Attending a screening of a food documentary may feel unnecessary because America’s poor diet and over-reliance on processed foods is now a big loud national conversation. Words like local, organic, sustainable, farm to table, fresh, whole, raw, and clean are ubiquitous descriptors for how we aspire to eat. But rather then fetishizing a carefully curated diet, The Park Church Co-op and Down to Earth Farmers Markets recently partnered to host a different kind of food discussion. Both groups share an interest in examining the ethically questionable practices surrounding food distribution. On Sunday May 22nd they chose to screen “Just Eat It!” The documentary’s call-to-arms statistic: Americans waste 40% of our food. Continue reading →
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 →
Let’s be honest. No one really wants to see one single person endowed with multi-faceted talent. Yet, as evidenced in Laura & Greg‘s recently released album “Forever for Sure,” that person exists in the form of Laura O’Neill.
The same woman behind successful neighborhood favorites Van Leeuwen Ice Cream and Selamat Pagi, both of which have delighted our taste buds, can also belt out sweet melodic tunes with the best of them and I’m digging it. I had their first music video for “Muscle Memory” on repeat. Continue reading →
It’s that time of year when ice cream becomes a food group, and the ice cream sandwich becomes a perfectly acceptable lunchtime choice. And it just so happens that Greenpoint currently has two particularly notable examples vying for the ice cream crown: The cheap and cheerful Peter Pan and the deluxe artisanal Van Leeuwen. In the name of essential journalistic research we pit the two against each other and bring you our verdict. Continue reading →
Each first Sunday of the month we have a Sunday Supper at a new location in Greenpoint with a new chef and each first Sunday Supper of the month I am nervous! There is a lot to do and a lot of unknowns. Like will it rain? Do we have enough utensils? Will the chef be on time?
Sunday Supper #7 was particularly more stressful because I was the chef and I suffer from Food Anxiety – which is a clinical neurological condition that involves worrying about making enough food for your guests. One of the symptoms is making way too much food! Everyone in my entire crazy family has this problem – it’s a genetic mutation on the Sicilian strand of DNA I inherited from my father Rocco. Continue reading →
Attention all you ice cream freaks who happen to be vegan, Van Leeuwen (632 Manhattan Ave) just rolled out a new line of Vegan Ice Cream – and it rules! So stop feeling sorry for yourself and grab some VEGAN ice cream.
I taste tested Van Leeuwen’s vegan ice cream at a non-vegan dinner party in which I was asked to bring dessert. More specifically I was asked to bring Tiramusu, but no Italian bakeries were open and besides I don’t eat Tiramisu unless my cousin Roseanne makes it. So vegan ice cream it was and everyone loved it! It was gone in a few minutes and everyone wondered wanted more.
Personally I preferred the chocolate, which was extremely rich, creamy and chocolately. It has an underlying hint of coconut in a very delicious way. I am looking forward to new weekly flavors!
We chatted with the folks at Van Leeuwen about this new and miraculous vegan creation. Continue reading →
Laura, Ben and Pete of Van Leeuwen Ice Cream are celebrating the opening of their shop today from 2 – 6pm. The Ice Cream store is located adjacent to Manhattan Inn and will serve their signature blend of mind blowing flavors as well as coffee from Intelligentsia and and an array of delicious sweets. I can’t tell you enough how excited I am about this, Laura is a fellow Greenpointer, a member of the Greenpoint Girls Group and super kickass in ping pong and silly dancing. VLAIC shop will be most certainly be the old school new school ice cream parlour for the masses.
Meanwhile, Miss Annie Novak of Rooftop Farms and Growing Chefs is throwing a fundraiser tonight at Urban Rustic, from 7pm to midnight. It’s a collaboration between Annie, yours truly, Cody of the Standard, and Luis of Urban Rustic. There will be drinks, food, music, and lots of auction items. Books, classes, kombucha, chocolate, kimchi, jam, you name it, we’re live auctioning it. Tickets are $40 and all the money you spend at the event goes to Growing Chefs which is an amazing organization that connects children from the farm to the kitchen. Annie prepares dozens of classes between Rooftop Farms and Botanic Garden giving students an opportunity to get their hands dirty and taste what they’ve sown directly from soil to their mouths. Come show your support and have some fun while you’re at it!
