat.  The bar is separate so you can get a beer for the line.  really great beer selection! It wasn't too long a wait though (maybe 20 or 30 minutes) and once we had our food a table was no problem.  Our food was amazing! The ribs were lean yet tender so so flavorful.  The beans were smokey, mac and cheese was creamy but not too greasy, and the collards were also really really flavorful.  The BBQ sauce is sweet with a little spice at the end.  We didn't get to see any live music.  I think we were there a little on the early side but we saw the stage area and the atmosphere was a perfect Honky Tonk vibe. Overall impressive! 

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. 

New Restaurants.

There are so many places opening up or "coming soon" in and around the neighborhood, it's almost hard to keep up.  Here are some pics we've snapped in the last week alone.  The place above is in Red Hook on Seabring and Columbia.  Camila's Cafe.  From the looks of their facebook page it will be a coffee shop of sorts.  The place below on Smith Street right next to Flight 001, is Hanco's.  They started out in that very small space at 85 Bergen and look to be expanding.  And lastly, the one below that, Taperia, is tapas on Montague. 

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. 

Carlos Menchaca Kicks Off 'Get Out the Vote' in our Office!

Our office in Red Hook, 351 Van Brunt, is going to be campaign headquarters for City Council candidate Carlos Menchaca for the next 7 days.  We are so happy to be a part of this campaign and to be able to help in some way.  Read more about Menchaca, our involvement with his past works (plus a very nice accolade!!), and what to expect at our Red Hook office over the next week in the press release below!

 Public servant and City Council candidate Carlos Menchaca will open a ‘Get Out the Vote’ office in Red Hook to kick off the last week of his campaign. “It gives me great pleasure to be opening up a GET OUT THE VOTE campaign office in Red Hook, Brooklyn today. It was in this neighborhood, on these same streets where I was first inspired to run for City Council. The Realty Collective office space at 351 Van Brunt was instrumental in our general emergency operation post-Sandy. The leadership of Victoria Hagman, Carolina Salguero and others who ran the communications and general information hub out of this space for the community was tremendous!” During the next seven days, the office will serve as headquarters for the campaign’s effort to target Brooklynites who believe in active and vocal representation for their neighborhoods, and ensure they get to the polls on Primary Day. Menchaca will deliver remarks, and there will be opportunities for photo and video.

Supplies for Back to School.

School starts in less than a week and many parents will be running out to grab items on their giant list of supplies their children will need.  Here are a few spots to hit and one spot you may want to stop by if you'd like to give back and donate supplies.

Staples on 4th Avenue and 3rd Street is a great choice for one-stop shopping but a little far if you live in the Columbia Waterfront, Red Hook, or Cobble Hill communities.  But it's huge and should have everything you need.

The neighborhood pharmacies are an obvious choice but you may have to hit more than one to get everything you need.  Places are running out of things quickly.  Try Clinton Apothecary on Clinton and President.  They have great prices!

Winn Discount may not come to mind when thinking school supplies but they'll probably have most of what's on your list also.

And once you've found a good spot to shop you may want to get extra and stop by the Carroll Gardens Library.  They are taking donations for school supplies.

Beat Festival at Waterfront.

That's beat as in "a main accent or rhythmic unit in music or poetry" not as in "Beatnik". September 22nd at 7:30 pm Marshall L. Davis Jr and friends perform at the Waterfront Museum in Red Hook. This event looks awesome and may sell out. For more info read below and to buy tickets click here.

"Crown Heights-based hoofer Marshall Davis Jr. brings his electrifying talents to the full borough of Brooklyn. Marshall, who regularly performs with Savion Glover, makes profound music in the tradition of tap.Flanked by special guests in his unique choreography, Marshall will transfer his extraordinary, organic musicality to the soul of each audience member."

Le Grand Fooding.

Red Hook has really become special event and festival central! Especially for foodies.  This year's Le Grand Fooding, on September 27th and 28th will be held at Res on 372 Columbia Street.  This year's theme is "The Time Mach'Inn", which will highlight menu options from trends staring in the early 90's to present day.  You can see a menu as well as any more info, including booking, here.

