Greenpoint is nothing if not an exciting place to live. Though it still retains some of that quiet, waterfront charm, it’s no secret that our stock has risen quite dramatically over the past few years — we now have the dubious honor of being one of StreetEasy’s most in-demand (and expensive) New York neighborhoods.
That excitement means there’s no shortage of stories to report on, especially hyperlocal stories that you won’t find anywhere else. As the year wraps up, we’ve rounded up some of our favorites — the ones that made us laugh, confused the hell out of us, or caused us to furiously DM folks on Instagram to figure out what was going on. Curiously, many of these occurred over the summer. The heat can make people do funny things, I guess.
A Happy Ending for a Missing Dog
We get a lot of inquiries about missing pets, unfortunately, so when there’s a happy ending involved, we have to share it. Local pet psychic Jim and concerned resident Alicia teamed up to look for the Frankie, a foster dog who went missing. Thanks to a tugboat captain from New Jersey, the missing pup was found (and eventually adopted by Alicia!)
This story also ultimately involved Miss Uncut Jamz herself, Julia Fox, and yours truly getting quoted on her favorite podcast (shout out to Who? Weekly and the episode from March 4), so it truly was happily ever after for all involved.
Good Golly, Miss Dolly!
The Dolly Parton Look-a-Like Contest finally returned to Mable’s Smokehouse after a pandemic-related absence. And what a glorious sight to see.
A Cheeky Chicken
Chef Eric Sze and the rest of the team at Wenwen introduced the neighborhood to the hottest menu item in the neighborhood (and potentially, the whole city?) with the BDSM chicken. BDSM in this case stands for brined, deboned, soy milk, you freaks. They only make five a night, so get there EARLY to place your order. The Greenpointers team tried it recently, and the hype is REAL.
#TheLedge
New Yorkers will take advantage of any outdoor space they can find, a truth seen in action with this viral TikTok. We spoke to one of the dudes relaxing shirtless on #TheLedge above Xi’an Famous Foods to get the scoop on how it all went down.
Temkin’s Gets a Surprise Visitor…
A possum and an intrepid Alaskan woman walk into a bar. That sounds like the setup to a corny joke, but it’s what went down at local watering hole Temkin’s this past May, in a story that reverberated far past the corners of our little neighborhood. This year also saw random appearances from beavers, hawks, dolphins, and ducks.
Fun at the Funeral Home
A funeral home might not make the most likely venue for a comedy show, but Ben Wasserman’s thoughtful and hilarious meditation on death set up camp at Sparrow Funeral Home, to much acclaim.
Clowns in Town
The circus (or should I say, the cirkus) came to town – not just once, but twice. Audience members of all ages enjoyed Bindlestiff Family Cirkus during one of their mobile performances in North Brooklyn.
TOO MANY BEES
The Greenpointers team learned the hard way that bees like the smell of lemongrass. Apologies to everyone else in our office building.
Pierogi-palooza
In honor of National Pierogi Day, Pierozek hosted its second annual pierogi eating contest. This year, Wayne Algenio of Queens took home the top prize. He also holds the Guinness World Record for most Carolina reaper chili peppers consumed in under 60 seconds. I am truly ill just thinking about any of this.
Stay weird, Greenpoint! Can’t wait to see what shenanigans we all get up to in 2023!