I made a lot of new friends in the hood this summer, which makes it a lot more liveable here and dare I say it…fun? What would really kick the livability up a few notches would be an improved retail landscape. Unfortunately not ONE of the business rumors I passed on has come to fruition: the bar that was to open on Starr hit a major snafu and the location was abandoned by the principals. “Yes No Maybe” is a real disappointment…whatever it was supposed to be. Recently “Flushing Farm” was stenciled on the corner, but aside from that, the place is vacant and even the “farm” is in large part a pile of debris. The Thai restaurant chick, well, she never promised anybody anything. And the brick oven pizza off Bogart? pff.
Aside from those specific things I had heard about, it still seems other businesses would have opened over the summer. I guess the business community isn’t as in-tune with demographic trends as I thought. Unless they’re way underground with those wine bar plans. We’ll see what becomes of the Northeast Kingdom lounge.
At this point in the game, we don’t have many savvy businesspeople doing stuff in Bushwick — we’re stuck with hobbyists and half-assers. Somebody prove me wrong.
jay October 9th, 2007 at 1:02 pm
Werid shaped lot, small space, and not enough storage areas.
The housing next door is small too, and an odd confirguration, but was recently gut renovated.
The lofts behind it are really cool.
GBM is a really cool space, and they are doing something right over there. Someone needs to follow in their footsteps.
The thai food lady just needs a building and growing customer base. Perhaps if you did a real estate roundup of commerial spaces people might take notice of the opportunities that exist in Bushwick.
cheryl October 9th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
Commercial Space Round Up is a great idea.
jay October 9th, 2007 at 2:33 pm
maybe have it on another day other than the other real estate round ups.
it’s great to keep track of commercial developments. Jimmy the space near you is just waiting for a good business. Wonder what the rent is.
I don’t the house on the right has been sold either. The intersection will one day be such a cool intersection of places to hang out.
Andrew October 9th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
There seem to be many great commercial opportunities in Bushwick – it’s a shame the business community is taking so long to figure it out. The pizza place at Morgan is coming along, however slowly – there are still people building out the space and the sheetrock is up now. Black Bean Lounge on Broadway still needs a new short order chef – hopefully they get round to finding one and opening the place up more than four nights a week. The Myrtle Ave J stop is in serious need of a store like Brooklyn’s Natural – here’s hoping someone spots that opportunity. At the moment though it feels like a whole lot of hope and not a lot of action. I’ve got to believe as more new people come into the neighborhood, the demographics will become overwhelming and cool stuff will start to pop up. We can hope.
Jeremy October 9th, 2007 at 3:37 pm
It’s odd, I personally know tens of people who have moved here in the last year, and they all have a handful of friends, and so on. I see hundreds of new faces a week just walking by my house.
Good to hear the pizza place is still on track, though it’s not like we lack good pizza in the hood.
EJCohen October 9th, 2007 at 4:33 pm
Yeah, I’m absolutely flummoxed over what’s going one with the Black Bean Grill. It’s open… sometimes. So no short order cook? So who’s doing the cooking when they are open?
I think it may be harder to open up something “cooler” near the Myrtle J for the simple reason that it’s too convenient to subway it from here to Williamsburg or to the Lower East Side. These places are not psychologically too far (for me, anyway) and the local supermarket, the Chinese takeout on Bushwick, the pizza place the accross the street on Broadway and even Life Cafe deliver near here… so these things may seem sufficient enough. Not that it ACTUALLY is but that might be the psychology involved beyond the usual ghetto perception fears. But they’ve gutted and are renovating a residential apartment building on the corner of Broadway and Arion Pl. Could turn out to be really nice and thus attract further residents with tastes beyond the local Kennedy Fried Chickens, 99 cent stores and rice and bean joints.
Andrew October 9th, 2007 at 5:15 pm
Well, I do hope the Myrtle Ave J stop gets a few more facilities, not least because I’m about to move there from the Morgan L area. Although I have to put in a plug for Tacos El Poblano on Broadway between Park and Ellery – amazing Mexican food. As for the Black Bean Grill, I went in there recently and spoke to the owner – he’s doing the cooking for now, but it doesn’t seem like he has a lot of other staff, hence the need for the short order chef.
Armstrong October 9th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Yeah, this is so depressing guys.. I’ve been out here since 2000/2001 and essentially we have gotten nothing as far as those of us living south of Irving and east of Flushing.
Can’t someone open something decent on Knickerbocker. A decent sit down Thai or Japanese place, or some sort of retail that would bridge the gap between dishwashers and hipsters? Actually, what would bridge the gap between dishwashers and hipsters? LOL
Do you think that owners have jumped the shark and are asking for rents that are too high for retail spaces in Bushwick, too soon?
Or have artists/hipsters/strivers simply not reached enough critical mass yet to warrant these businesses around here?
