I’ve heard varying opinions on the Dine in Brooklyn promotion, mainly that the portions are small and you don’t get to try the best stuff from the regular menu.  Whether you’re a fan or not, it’s a good reminder of what’s available right down the street.  (Or hey, be adventurous and try a different neighborhood!)

Here are the participating restaurants in Clinton Hill and Fort Greene (I have bolded my personal favs):

B = breakfast

L = lunch

D = dinner

CLINTON HILL*

Amina Italian Bistro BD
Italian
458 Myrtle Avenue
718-422-1122
www.animabistro.com

Autour du Monde D
French
860 Fulton Street
718-398-3500
www.restaurantautourdumonde.com

Five Spot Soul Food
Restaurant D
Soulfood
459 Myrtle Avenue
718-852-0202
www.fivespotsoulfood.com

Il Porto Ristorante & Brick
Oven Pizza D
Italian
37 Washington Avenue
718-624-0954
www.ilportobrooklyn.com

Kush Café D
French/Pan-African
17 Putnam Avenue
718-230-3471
www.kushcafe.com


FORT GREENE
Aqualis Grill D
Mediterranean
773 Fulton Street
718-797-3494
www.anellabrooklyn.com

Caffe e Vino BLD
Italian
112 Dekalb Avenue
718-855-6222
www.caffeevino.com
718-384-6777

Chez Lola D
French
387 Myrtle Avenue
718-858-1484
www.bistrolola.com American

Chez Oskar D
French
211 DeKalb Avenue
718-852-6250
www.chezoskar.com

Dajeh Restaurant LD
Caribbean
919 Fulton Street
718-857-1616
www.dajeh.com

Graziella’s Italian Restaurant LD
Italian
232 Vanderbilt Avenue
718-789-5663
www.graziellasmenu.com

iCi D
French/American
246 Dekalb Avenue
718-789-2778
www.icirestaurant.com

Luz Restaurant BLD
Latin American
177 Vanderbilt Avenue
718-246-4000
www.luzrestaurant.com

Madiba Restaurant BLD
South African
195 Dekalb Avenue
718-855-9190
www.madibarestaurant.com

Mullanes Bar & Grill BLD
Irish/American
71 Lafayette Avenue
718-797-7606
www.mullanesbrooklyn.com

Olea Restaurant D
Mediterranean
171 Lafayette Avenue
718-643-7003
www.oleabrooklyn.com

Scopello Ristorante Bar BD
Italian
63 Lafayette Avenue
718-852-1100
www.scopello.net

Thomas Beisl D
Austrian/Viennese
25 Lafayette Avenue
718-222-5800

*As always, disappointed that Locanda Vini e Olii is not participating (again)

if only!

(25-cent parking, off of Fulton Street)

Links to other news stories in the neighborhood:

There’s a new group in town who are working towards getting the Fort Greene Park tennis courts renovated.  They’re also focused on providing active recreation for public health.

We’ll speak to them in depth in the next week or so, but in the meantime they’re having a fundraiser tonight at General Greene:

I’m digging their logo.

Hey everyone, it’s Team LWT back with another installment of Lunchtime With Tillie. Sorry we missed you last week: Yours truly was a little slack on getting Baby T out of the house to eat. (Don’t worry; we had food in the house for her!) But since we didn’t get out and about, we decided to make up for that with a trip that brought multiple food places together under one roof, the Brooklyn Flea at 1 Hanson Place.

I’ve been trying to arrange a trip there for the family for weeks now, but I usually do some freelance work on Saturdays a million miles away in Westchester County and by the time I have to start my trip by plane, train and automobile to get to the job, Tillie’s just waking up from her nap. But I was off this past Saturday, and my flea market mission was not to be denied!

So as soon as T woke up from her midmorning nap, I loaded her up in her stroller to go there, where Tillie’s mom was waiting for us. Tillie’s mom had been out all morning looking at wedding dresses (she’s getting married to a really awesome dude, I hear) and beat us to the place. We talked on my way there and she volunteered to hop in the line where they were serving pupusas. Since I had been saying for months—since the outdoor Flea days—that I wanted to try a pupusa, this was greatly appreciated.

After finally arriving there, we were all set to head downstairs, but there was a slight snag. As I mentioned a few sentences ago, I threw Tillie in the stroller to take her to the Flea. We have an Ergo carrier, but I had only worn it once at that point and I had NO idea how to put it on by myself in backpack mode: Parents out there, I’m sure you understand. Anyway, back to the snag; there was no elevator to get down to the food. No worries as I just carried her down, but it was a lot of stairs to deal with and sometimes it could be said I might have a wee bit of a lazy side.

We got down there and quickly found Tillie’s mom standing in line. Tillie was kind of lethargic on our way down to the Flea, but perked up some when she saw mommy! I un-strollered her and off she went into TM’s waiting arms, joining her to get the much-awaited pupusas.

(more…)

When The Threading Place first opened, I admittedly made fun of the spelling errors on their sign.  I did go in a few times, but found the employees to be high pressure and not-so-friendly. (One employee loudly told a woman getting her brows done that she REALLY needed her lip done, too.  Even if it was true, no woman wants to hear that yelled out loud in front of strangers!)

A neighbor of mine told me they changed owners awhile back, so I decided to stop in to check them out again.  I was pleased to see there were a few people waiting and I got an amazing brow shaping- the best I’ve had in awhile.

If you haven’t stopped in since 2007 (like me), you might want to check them out again.

