Food, Glorious Food

Who knew there was so much pent up demand for high-end groceries? The Q has heard his share of grousing about the scant organic and free-range options in the neighborhood, but we had no idea how passionate were the yearnings.

According to the New York Times, the wrangling is over, and Brooklyn will soon have its own Whole Foods over at the former industrial site at 3rd and 3rd (between Park Slope and Carroll Gardens - otherwise known as Gowanus). Add this to the Trader Joe's in Cobble Hill and the Fairway in Red Hook - plus myriad small specialty grocers like Larder, Union Market, Provisions and countless others - Brooklyn has become chock full o' nuts and cheeses, fresh bread and choice ingredients for gourmet living.

When the Q reported recently that 65 Fen would soon open a specialty grocer, tentatively called PLG Outpost, the response was tremendous. 23 comments and counting...clearly, people have foodstuffs on the brain! I'm particularly gratified to see that Michael has been following the blog so he's seen your requests. I'm sure he'll be taking more requests at the store itself. So I guess we could look at it as a cooperative venture, though I do suspect there will be some profit in it for the storekeep! (For those of you wonky enough to wonder, typical markups at specialty stores can range from 50% to 100% on most items, save the "loss-leaders" priced to keep you coming back for more. The Park Slope Food Coop is able, with the sweat equity of its members, to cap mark-ups at 20%. If you've seen other, lower figures listed for commercial grocers, that's because they typically define markup as AFTER store expenses like labor. So if you see, say, 5% or 10% listed for a store, that means "net profit," not just price above wholesale. I learned this all from a PSFC general meeting, so take the info with a grain of free range black sea salt.)

The Q has noticed too that The Associated on Flatbush has significantly increased its upscale and healthy options. This is due, in part, to customers asking for specific items. The lesson here, from both stores, is: if you don't see something, say something. Most business people are only too happy to accommodate you, especially if an item becomes popular. I noticed just the other day that The Associated has a few healthy chicken options - I don't recognize the brand, so I don't know if they're any good. Perhaps y'all know something about them...anyone want to cluck up?

Finally, folks around here have been chain-e-mailing a petition of sorts to contact Fairway about opening a location here (on Empire perhaps?). The text of the note making the rounds, and the link to make a request, are quoted below:

Hi Everyone:

Apologies for the mass email, but I'd like to ask for your help. A man approached me while I was checking out at Fairway, and he was from the corporate offices. He asked me what I thought about Fairway and what they could improve on, and I basically told him they could improve by opening a place in our nabe. We spoke for almost 20 minutes and he took notes about a few locations I suggested. He seemed pretty interested and said Fairway wanted to expand a lot more in the next few years. So, I wanted to ask each of you (even if your partner or roommate has already filled one out) to fill out the form on the link below. It only takes a few minutes, and if you could write a few lines
about opening a store in our neighborhood, I suggested Empire because of the amount/size of lots available, they will need to offer parking at this new location, I also wrote about how close we are to so many other neighborhoods that would benefit from having a Fairway nearby. With Whole Foods slated to open in Gowanus on 3rd Ave and 3rd St, the Fairway in Red Hook is going to lose a lot of its business, so if they positioned themselves to capture the business on this side of Brooklyn, they could be in a great spot and pull a lot of people into their store. And can you send this to any and every person you can think of who would fill it out?? I know it's a long shot, but if we got Fairway, that would kinda be huge.

http://www.fairwaymarket.com/contact-us/

 Crazier things have happened. 

Arts & Culture Fest To Grace the Q's Plaza Each Saturday Thru October

Normally the Q wouldn't just drop a press release on you all naked. But two things conspired to convince me that unadorned cut-and-paste was the way to go. First, I'm tired as an 18-wheeler from all this late-life parenting. Second, it's a pretty darn well written press release and contains all the nuggets of knowledge you need to know about the curated crafts carnival coming to Q plaza. Up and at 'em, Atim!