If I see another Payless Shoes or Rite Aid open in one of the several vacant storefronts on Knick, I’m going to be pissed.
esb October 9th, 2007 at 5:58 pm
Though the neighborhood certainly doesn’t need any more bodega’s, there is a bouji bodega that just opened on starr between wyckoff and irving(next to that really small accessories shop). It’s really small, and doesn’t look like it carries much, but it seems fancier than your typical bushwick bodega. Alas, that’s the only new development I’ve seen near my place of late.
Armstrong October 9th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
I’ve seen that bodega as well though haven’t gone in. They close quite early it seems from the sign.
That little stretch of Starr could really support some cool shit as it gets tons of foot traffic from folks going to and from the subway entrance on Wyckoff from points south..
Where are you in general esb? Starr by Knickerbocker here.
Matt October 9th, 2007 at 6:32 pm
Yeah, but the name of that bouji-esque deli…K-Pax?
K-WTF?
Matt October 9th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
0h hey, I’m about to be fired, or quit. Whichever I uhhh…decide. (Nice choice huh?)
Perhaps a complete life change is in order and I open a Starr Bar! Or try to get the Amarin Thai doods to be biz partners and open in our area. Their place on Manhattan in Gpoint could literally be transported here. Nothing fancy. In fact, almost borderline gross to eat there. A minor step up from a takeout chinese vibe. But a few tables, no liquor liscense so you hit the deli nearby. Could be a good cut and paste!
Or I could win the lottery and do both :)
jay October 9th, 2007 at 8:07 pm
The myrtle ave. stop has a ways to go before something like brooklyn natural comes there. One of the reason some have said they won’t go there is because there are too many other negative businesses there. where BN is now there is little competition.
the new faces you see walking by Jeremy actually have to begin showing they are a buying force in Bushwick, and not doing everything elsewhere like Manhattan.
new pizza places are welcome but cuisine to appeal to the new demographics could help, as long as they have enough business to sustain them.
yes the guy at the black bean grill is trying to stay open, but it’s not easy without enough customers.
Matt if you are the the one with a bf from Starr street, who is looking for work, I suggest you make it know so that the appropriate people can know you are willing to work to help gentrify the area.
esb October 9th, 2007 at 11:53 pm
armstrong, i’m on starr between irving and wyckoff, not so far from KPAX! i haven’t been in yet either, and don’t know if I will ever have reason to since the non bouji bodega’s suit me just fine. according to wiki, “In K-PAXian society where sex is considered unpleasant, raw veganism or fruitarianism is preferred, eating meat is never considered and there are no laws, governments, or schools (in other words – anarchy).” sounds scary!
vertigo October 10th, 2007 at 12:38 am
As far as I can tell, there is way more (and growing) of a market here than is being served by the businesses.
I am very excited by the new Bodega on Jefferson (the first Mexican Bodega on this block) because I gets my Pellegrino on there. And though they take their time, they make a good burrito.
I am seriously down to make a coffee shop. I got spoiled living next to two at my last place and really want one on my block. If anyone out there is into businesses, I think it we could come together to make it happen.
Jeremy October 10th, 2007 at 9:45 am
Now if we could just get an Argentinean bodega, we’d have our wine bar, and still have empanadas!
EJCohen October 10th, 2007 at 10:37 am
In terms of commercial space availabilities there is at least two on Broadway, somewhere between Arion and Myrtle. And these spaces have remained empty since I first moved here a year ago. Not a good sign, really. Although a new Butcher seems to be opening up across the street from my building. Curious how that will turn out. And it is unique from the party stores and beauty parlors that have been making up the “recently opened business” terrain of the neighborhood.
There is a Chinese takeout on Bushwick not far from the Opera Lofts that ain’t half bad. I’ve ordered delivery from them a couple of times. The name escapes me, but they claim they use only vegetable oil and absolutely no msg.
Jeremy October 10th, 2007 at 11:53 am
Vegetable oil instead of what? Isn’t that what all places use? It’d be downright refreshing to learn of a place that uses real lard.
EJCohen October 10th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
>>It’d be downright refreshing to learn of a place that uses real lard.
Heh-heh. Yeah, I dunno, what the oil alternative would be nowadays. Canola oil?
No what would be awesome? A new steak place. Yeah, Peter Lugar’s is at the end of the JMZ line before you hit the bridge, but I’d feel quite consoled that a medium rare porterhouse was there and waiting for me just a block away. Either that or a riodizio-style Argentinian grill.
esb October 15th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
So I stopped by k-pax the other day, and no longer find “bouji bodega” to be an apt description. In fact, it’s not a bodega at all, but a true and true deli – this meaning that they prepare all sorts of delicious foods.
armstrong October 15th, 2007 at 1:40 pm
tell us more esb. like what? sandwiches?
Jeremy October 15th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
omg, it’s bougie
Dylan October 15th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
I walked by K-Pax today, and although I didn’t go in it looked cleaner than your average bodega.
esb October 16th, 2007 at 2:02 pm
They have all sorts. Sandwiches, salads, soups. The guy running the place seemed eastern european – though he could have been Puerto Rican (I’m not so good at distinguishing these things). But if he is Eastern European, perhaps this means fresh kalbasa and perogies in Bushwick’s near future. Rumors, alas, but this is the right place for them.
