Hearty beef & Guinness stew with carrots and mushrooms, over mashed potatoes
My mother is born-and-raised solid country stock from County Westmeath, Ireland. She remembers St. Patrick’s Day celebrations as chiefly religious, with the country going to mass with freshly-picked clovers pinned to buttonholes to honor their patron saint. Then there would be a shared family meal with special-occasion ingredients like beef or lamb, usually presented in roasts or stews.
Regardless of how you choose to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (or whether you want to avoid all related shenanigans entirely), this traditional Irish dish is straight-forward, nourishing, rich, and perfect for spooning out among any group of friends and family (though with all due respect to my grandmother and her preferred method of just dumping everything in a big pot and leaving it, I’ve added and tweaked some steps to improve texture and flavor).
(sponsored) Can’t get home to the family this Thanksgiving (too expensive, or maybe you just prefer to avoid that all together)? If so, come to Dirck the Norseman’s “Orphan’s Thanksgiving”. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be served at 3 pm, and dinner starts at 4 pm.
For $20 a person, they’ll fill your plate with turkey, sides and fixings, plus an open bar (beer and wine). Kids eat for free. Guests are invited to bring something sweet to the table (pie, cake, your family’s secret dessert?).
To confirm your reservation email dirckthenorseman (at) gmail [dot] com or call 718-389-2940. Limited seating.
“Dirck the Norseman’s 2nd Annual Orphans’ Thanksgiving”
Date: Thanksgiving Day, November 27 Time: 3 pm ’til turkeys gone Where: 7 N. 15th Street (at the corner of N. 15th and Kent/Franklin) Please RSVP by Wednesday, Nov. 26 to: dirckthenorseman (at) gmail [dot] com
Every first Monday in March is reserved for Casimir Pulaski Day … in Illinois. If you ever wondered who Greenpoint’s Pulaski Bridge was named after – it’s this Polish Born (badass) American hero who is also know as “the father of the American cavalry.” The federal holiday (and a big parade in NYC) takes place in October to remember his death October 11, 1779, while today’s celebration honors his birth which was March 6, 1745.
Kidd Russell – a Chicago hip-hop artist created this song and video titled, “Pulaski Day.” Continue reading →
Santa at Jellio!Jellio.com, makers of fun, childhood-inspired furniture and home decor items, has asked Santa to come back to Brooklyn!
After two very popular Santa days, they’ve invited Santa back to their Greenpoint location! The jolly old elf will meet all the good little boys and girls this Sunday, 12/22, from 3-5pm at the Jellio shop at The Flying Squirrel (87 Oak St) in Greenpoint.
Glugg? Gloog? Glerg? “Ö” is a difficult letter for me to pronounce, so when it comes to asking for this sweetly-spiced, Scandanavian mulled wine, I sometimes simplify my request to “I’ll have some of what’s simmering in that crockpot.” While spending the winter in Stockholm a few years ago, I regularly indulged in 3 pm glögg-fikas (glögg-themed coffee breaks), 5 pm jul-glöggs (glögg-themed Christmas parties?), after-work mugs-o’-glögg (i.e. happy hour)…and so on. It seemed that my Swedish friends were exceptionally good at coming up with reasons to drink glögg— reasons bound in traditions which were justified by statements like “Because. That’s just what we do.” Hard to argue with that when you can’t even pronounce an “ö” . And in the interest of keeping with tradition, you could always count on there being a plate of crispy, crunchy pepparkakor (gingerbread cookies) at the table to nibble on as you sipped your beverage. Let’s just say is was a gluttony of glögg. Continue reading →
Yes, it’s a day of thanks and eating like there is no tomorrow. Let’s not forget that Thanksgiving is also a day of indulgent wonderful glorious napping. This is the window cat at Academy Records. He can teach us a thing or two about napping, especially the hand over eye move. Sweet turkey dreams.
Mark your calendars and start making your holiday goodies!
We are booked for Sunday, December 8, 2013 for our Annual Greenpointers Holiday Market from 1-7pm at The Greenpoint Loft (67 West St, 5th Fl)
Note:our venue has changed, but it is not far (same building) and it is bigger and better with 360 degree views of Brooklyn and the NYC Skyline and the space itself is flooded with light. Because we had to seek a new venue, the spacerental price has gone up significantly. In turnour table prices have also increased. That being said, we have done our research and our rates are competitive with other markets. As always it will be the BEST local shopping market around town!
Included is a FREE Featured Vendor Post on Greenpointers.com (worth $125) for all vendors who are accepted and submit information about their business in a timely manner.
Here is an excerpt from an interesting article in Voices of NY about an Irishman who admires the Polish community in Greenpoint:
“…living among Poles reminds McDonagh of Ireland.
Greenpoint, similar to pre-boom inner-city Dublin, is littered with old factories, warehouse buildings and loft-spaces primed to be re-envisioned by architects and city-planners … In 2011, the Polish in Ireland superseded the British as the largest non-national community in the state. They are now part of the genetic landscape back home.
Don’t trash your tree, abandon it at McCarren Park, where it will be slaughtered in a chipper in the spirit of Christmas!
Mulchfest takes place Sat. & Sun. January 12-13th from 10am-2pm, in McCarren Park (Driggs Ave & Lorimer St) where they will chip your tree and give you a free bag of mulch!
Or you can drop if off from Wed. 1/19 – Sun. 1/13 at McGolrick Park (Driggs Ave & Monitor St) or McCarren Park (Driggs Ave & Lorimer St)
Even easier, just abandon your tree curbside for sanitation to pick-up anytime until Sat. 1/12 to be chipped and mulched.
Watch our short video below for a great way to get your tree out the door window without making a huge mess!
Why mulch? According to the city, “all of the trees will be chipped into mulch that will be used as ground cover to nourish plantings across the City.”
Remember: remove tree stands, tinsel, lights, and ornaments from trees before dropping them off or placing them out for collection. DO NOT PLACE TREES IN PLASTIC BAGS.
