Good Wood opening (Village Voice)

Quite a pool party, but…NYT reports today that as plans for McCarren Pool to convert back to its original purpose, the Open Space Alliance has its sights set on the Bushwick Inlet Park.  It’s pretty much North Williamsburg, but close people.

“Bands like these deserve a crowd like that.” Gothamist reviews a Todd P. hot and sweaty show at Market Hotel, after also linking to our very own concerns of an MTV “invasion.”

Bushwick and Chelsea go head to head. Wow. The Village Voice is really promoting our apparent “gallery district” on Flushing.  This is the second article in two weeks on the subject.

Fun was had by all. For those of you who could not make it to the album release party of Welcome to Bushwick, a compilation of fourteen local bands, here are some pictures from the event at Northeast Kingdom.

A tipster sent this in just now: guys putting up the awning for the falafel joint set to open soon at 43 Bogart in Morgantown. I was by there earlier and noticed a lot of equipment inside all three storefronts. Home stretch, people.

It’s been a long time coming, but Bushwick’s first proper wine shop has finally opened. It’s actually been open for some two weeks now, and is fully stocked with all varieties of wine from every major growing region. Vinos en Wyckoff also sells what seems like hundreds of brands of liquors. I visited with owner Tony Acosta to talk to him about the shop:

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photo by Angela J. Cranford

For one night every week, bingo fans of Bushwick head to the Wreck Room, an auto-mechanic’s wet dream of a bar located at the corner of Flushing and Evergreen. With wall decorations made up of old car parts and seats from the back of reclaimed minivans, the Wreck Room’s vibe is unexpectedly welcoming. I came in shortly after 9pm, the official start of Monday Night Bingo, and grabbed a spot at a corner seat with what I was hoping to be a sure winner. But yet, in the end, B-I-N-G-O proved elusive as ever.

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I went to a house party on Saturday night, and the host sent Anna to get cream for coffee at the nearby Associated on Knickerbocker. “What do you want, half-and-half or heavy cream?” I said, if they have organic half-and-half, get that, but if they don’t, just get whole cream. She came back in a few minutes: “They had both organic half-and-half and whole cream, so I got both.” I pulled both cartons — marked with a hefty price — from the bag and held them up for the whole room to see. “From the Associated,” I announced. Luis’ jaw actually dropped. I’m pretty sure “the Ass” is the first place in Bushwick proper you can buy organic cream. Sweet.

Update that Organic Milk Continuum chart — next stop, bodegas carry organic milk.

From a tipster: the two storefronts in the new retail spots on Bogart will be an LA-style Mexican restaurant and a falafel joint owned by the same guys as Oasis on North 7th and Bedford in Williamsburg. I’m thoroughly unexcited by the prospect of a Mexican place and only lukewarm about falafel, though as falafel goes, Oasis is the best I have had. Despite my personal tastes, with the addition of these businesses and the future CakeWalk vegan bakery, “Downtown” Morgantown is really shaping up!

Chillin’ at the park

For the third time, I took my Thursday coffee companion, Mario, around Bushwick. Last year, we had pizza and espresso at Fortunata’s, but on each subsequent Mario visit we have instead had pizza at Roberta’s, his new favorite place, far from Houston Street though it may be. While the coffee at Roberta’s is fine — they use Lavazza from the black can and make it in a “moka” — we were still undercaffeinated after having drunk an entire bottle of wine between us. Yeah it’s only 2pm by this point, so what.

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Here’s some stuff I have inklings and semi-confirmation on:

*A huge warehouse at Knickerbocker and Flushing is right now under renovation into a Bedford Minimall-like retail and art center. The developer has not yet decided on a final layout. A snippet of one possibility is above.

*Two upscale/organic grocery operators are fighting over space at the Wyckoff Exchange. One wants two “bays” of the five available, the other wants three — the third would be so there is room for a wine shop.

*Also at the Wyckoff Exchange, it’s rumored that a rock-climbing gym was sniffing around looking for space — but they may have settled on an armory in Park Slope. Which is fine with me. Can you just imagine the insufferable frat douchebags invading our sensitive arty hipster hub? (Cuz you know they already are).

*The vacant Scaturro block on Knickerbocker and DeKalb is slated to become lofts and nice ground floor retail.

*A creperie and café is in the pipeline for Bushwick within the year, if all goes to plan.

*Jane’s bar now has its building permits, and serious plumbing work is underway. Scheduled opening is pushed back to September.

Last year there were rumors of a wine shop opening on Wyckoff, but there have been no updates since September. Now it seems that yes, a wine shop called Vinos en Wyckoff will be opening possibly in May. I can’t say whether the name reflects the expected client base or if it means they will have Spanish wines — both would be refreshing. A contact peeked inside and says “it looks more like a bar.” We’ll have to wait and see.

Nice storefront, too — I like the iron columns. What, no huge plastic multi-colored umbrella awning?

UPDATE: The owner says “Vinos en Wyckoff will be open probably in June. We will have also liquors, but we want to educate people in the area about wine. We will carry affordable high quality wines. We have a big yard and we will offering free wine tasting and classes.”

UPDATE 2: The store is now open!

Vinos en Wyckoff | 150 Wyckoff

A few weeks ago I heard rumors of a vegan bakery planned for the new storefronts on Bogart and Moore. The other day, I got a tip:

“One of the vans moving things in was from ‘Red Mango Bakery,’ and even the van smelled like a delicious coconut treat. I really hope they’re setting up a shop. I could go for some baked goods RIGHT NOW.”

I saw the van, too, but thought maybe they were delivering to Roberta’s or the Archive. It turns out that a new place called CakeWalk will be opening in the middle storefront. It is billed as a “a vegan pastry bar and vegetarian cafe.” Angela Pickman of Red Mango assures me that all the products taste just like the animal product-packed confections us traditionalists crave. “If you ate it without knowing its vegan, you’d never know!”

The cafe menu will definitely be meatless. It will take an artist to create a selection varied enough for everyone to enjoy, but CakeWalk seems up to the test.

There’s no exact opening date as it depends on completion of renovations. Stay tuned!

CakeWalk, 43 Bogart