The Threading Place
262 Vanderbilt Ave
corner of DeKalb
718-622-0883

Recently, a friend of mine told me about a fundraiser she was working on to benefit the Willie May Rock Camp for Girls, a non-profit music program based in Fort Greene.  “Rock Camp?  In Fort Greene?” I thought.  I chatted with Executive Director Karla Schickele about what they offer and about the upcoming benefit.

1. What exactly is the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls?
Officially, it’s a non-profit music and mentoring program that empowers girls and women through music education and activities that foster self-respect, leadership skills, creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration. Unofficially, it’s the funnest summer day camp in New York City… and a brand-new arts education center in Fort Greene/Clinton Hill.

2. Who is the camp open to?  What age groups?
The camp is open to girls age 8 to 18. No musical experience necessary, and tuition is sliding scale.

3. How did the camp end up in Fort Greene?
We were looking for a year-round home where we could have our office, store our music gear, and most importantly, have a practice space so we could make music during the year. Two of us on staff have toddlers who go to The Coop School, so we heard the school was looking for tenants in their new building on Irving Place, and the space turned out to be perfect.

4. How many programs are offered?
In addition to the summer camp, we do Music Club, which is a weekly after school program for girls here in Fort Greene/Clinton Hill, a D.J. program at the Urban Assembly School of Music and Art, plus we offer lessons and practice space for youth bands.

5. What about grown-ups?  Anything for grown up girls?
Glad you asked! We do Ladies Rock Camp for adult women every summer, which is a long-weekend version of the summer camp — instrument classes, band practice, and a big concert at the end. Wicked fun. And all the money goes to the scholarship fund of the summer camp, so it’s a feel-good experience all around. We also do a weekly Ladies Jam drop-in session at our space that’s open to all women!

6. Tell us about your upcoming fundraiser.
Our annual ROCK N’ ROLL AUCTION is next Tuesday, Feb. 9, at 7 p.m. at The Knitting Factory. The hilarious Murray Hill will emcee and serve as auctioneer, Kaki King will perform, Erin McKeown will write a love song on the spot for the highest bidder, and camper bands Saffire and The Awkward Turtles will play. We have amazing items to auction off, including local stuff like party space at Still Hip, kid stuff like Big Apple Circus tickets, and grown-up stuff like a beer party for 40 at the Brooklyn Brewery. We’re also doing an ebay auction of hot items like a mic signed by Tori Amos and a guitar signed by Sheryl Crow. For more information, http://williemaerockcamp.org/auction.html

7. How long have you lived in the neighborhood?  What brought you here?
I’ve lived in Brooklyn since I was 3, but I moved to Fort Greene in 2005, five minutes after I met my partner Kate. Now we have two kids and we’re still in the same one-bedroom. The neighborhood is powerful like that!

8. If you could change one thing about the neighborhood, what would it be and why?
Now that we have a bookstore? Hmmm….a Westbeth-style living place for artists and (ahem) non-profit leaders, to make it possible for us to remain in the community.

9. What’s your favorite local hangout?
Bittersweet! and Outpost!

10. If you were a flavor of ice cream, what would you be and why?
Well, I don’t know, but my son Emmet and I were playing ice cream stand at playgroup at the Lafayette Church yesterday, and he offered me an imaginary cone with what really sounded like “Sticker Shock Chocolate.” So that’s my new favorite flavor.

***

Who wants to do grown up Rock Camp with me?!

Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls
87 Irving Place
Brooklyn NY 11238
(347) 599-0716
www.williemaerockcamp.org

ROCK N’ ROLL AUCTION
Tuesday, Feb. 9
The Knitting Factory
with Murray Hill and Kaki King
361 Metropolitan Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11211

Noticed those green decals on the sidewalks in Fort Greene?  The DOT and BAM are behind the project, aimed at helping people find their way to our local cultural institutions.

I think they look pretty neat.  Plus, I still get confused going to the Harvey theater.  If only they could direct me to the best subway entrance for each line.  It gets so confusing down there, with the Q, N, B, D at different platforms.

January’s Artwork at Tillie’s:


January 4 – February 6, 2010
Reception
Friday 1/8/10, 7 – 9 p.m.

Brooklyn-based artist David Macaluso achieved international recognition last year with his portraits of Barack Obama painted with used motor oil, a medium he’s been using since 2005. He regards this technique, one of many at his disposal, as a means of recycling while also serving as a metaphorical undercurrent in his work. The portraits prompted ExxonMobil to become a client. In October 2009 the “Barack Obama: Made in Motor Oil” portraits were published in a hardcover edition called Hope: A Collection of Obama Posters and Prints.

The artist states: “I regard my work as part of a vast and enigmatic evolutionary continuum, a verse in a powerful play.  Each work I create, and the body of my work as a whole, seems guided by some overarching vision which is hard for me to define and is often fragmentary.  My work rarely seems to fit neatly into any distinct category, but is more like an urge, one that is simultaneously constructive and deconstructive, pushing toward a deeper awareness.”

David Macaluso has studied at Hunter College, the New School, and Parsons School of Design. He has shown his work at the Athens Institute of Contemporary Art in Athens, Georgia; at the Deborah Martin Gallery in Los Angeles; and at Artists Space, the Paula Barr Gallery, and Art Gotham in Manhattan. He was featured in the Saatchi Gallery online and is a member of the Brooklyn Arts Council.

A customer of Fulton Street’s dress shop, Michael Shane Bridal, is in need of a bone marrow match, and this Saturday the shop will hold an event for people willing to register for the bone marrow registry.  Hopefully this young lady will find a donor locally.

Apparently you don’t even need to give a blood sample to determine if you are a match – just a swab with a q-tip on the inside of your cheek.