Brooklyn, NY, February 21, 2012—Arts and Culture Fest, a production of The Creative Side, will launch on Saturday, April 21, 2012 as a one-of-kind artisan market for artists, craft makers and designers to sell their handmade goods to the Flatbush and surrounding communities. An innovative project supported by Community Board 9 and fiscally sponsored by the Brooklyn Arts Council, the Fest will be located at Parkside Plaza, an outdoor plaza in front of the Parkside Avenue Train Station (B and Q Trains) and at the intersection of Ocean and Parkside Avenues in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Arts and Culture Fest provides a creative space for artists, craft makers, and designers. It will feature ongoing monthly events – from musicians performing, poet and writer readings, hands-on children’s workshops and activities. For shoppers, the Fest will provide unique products and objects, and will add to the process of revitalizing an under-used and vacant plaza, and most importantly, it will provide sales and income for artists and designers in Brooklyn. 

“We are planning a unique blend of artisans and designers whose work will show the creative talents of the city and provide new ways of exhibiting in the public sphere and selling art and design objects outdoors” says Atim Annette Oton, co-founder of The Creative Side. Oton previously lived in the community on East 21st Street in Flatbush, about 3 blocks from the Fest site while she went to college to study architecture; thus, she is very familiar with the proposed location. “I rode the train from Parkside station daily for about 7 years and I always imagined the multiplicity of possibilities of making this space much more interesting. This became one of the first places I visualized when conceiving the idea.” She continues, “as the co-chair of the Economic Development Committee in Community Board 8, I am expanding my interest in economic development and revitalization of communities through art, design and commerce in a new venue and neighborhood that I have ties to.  My mother and brother still live in the area, and I spend some Sunday dinners in the neighborhood.”

The concept for the outdoor plaza involves 30 vendors showcasing and selling a wide range of functional, collectible art, crafts and design items. These vendors will sell handmade jewelry, t-shirts and fashion items, and home décor; and other vendors will sell handmade soaps, incense and body products.  According to Javaka Steptoe, award-winning illustrator, artist and author, who initiated the idea with Oton, “the Arts and Culture Fest is coming to my neighborhood and it will showcase some of the culture heritage and work of artists and designers to local consumers. It will offer an alternate venue of commerce, creative arts marketing and a showcase for art and design goods right here in Flatbush, Brooklyn.”

The market will operate on Saturdays from April 21st till October 20^th, 2012. It was initially presented to Brooklyn’s Community Board 9 in June 2011. The Creative Side was established in 2011 as collaboration between Atim Annette Oton and Javaka Steptoe to launch and maintain an Arts Venue and Business Opportunity for artists to sell their work in Brooklyn. For additional information, please visit our website at http://www.artsculturefest.com

Contact:

Atim Annette Oton

347-224-4295

artsculturefest@yahoo.com

Un-Bay-Leaf-Able!*

The Q's suspiciously French restaurant reviewer, M. Rue des de la Sonne, once again sent us a well-researched missive from the field. Bay Leaf is the third Indian restaurant to open in PLG in the past couple years, and according to de la Sonne, it's a keeper. Here's Rue...

The decor is more Kiev than Kalkutta, but our table, on a chilly February night, came with its own space-heater, so you know the place is legitimately subcontinental.  And although the menu offers a surprising number of pricing alternatives ("50% off Executive Lunch" "Catering to Private party, wedding and Corporate are welcome" "Lunch Box to Go $8.50" "Prix Fixe Menu $14.95"), set your mind at ease, and set yourself in the good hands of Rohman, the waiter.  He refuses to smile for the camera, but he is the sweetest man you're likely to encounter any day of the week.


And the food.  Oh, the food. 

The samosas are ideally crisp; the eggplant in the bhartha is thick and smokey and irresistible on the naan; the chicken in the chicken tikka masala is perfectly roasted, and the sauce is tangy and complex; the mango lassis are everything you need; except for the rice pudding, with cardamon, which you also need, it turns out.

To judge by the frequency with which their telephone rings, and the frequency with which their delivery dude is on and off his motor bike, the word is out about Bay Leaf.  And no wonder.  This was the best meal we've ever eaten in the neighborhood.

* pun courtesy of the reviewer...proprietor of blog takes no responsibility for it, though he wishes he could.

