Rosie de Belgeonne is a video editor and specializes in movie trailers. Her days in a dark edit suite are balanced with sunny runs around McCarren Park track and weekends spent discovering Greenpoint's finest eateries.If you have any local foody news or tip-offs you can email her at [email protected], or tweet @Rosie_de_B
‘Tis the season for new restaurant openings, and last week Greenpoint had three*. One of the tastiest additions to our burgeoning dining scene is a delightful French Catalonian eatery called Cassette, whose name roughly translates as ‘little box’. Don’t let the name mislead you though, as the space is anything but small. Positioned on the corner of Kent and Franklin streets, the front of the restaurant takes up at least a quarter of the block, which it comfortably shares with Ramona, Kennaland and the former Lulu’s.
Cassette is adjacent to the Kickstarter HQ on Kent, which is somewhat convenient since one of the partners is Kickstarter founder Perry Chen. In creating the new restaurant, Perry teamed up with Henry Rich, owner of Boerum Hill’s popular neighborhood Italian Rucola. Also hailing from Rucola is head chef Joe Pasqualetto whose passion for good, simple food means that Cassette’s veg-focused menu is primed for success from the word go. Continue reading →
Adobera Arepa with queso fresco, black bean spread, avocado and pickled jalapenos (Image from @centavonyc)
The nights are drawing in, the temperature’s gradually dropping and it’s starting to be hands in pockets weather – but we’re not talking coat pockets – oh no – we’re talking yummy little stuffed arepa pockets!
A brand new weekly pop-up at Brooklyn Safehouse is bringing delicious arepas to Franklin street every Wednesday night. The pop-up is called Centavo, and is run by trio of friends John Monastero, Mike Lee and Mary O’Reilly, who are taking of advantage of cozy season to roll out an inventive menu of comforting hand-held treats to hungry bar-dwellers. Continue reading →
A $60 ticket includes an amazing three-course meal with unlimited wine from Dandelion Wine and beer by Sixpoint. Veggies are from the community garden and meat comes from Sun Fed Beef in upstate NY (and there will be a wonderful veggie option for non meat-eaters).
The meal will be prepared by two talented local chefs : Caroline Fidanza owner of Saltie, the cult Williamsburg sandwich shop, and Millicent Souris, who has cooked at Egg, Roebling Tea Room and the Queen’s Hideaway. Both chefs have published their own cookbooks and regularly contribute to Diner Journal. Continue reading →
Does your perfect Sunday afternoon involve gallons of homebrew and a whole load of delicious snacks? If so, you’re in luck because this weekend brings The Diamond’s infamous Brew ‘n’ Chew!! Now in its eighth glorious year, six teams of homebrewers and home chefs will compete to bring guests the very best beer and snack pairings, all for just $25.
Pairings are subject to change but currently on the cards we have tempting combinations such as: – Table Saison with apricots served with a smoked pork tenderloin slider – Coffee, maple syrup & cardamom stout served with a waffle-taco hybrid – Brett Lavender Saison served with tiramisuContinue reading →
It was the final Sunday evening of August and, whilst most of the city was recovering from another scorching weekend, in a hidden corner of Greenpoint things were only just starting to warm up. The venue was Sunview Luncheonette, the charming former diner perched on the Nassau side of McGolrick Park. The event was a Burmese supper pop-up by Lucky Number, a tasty new enterprise masterminded by creative duo Tyler Drosdeck and Michael Sablan.
Michael, a talented chef who has previously cooked at Mission Chinese and Northeast Kingdom, is on a quest is to bring Burmese cuisine to NYC (of which there is currently surprisingly little). “We’re not yet ready to open a full-on restaurant”, he tells me, “but a pop-up is a great way to take the temperature and gauge our audience.” Continue reading →
The annual afternoon of tastings will take place on Sunday September 13th in the East River Skate Park and will feature generous appetizer-sized samples from over 40 of the area’s best restaurants, bars, and breweries.
This year Greenpoint is represented by the likes of Anella, Bakeri, Champs, Le Fond, No Name bar and ice cream dream team Phin & Phebes. Meanwhile Williamsburg will have stalls from Maison Premiere, Oddfellows, Pies & Thighs and many more. All these tasty treats will be accompanied by live music and, no doubt, hot hot sunshine, making it the perfect way to eke out summer that little bit longer. Continue reading →
Champion Coffeemay have recently shuttered at 1108 Manhattan Avenue (due to ‘unforeseen circumstances’), but caffeine addicts have no reason to be be sad. Two new Champions are soon to spring up elsewhere in Greenpoint to replace it.
First up will be a new cafe at 142 Nassau Avenue, on the site of Sweet Fox, which has now closed down. Champion’s Talitha Whidbee tells us that “Sweet Fox owner Jean Marc was ready to get back to his catering life and away from the constant demands of a cafe so we bought Sweet Fox from him which we will remodel over the next month and re-open as Champion Coffee.” This location will be almost exactly the same as the original Champion (with a slightly pared down food menu), and will be opening around September 22nd.
There is also a second, larger space in the pipeline, at 1107 Manhattan Avenue, directly across the road from the original. “Due to its size it will be a little longer in coming to fruition, but we are shooting for end of November”, Talitha tells us. This location will have the standard Champion food and drink menu, with the addition of kombucha on tap from Mombucha and a few other exclusive beverages.
In the meantime North Greenpointers craving a coffee fix could do worse than to try out the newly opened Sweetleaf Coffee (or Propeller, or Early, or Bakeri…).
Listen carefully tonight and you might just hear the strains of an ice cream cone fanfare echoing down Wythe Avenue.
Van Leeuwen’sflagship store in Williamsburg is having its official grand opening tomorrow, but tonight, for three glorious hours from 7pm-10pm, they will be handing out free ice cream scoops from the new store as a pre-opening treat. Continue reading →
Burmese feast in a charming luncheonette setting – Photo: Sam Fleischner
Living in NYC allows us to sample cuisine from all over the world, right? Well, largely, yes, but when it comes to Burmese food there is actually only one dedicated restaurant in the entire city and it’s all the way over on the Upper East Side.
However, Greenpointers with an inclination for Burmese fare can finally be spared a trip out of the neighborhood because this Sunday a fabulous Burmese food pop-up will be happening at the former Sunview Luncheonette near McGolrick Park.
Chef Michael Sablan (who has previously cooked at Mission Chinese and Northeast Kingdom), will be whipping up a six-course feast with dishes that include: Shan Tofu (a”tofu” made with chick peas), Oh No Khao Swe (coconut chicken noodle soup with marbled egg and pickled mustard greens), and the classic Burmese preserved green tea leaf salad.Continue reading →