Steveo October 16th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
Yeah…I have to agree with the half ass comment. I own a real estate office here, on Knickerbocker Avenue. I can’t get any decent tenants for any of the commercial spaces in Bushwick or Bed-stuy. It’s not the rents. There are plenty of organizations that are willing to help people start businesses here in Bushwick. Someone has to have the testicullar fortitude and the $$$$$ to do something. We are in dire need of decent commercial businesses. The only respectable place we like to frequent is the Wyckoff-Starr cafe. Simple idea, very profitable. Any pioneers out there?
Jeremy October 16th, 2007 at 4:59 pm
You can get kielbasa and pierogies in Ridgewood. I just want a deli that isn’t a complete fucking dump.
jay October 16th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
Steveo, what kind of investment are we talking about. We were talking about having a commercial real estate round up and it would be good to know what commercial properties are out there to see if some business by people that care can open up.
What streets are these commercial properties on, what’s the square footage and the terms. If the lady interested in opening a Thai restaurant heard about the possibilities, maybe we’d all be eating pad thai right now.
Where are there good pierogies in Ridgewood?
jay October 16th, 2007 at 6:18 pm
Jen- where do you go to shop and dine in Fort Greene/Park Slope, etc. If we could have a quarter of what they have we’d be in business. I wish I could patronize more business in bushwick, but how many bodegas can one go to. It would be nice to keep patronize more businesses here, but none are that good, except for Little Munchies on the corner of Decatur and Evergreen Avenues.
John January 4th, 2008 at 11:02 pm
so I went to K PAX today and its super nice and really CLEAN! dont care what you people are saying- owners been living on Starr street for over 7 years and they are super nice. Great soups! I really hope they ll do well
Jeremy January 8th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
John, I don’t think anyone was saying anything bad about the place, just that it has a weird name. I rode my bike past it recently and suddenly noticed it — for some reason, it doesn’t really pop out at you. I’ll have to go check it out.
Armstrong January 8th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Good luck to them. If I didn’t walk past it everyday, I’d barely notice it either and delis always do better on corners.
Still, that little strip of Starr between Irving and Wyckoff is EXACTLY what Wythe or Berry in Williamsburg looked like ten years ago.
I anticipate great things to come…
esb January 8th, 2008 at 2:22 pm
does anyone know what happening to the building next to NEK? it looks like it’s being converted into either retail or another restaurant – though it seems to be taking forever. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was by the owners of NEK, since they seem to be assembling a legitimate empire on that block, but have heard nothing to that effect.
Also, I meant no offense by my kpax comments – just a funny name. I shop there quite often now, as they keep a steady supply of perogies. I do wish though that they kept longer hours, and stocked the shelves a bit more. Even when I make a point of giving them my business, they often don’t have really basic items.
Rob January 9th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
The pizza place on Moore street, Roberta’s belongs to my brother, it’s named after our mom, and some of our friends. Having lived through the build out and the city inspections I can tell you guys that you cannot begin to believe what it takes to open a restaurant.
They started in April and thought they’d be open by July and then every single month after.
Anyway, as of this Friday they’re open for real and the vibe is awesome and the food is awesome.
On a related note:
Try Moto on Broadway right off the Hewes stop the JMZ. Awesome place, beyond a shadow of a doubt the best restaurant, excluding Peter Luger’s, in the Broadway corridor. Took them fourteen months to open, they thought it would take them three. There’s a documentary about it.
Also, try all the Mexican places on Knickerbocker. I like Asuncion and the one across the street whose name slips me right now.
The pupusa place across the street from Maria Hernandez park on Knickerbocker is awesome and cheap.
If you haven’t eaten there you can’t believe La Isla Cuchifritos on the corner of Myrtle and Knickerbocker. Five bucks gets you half a rotisserie chicken and a big plate of rice and beans. You can take this to go and make it two meals. And the taste is fantastic.
Good eating.
- Rob Bryn
Blanca January 10th, 2008 at 3:15 pm
Check this out:
http://thisisswigg.com/blog/?p=636
Dresden January 12th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
The “yes no maybe” was put there by an “artist” – it was “art”.
The owner has said a million times he is about to open in 3 weeks, some coffee place or something.
It could be a great bar. And if you think it’s too small, ahem, Kings County. Nough said.
I wish someone would do something with it. It’s a GREAT corner.
kanoa January 14th, 2008 at 11:36 am
i have been told that nextdoor to NEK will be a gallery/performance-space or retail.
Armstrong February 16th, 2008 at 12:37 am
There is a new THAI place opening at 214 Knickerbocker by Troutman. Looks like it’s going to be good from what I can see of the decorating scheme I can discern from the half opened gate.. “When” is the question that we must wonder however.