Fact or Fiction Trivia Tonight.

Thought we'd share this really awesome sounding (and free!) event that's happening tonight at The Bell House, 149 7th Street.  It's called Disalmanac Fact or Fiction Night.  It's a trivia night with a twist (more on that in the description below).  It starts at 8pm but you may want to get there early and claim a spot for you and your team. 

In a truly special event, TrivWorks - NYC's corporate team building specialists and producers of the largest public trivia nights in NYC - has partnered with Disalmanac, the Web's home for fact-like facts, to present the ultimate test of trivia knowledge at The Bell House in Brooklyn!
TrivWorks founder David Jacobson leads a high-energy team trivia competition on a wide range of topics ranging from history and science to pop culture and current events, while comedienne Sharon Spell tests individual audience members' ability to discern facts from deceptively "fact-like facts." Disalmanac creator Scott Bateman will be on-hand to hand out a trove of theme-appropriate prizes, as well as talk a bit about Disalmanac: A Book of Fact-Like Facts coming out in September 2013!

Last Chance for Flicks.

Next week, August 27th, will be the last day to catch a free outdoor movie at Valentino Pier.  Summer is coming to a close and if you haven't taken advantage of this awesome event yet now is your chance.  The last film of the series is Red Hook's choice and this year Red Hook chose "Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead". This night is presented by PICKETT FURNITURE and HOME/MADE.

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!

Carnival in Red Hook!

Calling all vendors!  The Visitation Church Carnival (98 Richards Street in Red Hook) is set for September 14th and there is still time to rent a vendor table for $40. Tables will be set up on Verona St.  Call the rectory at 718-624-1572 for more info.  For those wanting to attend this event, it begins at 11:30am and it should be fun!

Pig Island in Red Hook!

Pig Island usually takes place, as you can surmise by the name, on Governors Island but this year it's coming to Red Hook! Should they now call it Pig Hook? Eh.  We are very excited to welcome this amazing and scrumptious event to our hood on September 7th from 1130am-4:30pm.  Tickets are on sale now. For more on what to expect from this food fest see below.


Event features include:
• The best chefs (25+) from all five boroughs going hog wild with locally-, pigs from Flying Pigs Farm, Møsfund Mangalitsa, and Bobolink among others (the famous “Pig Pickup” will take place on Wednesday, September 4th at Union Square Greenmarket);
• Great local craft beer by Sixpoint, providing exclusive custom beers;
• Wines from the Finger Lakes region of NY State;
• Hard ciders from the Hudson Valley;
• Special cooking demonstrations by Peter Kaminsky (author of Bacon Nation) and Grillworks Station;
• Music all day with live bands, including Sistermonk, JP Bowerstock Quintet, NYC City Slickers featuring Annie Chadwick, and The Baillen Brothers;
• Best-of-show prizes presented courtesy of our sponsor, Wüsthof;
• Free entry and ferry service for kids under 12 with paying adult;
• Vegetarian-friendly side stations.
• Chefs include Anthony Sasso (Casa Mono), Jacques Gautier (Palo Santo), Peter Giannakas (Ovelia), Jason Weiner (Almond), Sam Barbieri (Waterfront Ale House and Fuhgeddabout It BBQ), Danny Mena and Ethan Smith (Hecho en Dumbo), King Phojanakong (Kuma Inn and Umi Nom), George Weld and Evan Hanzcor (Parish Hall), Joe Dobias (JoeDoe), Jimmy Carbone of Jimmy’s No. 43, Michael Jenkins (Darby/Butter), Tyson Ho (Arrogant Swine), Justin Brunwasser (Friedman's Lunch), Doug Keiles (Ribs Within), and Bill Fletcher (Fletcher's BBQ), with more TBA.

Hometown BBQ Preview Dinner.

Last time we checked there were only 16 tickets remaining for this preview dinner event at Hometown BBQ, which opens later this month.  There may be less by the time this posts so we wanted to get this out and spread the word before they were all gone.  You can buy tickets through Underground Eats.  This sounds awesome.  It's a first time look (and taste of course!) of this long awaited BBQ joint in Red Hook with a small group of folks as well as some BBQ education.