ConstructionKids - Moving To Ft. Greene

Many a local parent has raved about ContructionKids, the hands-on learning environment based in the gorgeous but dilapidated Phat Albert's Warehouse building near Flatbush and Empire. Well...they're heading for greener pastures apparently, and by greener, we mean Ft. Greener, as in down by the Navy Yard to a tricked-out building as part of a larger re-development scene down there.

Capturing the frustration of many PLGers sorry to see it go, a local mom had this to say:

I just saw this sad news on the ConstructionKids website. Well, very cool news for Deb and for expanding ConstructionKids programs but really sad news for us in PLG. They're moving to the Navy Yards. This is a place that got attention from the NY Times, brought kids and families from all over Brooklyn here to our hood, and anytime I mentioned we had this place here in PLG people were really impressed.
It was becoming a very cool kids amenity to have identified with our neighborhood. Their having to leave the Phat Albert building may be yet another example of  slumlord commercial landlords not investing enough in their holdings in PLG. Not that I'd turn down the gorgeous space they're getting at the Navy Yards either and I'm sure they were lured there with good incentives by the developers; developers who know what they're doing vs. have no clue...

http://constructionkids.com/about/bny/bny.html

Bring the Kids! Giant Afternoon Shindig For Families Benefiting Maple Street School

You gotta go. It's on a Saturday. It's at the Masonic Temple in stylish Ft. Greene. It features everybody who's anybody in the grunge-era-seattle-style Brooklyn kids music scene. Your kids will HATE you if you don't go.* Click here for tix to this awesome annual event in support of the local charmer Maple Street School (you know, the little nursery school next, er, actually a part of, the Q/B at Prospect Park).

*I'm trademarking the the new "your kids will hate you if..." line. Children's advertising is already pretty cutthroat - why not go straight for the jugular? Full disclosure - the Q's little miss clarkson flatbed jr. goes to the beneficiary school.

Parkside Avenue, 2.0 - The Winners Announced!

The Parkside Prize started as a gleam in Rudy Delson's eyes a mere year ago. The Q recalls humoring the endlessly enthusiastic Delson as he regaled him with the idea of creating a prize for a re-design of the Avenue.  Then Eric Adams pitched in some dough, and pretty soon the cake was baking. The Q dug the super-upbeat idea and has been uber-impressed that Delson's stayed to his mission, with the help of a few fearless friends from the 'hood.

And now, it's my distinct pleasure, to both invite you to the Parkside Prize Prize Exhibition on March 4 at Play Kids (on the Flabenue at Westbury Court - near Hawthorne) from 4 - 6PM AND to show you some teaser pics of the grand prize winner, In Cho, and their highly do-able design:

I love how leisurely everyone looks in the pictures...sort of a Sunday afternoon vibe. And the designers even kept the Internet Cafe in the renderings, albeit with a different sign. Look at what a HUGE difference it makes for Duane Reade to spruce up the side of its building! The dude with the pram, carrying a tot in his arms is a nice touch...


A crackerjack panel of locals and experts agreed that In Cho's design hit all the right marks. There were LOTS of strong ideas, so please check out the other designs and more info on the winner at theparksideprize.org website. Kudos to all the entrants, for caring to share your vision for change near our beloved Q. Next up...getting the damn thing done!

Clarkson and Rogers - How Bout A Community Center?

What if you could turn lead into gold? Or rather, what if you could take two unneeded discount stores and turn them into a real community center for the youth of the neighborhood?

The Q is just dreaming again. And yet, after tonight's Town Hall style meeting at our Councilman's office on Linden Blvd, I think the energy COULD be there to take something like this:

picture by babs

and turn it into something like this: The Door NYC.

To my mind, The Door is EXACTLY the model for a youth community center that we need right here in the 'Bush. Health services for teens. Arts. Music. Supportive counseling. Computer learning and jobs training. GED. And given the Councilman's past in martial arts...how about some martial arts thrown in to keep things martial? A drop in child care facility for youthful single moms needing a break before losing their minds, to talk with someone about the stresses of raising kids young and alone. How about...somebody doing SOMETHING for a change, and not just talking about their heartfelt commitment to the young at-risk folks of Flatbush, the kids most likely to need help at a super-critical juncture in their lives?

