478 Myrtle (bt Washington and Hall) has been under renovation for awhile. Looks like the space will be home to a selection of homeopathy (apparently they’re affiliated with the BIH). Despite the Grand Opening signs, shelves inside are completely empty.
As I’ve seen mentioned elsewhere..is the same guy going to be standing outside smoking cigarettes?
gotta love stores that open without crap actually inside the store. Brilliant management is assured with this place.
as i have mentioned before, simply another front for the russian mafia. and no doubt, the same guy that ran the “bike shop” will be in this store peddling “homeopathic” items with that cigarette hanging from his mouth. what a freaking joke this place is and a true waste of good retail space on the avenue.
Wow, off to a good start; Great first impression. Maybe the bare shelves is some sort of homeopathy therapy.
yeah this is some shady place. but will they still keep the bike pump outside? at least that was useful
Clinton Hill- our neighborhood’s motto should be ” Oh, we’re out of that, check back next week.”
My expectations at this point are pretty low for just about any new business opening in the area. Most appear barely legitimate. This seems to be the neighborhood where new business owners go to fail. I’ve finally gotten to the point where if I need anything I spare myself the aggravation and simply default to Park Slope.
What’s this business about the Russian Mafia? And all the complaining about the stores in our hood? The whole area is under transformation, and we can’t expect everything to be perfect over night! Give the Polish Bar of Brooklyn, Barking Brown, the new pet shop on the corner some credit…And that is only on one block! Since when do neighborhoods have to have every single amenity in a five block radius? I know Park Slope doesn’t have everything I need, and I certainly wouldn’t want to live over there, its overpopulated!
Maybe I’m just an optimist! Or, naive?!
That’s my rant for the day.
Thank you!
Melanie, I’d call you an optimist. I wish I could catch a bit of that, but it seems that forces beyond my control are continually conspiring against me.
I was excited when the NYC pet opened in CH- I have been buying my dog food from the one on 5th Ave for over a year now. But the other day I went in to buy an EXTREMELY common training item- a 22″ chain collar ( fits a medium sized dog).Not only did they not have a 22″ ( a forgivable oversight) – they had FOUR chain collars. TOTAL. Not 4 of each size- FOUR TOTAL! So off to Who’s Your Doggy (?) I went and guess what. Yup- no size 20,22,24,26. They went straight from 18 to 28 inches.
So I’m off to the pet shop in Prospect Heights where they are ALWAYS well stocked. They’ve never disappointed me.
Why is it that our neighborhood seems to be continually out-of-stock or not open on their appointed hours or overpriced or slow or downright incompetent? I’m not asking for the moon and stars, but if you’re running a business that’s open to the public and ostensibly is there to serve them why not SERVE THEM? This is NYC ( granted a fairly sleepy hamlet in NYC, but NYC all the same) – if you can’t or won’t there’s ALWAYS someone else who can and will.
As I have stated in a previous comment, the blog seems to be turning into a forum to bash local small businesses
House o Wax- Did you ever speak with the owners ( and/or managers) of all these “terrible” businesses? to express your concerns and problems? What has been the reaction from the owners?
More specific about this store~ I passed by and what I see is a store in the process of opening, there is paper on the windows and you have to peer over the paper to see into the store
Perhaps the owners were a little premature in posting a grand opening sign but the response to that sign on this blog is ridiculous.
Perhaps they should have posted a coming soon sign, maybe his command of coloquial english is not so good and “grand opening” & “coming soon” have the same meaning to him
Or maybe he just wants to piss off a lot of silly people who keep referring to him as the smoking russian mafiaso
Melanie, you are neither an optomist nor naive. You are simply sane.
This area’s local businesses are not fronts for the Russian mafia. (If they exist anywhere, wouldn’t it be in Brighton Beach?) The supermarkets do not have piles of rotting vegetables sitting out. The restaurants are in general pretty good, and in general less expensive than comparable restaurants in Manhattan. There are not drug dealers and prostitutes on every corner. There are not piles of human feces everywhere. Cars are not stolen and vandalized every single night. The buses and trains run on schedule, at least as well as the rest of the MTA system. Most of the stores and services are just fine. It is perhaps true (I haven’t canvassed for myself) that you cannot get a 22″ dog chain without having to walk a few extra blocks, but into every life must come a little hardship.
I thought Body by Brooklyn was the unofficial front for the Russian mafia?
Thanks CB.
I am sane, you’re right. And I couldn’t agree more with Chloe. It’s good to see that everyone out there is not completely irrational!
One of my many favorite things about living in New York is that it is not a one stop shopping strip mall.
Although, I could complain that the hardware store didn’t have the screws I needed- they told me to go to the plumbing shop on Franklin-
Woe is me!
Yes CB sometimes the blog does veer towards the negative but in general people are more likely to complain about things they want to see changed rather than praise whats already good. CH is an awesome neighborhood with quite a few great businesses but it also has some that could improve a good deal. If I was a small business owner I would want to know any and all criticisms that my potential customers have so that I could get more business.
I agree people are more likely to complain then compliment
The question I am asking or rather the point I am trying to make is:
Do the commentators who are complaining on this blog voice these concerns to the owners/managers of these businesses?
