Third Annual SummerFest at the Urban Academy of Arts and Letters

The Urban Assembly Academy of Arts & Letters, a third-year public middle school in Fort Greene, invites families and community members to attend its 3nd Annual SummerFest! on Saturday, June 19th, from 12:00 to 3:00pm at 225 Adelphi Street, Brooklyn, NY.Free and open to the public, SummerFest! invites all to this outdoor festival to celebrate students, summer, and community!  Area families, businesses, and organizations will have the chance to celebrate the season and learn more about Arts & Letters’ efforts to provide high quality public middle school choice for Brooklyn families. SummerFest! will include an exhibition of student artwork, student performances, face painting, and games for all ages.  In addition, a diverse array of area restaurants will be featured in the “Taste of Fort Greene/Clinton Hill Food Fest,” including Bacchus, Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, Choice Restaurant, Graziella's, General Greene Restaurant, Habana Outpost, La Villa Pizzeria & Restaurant, Mega Bites, Olea Mediterranean Taverna, Ruthie’s Restaurant of Brooklyn, Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pie, Sugarcane and other area favorites. Representing an array of ethnic cuisines, participants will feature child-friendly selections and unique hors d'oeuvres to tempt palates! The Brooklyn Steppers will provide a toe tapping performance that is sure to get the crowd moving. Raffle items will include a "Family Admission to the High School Short List Workshop," designed for Brooklyn parents and students to help them identify a short list of "good fit" public high schools to tour in the fall. "So much of the work that we do with kids in middle school at Arts & Letters is building community, and teaching kids what that really looks and feels like, in our school, in our neighborhoods, in New York City, and beyond,” says Arts & Letters Principal Allison Gaines Pell. “SummerFest! is a day to share our mission and talents with our Brooklyn neighborhood and to learn more about who they are, as well, so that we can build our community." Welcoming its first 6th grade class in September 2006, Arts & Letters embraces the philosophy that in the best upper grades schools, students are transformed from children who have benefited from a general education to young men and women who have discovered their unique gifts and voices and are prepared to put them to use in the world. Through rigorous academic study, dynamic arts partnerships with NYC organizations, and a sharp focus on the creative communication strategies students need to succeed in college and in life, Arts & Letters will graduate tomorrow’s “ones to watch,” individuals who communicate and lead with courage, confidence, creativity, and clarity. For more information about SummerFest! or Arts & Letters, please view www.uaaal.org.  For information about how to support SummerFest!, please contact Patrick Raymond, Arts & Letters Community Coordinator, at (718) 222-1605 x3043 or praymond@uaaal.org.

Lunchtime With Tillie: El Cofre

 

"Kick, kick, kick: GOOOAAALLL!"

Hey everyone, it's Van and Tillie with a special World Cup edition of Lunchtime With Tillie. The above phrase is a quote from T and it's what she says whenever she sees any soccer on TV or is kicking a ball around the house. (She was introduced to the sport through an episode of "Dora the Explorer.") I bring up Tillie's love of soccer because it played a part in our dining experience at Dominican restaurant El Cofre, located on Myrtle Avenue.

It's funny, but after being in the neighborhood for years I had only eaten there once before and that was during the Myrtle Avenue block party last year. I always walked by the place but never thought to give it a shot, and as it is, I hadn't gone back since that day. The food was fine, but it just hadn't reached "must-have-El Cofre" status, even though a couple of people have told me the pork chops there are amazing.

Now that I've given you that boring history lesson, let's take it to the present day with our trip there. It started as any other LWT day: Tillie plays; she goes to sleep, which always seems to be later than usual on the days we're going out for lunch; I sit around starving, hoping she wakes up soon so we can go out. When my little sleeping beauty finally did wake up, I was in full get-out-the-door mode, thinking of a place to go that's accommodating proximity- and price-wise. So El Cofre it was.

We got there and only a couple of people were sitting at tables with a few people standing in line getting their orders to go. We took a seat and I asked the waitress for a high chair. It arrived and I set Tillie up in it—as best as I could because the buckle was broken. I just had to hope she wasn't in the mood to hop up and down in the chair: It's always the little things!

After looking at the menu, I decided to keep it pretty basic with the chicken, rice and black beans lunch special. For Tillie, I ordered some rice and beans.

While we were waiting for the food to arrive, Tillie's attention was focused on the TV up in the corner playing the Brazil-South Korea game. I was afraid she'd hop up in her seat, ready to get a game on, but she managed to stay put!