Or the landlord could rent to another 99 cent store and a check cashing place. What's so convenient about that combination is you can cash your check and walk next door to spend it on inexpensive crap.


P.S.
To prove the Q actually went to the meeting, here's a horribly out of focus picture showing some guy talking about some stuff he's really into. All in all, it was a good time, and the member was more engaged than usual, though things did start unforgivably late. And yes, the near miss in that last sentence made me giggle too. The Q has yet to fully grow up, though he's now over half his way towards typical expiration date.

HSB C You Later

As if to underscore the recent comments to this here blog about a lack of banks in the neighborhood, the Q's home-bank HSBC on Flatbush at Caton is closing come June 1. I just got the notice in the mail, and much to my surprise, I'm feeling kinda verklempt about it. I don't think I'd realized how much I liked banking here...the building and the cavernous space have always felt reassuring to me, as if my paltry savings were somehow being well-tended.

Banks were once the backbones of neighborhoods. They lent money to local businesses and homeowners. They built things and gave money to things and played a central role in civil society. Obviously HSBC - a worldwide behemoth based in London - was a far cry from the local S&L's of lore. But it was MY multi-national corporate bank, and I'll miss it. And no, I won't be trekking out to Avenue D to do my banking, as the letter suggests.

The bigger question, though, is...who's going to rent this massive space now? There's precedent for pharmacies and gyms of course. Or maybe another bank will move in. Or...any suggestions?

Letter to the Commish

Many people have asked the Q whatever became of the effort to address rising violent crime (felony assaults, rape) in the 71st. Things seemed to reach a boiling point, as they often do, mid-to-late summer of last year. Meetings were held, task forces created, thoughts were shared, fears were laid bare. Elected officials held forums (fora, I know, but just try using the latin plural without sounding like a total twerp). As the mercury dropped, as happens every year, the "action" moved indoors and pretty soon you could be forgiven if you thought you'd imagined the whole thing.

As a matter of fact, various individuals and groups were busily preparing the following community-wide response to Commissioner Kelly, via a concerned adviser of his, Detective Martin Brown. There were various small intrigues on the way to this letter's delivery, but in the end it pretty well sums up many people's thoughts and hopes regarding police involvement in drug and gang activity not just on Flatbush but throughout the precinct.

The Q is happy to refrain from specific commentary and I'll let the contents of the letter speak for themselves. To my mind, even more than the ideas expressed therein, the potentially lasting story here is the way diverse groups worked together to craft a response that addressed common ground. My fear after the first couple meetings of the PLGNA Safety Task Force was that a small minority of voices would dominate the proceedings. In fact, similar thinking emerged from people that, on the surface, might seem to have little in common. At the very least, people are talking to each other. Feel free to comment on the contents...I think it's worth a read by every single resident and merchant in our district.



January 2012

Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly
New York City Police Department
One Police Plaza
New York, NY 10038

Dear Commissioner Kelly:

The organizations that have signed this letter and the residents who have supported it represent 1,300 households in the Prospect-Lefferts Gardens neighborhood of Brooklyn, an area served by the 71st Precinct with which you are familiar, having served as its Captain. We are writing to call your attention to some incidents that occurred last year and to appeal for your help. From the beginning of 2011, there was a notable increase in violent crime in our community. For example, early in the summer, the token booth at the Prospect Park subway station on Lincoln Road was doused in a flammable liquid and set on fire in an attempt to rob the MTA employee stationed there. As the summer progressed week after week our neighborhood was faced with a rash of shootings within the area bordered by Nostrand Avenue, Flatbush Avenue, Lincoln Road and Clarkson Avenue. One shooting in late October on Nostrand Avenue and Rutland Road was caught on surveillance video and broadcast through most local media. As the year progressed the sound of gunfire became a frequent occurrence in our neighborhood. We are reaching out to you to assist us in dealing with this problem with hopes that this trend doesn’t continue or get worse as spring approaches.