Because I get the impression that the most vocal complainers dont approach the owners but would rather just blog complain
Although “we” may all be in tune with blog culture many of the local business owners may not be and would be more open to complaints/comments made in person.
So again I will pose my question:
Does anyone approach owners when there is a problem and what is the response?
Kyle, I myself am a big complainer. I bitch about things much more than I praise. What irks me about the complaints I read here are the hysterical extremes they go to. Any mention of any restaurant on this blog is met by a series of horror stories that are worse than ANY restaurant experience I’ve EVER had ANYWHERE. The supermarkets are compared to Third World nations. From reading this blog’s comments on crime, you would think we live in Fort Apache the Bronx. Etc. etc. It’s so over the top that I just don’t buy it and I have to call shenanigans. And I just don’t buy the rationalization that folks are just trying to give business owners constructive criticism. I think they’re just bitching. I’ve read the same type of stuff on blogs of other neighborhoods. There’s a DUMBO blog where people complain about all the panhandlers, drug dealers and crime they have to deal with. In DUMBO!
sh*t happens, into everyones life a little rain must fall.
we all have bad experiences from time to time. things in this city can be frustrating at times. blogging may be a valve for some. humans are creatures of habit, and when things do not go as hoped, planned, expected, as usual, chaos erupts in the mind. things can get ugly.
different people react differently. some are shy and hold it all in, then release it anonymously on a blog.
I AM a complainer- it’s true. And I can get on a pretty negative wave sometimes.I apologize for that and I recognize that it’s often not helpful. But I stick to my assessment of the nabe ( and it’s been said often and about various businesses in the area): most people opening and running businesses here are ill-suited to do so. Perhaps its by virtue of having so little competition in the immediate area, but it blows my mind how often a simple errand cannot be accomplished without leaving the neighborhood.
I have a 6 month old, so time and convenience are often of the essence to me. I find that attempting to get anything done in CH is so often futile that it’s often a more efficient use of my time to bypass it altogether for Park Slope where subpar businesses get swallowed up by their ample competition. Thus everyone is forced to excel or perish.
I love living in CH for the most part. But I’m not the type to support a business simply because it’s in the area. If I patronize an establishment it’s got to be offering me something more than just convenience to my home.
House o Wax- You Still didnt address my very simple question- so I am guessing it is your prefferred method to anonmously blog complain rather then speak with anyone from these “terrible” shops
if you are really committed to the community and dont want to patronize sub-par (i really hate that expression) establishments then why dont you make comments to the owners- perhaps if everyone who loves to jump on this blog and complain actually took 1-2 minutes to speak with the owners of local businesses then perhaps there would be improvemnet to these businesses
When I read these blog complaints (especially lately)- all I think is the posters are whiny little shits who dont have the strength of character to complain in person- but maybe I am wrong
Because I would love to ONLY shop in my community but it seems like everytime a new business opens ( or not quite opened) there is a feeding frenzy to be the 1st to slam the new business
Well, Chloe, sorry I didn’t adress your question. I guess I overlooked it. But since you asked ( and so politely, too) I’ll do so now.
Yes, I have. I mentioned to the proprietor of ‘the Speakeasy’ that I found her menu a bit overpriced to be an ‘everyday neighborhood place’ ( her words) and when I did go there at the insistence of my dining companion I told the waiter that my breakfast was cold and the service was atrocious ( although I phrased it more delicately). From what I have been able to discern from other reviews my complaints didn’t start a service/quality revolution over there.
I likewise told the proprietors of Square Root that the food was bad- my macaroni was cold (not thoroughly reheated) and the sausages were leathery. I don’t want ice in my OJ. They were receptive, but I’ve yet to go back to see if they’d improved. I mentioned to the seemingly addled young man at NYC PET that they were laughably low on some basic stock items and he passed the buck to someone who wasn’t there at the time. I likewise mentioned to Who’s Your Doggy(?) thatr I’d put in multiple requests for 33lb bags of my brand of food (at their suggestion) yet they were never stocked. I’ve since given up on them.
My experience at Mojito ( long waits, missing orders, spilled drinks) was met with a litany of complaints.
In fact, Chloe, since you’re interested, I find myself issuing complaints at almost every turn. And I see very little improvement in general, because I imagine the CH boosters tend to overlook these failings and allow for this sort of shortcomings in the interest of supporting local business. I, however, am not one of them.
I’ll add that I am quick to praise and boost businesses that I think deserve it. One that comes to mind is Il Torchio; I’ve been there numerous times and recommended it to friends as well.
So as far as my character, I think you’d be impressed. I’m not a whiny little shit, but in fact a loud and proud complainer. I appreciate your thoughts on me and my methods, however, and will try in the future to be even more the man you – a total stranger- think I should be.
Actually house of wax Perhaps I was persumptive in assuming you only blog complain – for that I apologize
Although I do seem to have hit several nerves with you- to be frank I thought you were a female – so it never entered my mind for you to be the “man i want you to be”
“Addled young man” is a highly arrogant and dismissive comment
I guess ~ Sorry the store clerk wasnt the rocket scientist that you wanted him to be ( and perhaps think you are)
So sorry, no, I am not impressed by yr character.