Quite mysteriously, the below post was discredited soon after midnight on April 2, 2011. Still, the Q wonders if a McDonalds anywhere in the U.S. can claim such a prime piece of real estate.
Much like a shotgun wedding between an Italian runway model and a blue collar Irishman, confirmation came today that the owners of Al Di La,
the popular northern Italian trattoria in Park Slope, have closed on a deal to take over the space at Ocean and Flatbush that's currently home to a McDonalds.
Marge Gloucester and Trent Boboli, manager and chef of Al Di La respectively and co-owners, have long had their eye on this near-perfect spot just kitty-korner from the world's second greatest urban park. Says Boboli "when Al Di La first really started to take off, then kept on staying taken-off, then really really really took off, it became clear that a second restaurant was inevitable. We'd hoped to open 'just off the park' like so many of our favorite Italian restaurants IN Italy, but nothing was available. We even spoke to the board at the Brooklyn Society of Ethical Culture about opening a Risotto Stand in front of their building during warmer months. But then this opportunity began to emerge, and we were absolutely thrilled by the chance to create a Jerk Gnocchi dish to draw out the West Indian crowd!"
While negotiations are ongoing, the current lease-owner of the McDonalds - John Paul Abramowitz - told me recently that business has taken a nose-dive since the beginning of the recession. "People just don't go out to eat anymore like they used to. Everyone's home cooking their own nutritious meals. We thought the McSalad line would help, but it would appear that McDonalds days are numbered."
However, Boboli believes that if you create an eating "experience," people will line up for your $25 braised rabbit with black olives and polenta. "We've been very successful for a long time; there's no reason to think we can't make it in PLG. Or Flatbush, or North Ditmas Park, as some are now calling it."
Al Di La "Due" is set to open sometime this fall.
Next up: BRAISED RABBIT WITH BLACK OLIVES AND POLENTA recipe designed especially for backpackers!
6 comments:
Micky Di La.
I was about to post this to my facebook page, until I remembered the date.
C'mon, CF. McDonalds can't make it here but an Al Di La import can? Meanwhile, PLOG is telling us that some big name celebs and Marty are moving to Midwood Street to shoot a reality show in our hood? And Hawthorne Street broke the news of a pet boutique and spa opening on Rogers last week? Tell me all these "winds of change" reports on the PLG blogs is not some kind of conspiracy to remind us that today is April Fools day after all. :-)
Ceelledee
PLEASE don't break my heart like this!!!!
Ceelledee,
The pet boutique and spa on Rogers was posted before April 1st and is REAL!
Oh, I know that Bob. But, together, there's a theme going on in PLG this April Fools Day --even if one story is actually legitimate (i.e., the Bow Wow story) and the others are not. Heck, 10 years ago, you could not find a single neighborhood blog in PLG. Yet, in 2011, we now have THREE active blogs up and running in our hood. On top of that, we've got one of the blogs going with a true "winds of change" story and the other two with April Fools jokes that most of us have to think twice about before dismissing as tomfoolery. That's noteworthy, I believe. Especially for oldtimers like ourselves. :-)
Ceelledee
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