The relationship between the staff of the 71st Precinct and our community is excellent. Members of the precinct routinely attend community meetings and events. They are responsive when a crime occurs and accessible at other times. From a community-relations perspective, we commend the precinct. At the same time, we are concerned that the precinct’s efforts may require more resources allocated to preventing and investigating crime, particularly gun-related violence, and apprehending violent criminals. We request that your office review the precinct’s crime prevention, investigation and apprehension strategies and determine if new or different resources are required to address the safety of our neighborhood. Specifically, we ask that you focus on activity that our elected officials inform us is the result of gang activity in the community. In addition, the spike in violent crime we have noted seems related to the absence of beat cops, especially on Flatbush Avenue and Nostrand Avenue between Lincoln Road and Clarkson Avenue. Within this area, there are several problematic spots, notably the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Maple Street, and Nostrand Avenue and Fenimore Street where brazen illegal activity occurs day and night.

As of October the 71st Precinct’s crime statistics indicate a year-over-year reduction in overall crime of 3%, an achievement for which we congratulate the unit’s hard-working men and women. However, a closer reading of the data shows that this achievement masks a more chilling conclusion: while overall crime is down, violent crime has spiked dramatically. Comparing year-to-date statistics from 2011 to 2010, murders in the precinct have increased by 16%, rapes by 55%, and felonious assaults by 30% (NYPD CompStat: reporting 10/10 through 10/16/2011). We are sure you agree with us that this rise in violent crime is unacceptable.We acknowledge that we are one small community in a larger scope that includes neighborhoods more victimized by violent crime than ours. However, a bullet is a bullet wherever it lands. Our neighborhood has made enormous progress in reducing crime and improving the quality of life for all its residents in recent years. Please do not allow it to deteriorate because of violent crime. As mentioned here is an outline of our requests:

1. Conduct a review, from your office, of the crime prevention, investigation and apprehension strategies of the 71st Precinct to determine if improvements can be made.

2. Determine if the number of personnel budgeted for this precinct is sufficient to stem this spike in violent crime. Is it possible to increase the police presence in core zones that have seen the greatest increase in violence? Is it possible to target locations that are known problems, like the corner of Nostrand Avenue and Fenimore Street and Flatbush Avenue and Maple Street?

3. Consider this community for the high-impact policing strategies that you have pioneered.

4. Assign a special task force to address the gang problem. Implement the evidence-based anti-gang strategies that have proved effective in other communities.

We thank you in advance for your attention to our concerns and look forward to receiving a plan from you describing how the NYPD will address this disturbing problem in our community.
Sincerely,

Nostrand Avenue Merchants Association
300 Midwood Block Association
300 Rutland Block Association
Flatbush Empire Parkside Merchants Association 
Prospect Lefferts Gardens Neighborhood Association (PLGNA)
St Gabriel’s Episcopal Church
Supportive Residents

cc: Inspector Peter Simonetti (71st Precinct)
cc: Detective Martin Brown

PLG Outpost to Open As Early As Next Weekend

Michael Campbell's budding empire along Fenimore (wine shop 65 Fen, panini 'n' vino joint Delroy's) is about to open a little shop of extras. Much like other Brooklyn "everything else" stores like Larder and Provisions, PLG Outpost hopes to carry the sorts of things that folks go outside the neigbhorhood for - specialty items like oils and vinegars and cheeses and the sorts of gourmet extras that send modern eaters all the way to Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and (for budget-conscious mascochists like the Q) the Food Coop.

Now, here's the deal. Michael and Co. are looking for your input. He's a small businessman trying to cater to a neighborhood that doesn't exactly scream "gourmand!" So stop in to 65 Fen or to the Outpost (open as soon as next weekend) and let him know what you'd like him to carry. Think of this as the Wild Wild West, where you had to get to know the proprietor of the local Trading Post in order to get your spurs, lassos and chewin' tobacky special ordered via newfangled steam-powered Iron Horses. Only 'stead of spurs, lassos and chaw, think fromage, oils and specialty condiments.

Good luck Michael! Feel free to chime in your hopes for the PLG Outpost here, since I think Michael might be one of the Q's regular readers. Shopping lists?