My food arrived pretty quickly as it was just a matter of assembling it from the hot trays at the front. I ordered it with the yellow rice, but it was brought over with white instead. By the time that was rectified, Tillie's food came over. It was red beans with yellow rice, but I had ordered black beans for her, too. There were a lot of colorful mix-ups being made, but I figured I'd let Tillie try those beans and if she didn't like them, she could have mine.

I took my first bite, and it was just what I ordered: chicken, rice and beans. I'm sorry I can't give a more apt description, but there's really nothing more to say about it. Sure, the meal was tasty, but I wouldn't be submitting it for a chicken, rice and black beans contest! Tillie only ate a few bites of her food. The beans didn't bother her, it was just a matter of not really wanting to eat at the time and probably being a little too captivated by the match. I gave her a bite of chicken, which she didn't dig—as evidenced by her passing the chewed-up morsel back to me.

I finished up my plate, and asked to get her food wrapped up to go and for the check.

Despite the experience being pretty no-frills, I think we would go there again: A $5 plate is always hard to pass up! And there was plenty of space to sit at there. Maybe we can make it back during the World Cup as Tillie seems to enjoy it when a good match is on. (Or I could just fire up the DVR and let her watch that old Dora the Explorer soccer episode we have!)

The Golden Girls on Clinton Avenue

Clinton Hill Chill is a wealth of information about movies and music that originated in the neighborhood.  In a post from last month, he calls out an episode of the Golden Girls, where Dorothy takes Sophia back to the "old neighborhood" in Brooklyn to help jog her memory.  The episode: "Clinton Avenue Memoirs!" Who didn't love watching GG back in the day?  I never imagined as a child that I'd be living on the same street that Dorothy Zbornak grew up on.

Greene Hill Food Co-Op Meeting: Tuesday

Very interesting - the food co-op will be presenting a potential location for the co-op: Putnam bt Downing, Grand and Fulton.  I have to admit that I'm surprised.  For whatever reason, I automatically assumed the co-op would operate out of Fort Greene, making all of us CHers to trek west.  This far east choice is intriguing.  Not as close to me as I'd have liked, but I'm kind of glad that if it's going to end up either far east or west, that the east has a shot. Here's the official info for the meeting:

6/15 GENERAL MEETING & LOCATION PRESENTATION When: Tuesday, June 15, 7:00-9:30pm 
Where: 138 So Oxford St, Brooklyn between Fulton St and Atlantic Ave (South Oxford Space, Studio G) On the agenda: 
- Location Opportunity 
Members of the Lease and Location Committee will present a possible co-op location, 10-16 Putnam (between Downing, Grand and Fulton). Come learn more about the space, see photos, weigh pros and cons and help determine if this spot should be the co-op's home. - Join-up 
There will be time at the meeting to ask questions and contribute your member investment. - New to the Co-op? 
We will be holding a new-members info session from 7:00-7:15 before the General Meeting. Have all your questions answered before we dive into the big questions at our General Meeting. JOIN NOW! Now you can officially become an invested member of the Greene Hill Food Co-op. If you are committed to having this resource in the neighborhood in the future we need your member investment now to make it a reality. Download an application here and mail it in with your check. You may also join at our General Meeting! GET THE WORD OUT Help us spread the word by tabling in the neighborhood. We are at the Ft. Greene Green Market every Saturday as well as neighborhood block parties and street festivals. But we can only represent if we have people to represent us! Email our tabling coordinator at tabling@greenehillfoodcoop.com to pick up a slot!. Remember, if you are on FTOP at Park Slope Food Co-op these count as work hours. UPCOMING GENERAL MEETINGS Mark your calendar! Wednesday, July 21 
138 South Oxford Street (between Hanson Place and Atlantic Ave) 
Studio G 
7:00-9:30 PM Work credit will be given

Habitat for Humanity Affordable Condos on Lafayette Ave (Sponsored Post)

(This is our second post in our Absolut partnership, and is written by contributor BonnyPrinceBilly who covered the event.)

On Wednesday, June 9^th at 517 Lafayette Avenue, a crowd of forty or so press and PR execs, Absolut reps, and several Brooklyn celebrities, including Brooklyn’s own Spike Lee, gathered to award Habitat for Humanity a check for fifty thousand dollars in front of a new Habitat for Humanity housing development located just over the Clinton Hill border. The event took place in conjunction with the launch of Absolut's new "Absolut Brooklyn" flavored vodka.

Among the notables in attendance were Melvin Dick, senior vice president of Southern Wine and Spirits of America, Harvey R. Chaplin, owner of Southern Wine and Spirits, Josh Lockwood, Executive Director of Habitat-NYC, Al Vann, councilman for district 36 which represents Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights, and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.

The new Habitat development itself is not scheduled to be ready for occupants until next year. New owners in the building must earn between 50% - 80% of the city’s area median ($38,757 to $61,440 for a family of four), and must be first-time home owners. While I've heard of Habitat's famous houses before, this was the first time I saw one going up so close to home.  It's inspiring to see more housing being built that will allow folks not making six figures a year the chance at that elusive NYC dream: home ownership.

Mr. Lockwood told the assembled crowd stories of Habitat-NYC’s recent successes, including the development of the site at 514 Lafayette Avenue. The current building will have four units of spacious, green-engineered, affordable housing. I asked a Habitat volunteer to describe the procedure for getting one of the units. She said you have to be under the maximum income requirement, but other than that they are first come, first served. The Habitat website states that the units will be condos and not rentals. This will be a great opportunity for first time homeowners, who will be required to work 300 hours on the building.  The requirement to actually work hands-on in the building of one's own home is a great way for occupants to be directly involved in the history of their home.

Looking across the street at 505 Lafayette Avenue, where I lived for three years (with rats, roaches, and bed bugs), I could hardly believe so many important (and incredibly wealthy) people would be gathered on this stretch of sidewalk.

The best result of Wednesday’s media extravaganza is $50,000 for community building on a block that desperately needs it. Lafayette Plaza, where I lived, is a money mill for its landlords, who bought the place for a song in 2004 and did not bring it up to code before renting it at higher than market rates to the new wave of young people who are colonizing Brooklyn along the G line. My sense of disconnect from the media-event-in-a-bubble versus my lived reality of the block crystallized when, walking down the street after the event, a woman asked me what the fuss was all about. I said, “Spike Lee is down there promoting Absolute Vodka.” She said with a big smile, “Imagine that! Spike Lee on our block!”

FABfest Schedule for June 13

An awesome foodie-based lineup this wknd at FABfest!  My personal picks- the mozzarella and jam-making sessions. Cooking demos, food tastings, moonshine sipping and a chilled organic soup pureed making — with the aid of a human-powered bike-blender are all part of the line-up for second weekend of FABfest — a month-long three-block street festival EVERY SUNDAY IN JUNE on Fulton Street between Lafayette Avenue and South Oxford Street, in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

A schedule of demos and tastings is below.

Also at FABfest on Sunday June 13, from 12noon-6pm:

• 12noon-1:30pm:  Salsa Dance Party & Dance Lessons featuring Brooklyn Salsa Party (everyone is welcome to join in!)

• 1:30-2:00:  Live Gospel Concert featuring the Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble (performing as they make their way down Fulton Street to the stage!)

• 2:00-6:00:  Toasters Delight: a Reggae Party featuring DJs Geko Jones and Matt Shadetek of Dutty Artz, Jahdan Blakkamore, Cool Places Soundsystem, Gael Dubourg, DJ Gravy, and special guests. Toasters Delight celebrates the June 15^th BAMcinemaFEST screening of the Brooklyn indie film Wah Do Dem.

http://www.duttyartz.com/2010/wah-do-dem-bam-block-party/ Visit BAM.org for screening info

Plus games, crafts, balloons and activities and.... 3-on-3 soccer on the street... all afternoon!

Schedule for 'A Taste of Fulton'… at FABfest 2010

12 noon - Louisa Shafia, author of LUCID FOODS shows how vegetarian food is both delicious and healthy - creating a chilled cucumber soup from organic produce from Fulton Street's MetFoods (985 Fulton @ St. James) with the aid of the Bike Blender from Habana Outpost (757 Fulton @ S. Portland), and powered by.... spectators at FABfest.

- Mozzarella-making at Greene Grape Provisions (753 Fulton @ S. Portland)

1:00 - Buka (946 Fulton @ Cambridge Place), Nigerian restaurant

2:00 - Jam-making by Anarchy in a Jar, available at Greene Grape Provisions

3:00 - Chef Michael Allen of Desserts by Michael Allen (1015 Fulton @ Grand) shares his secrets on sugar and decorating an elaborate cake - a demo you don't want to miss!

- Max Watman, the author of Chasing the White Dog will be in conversation with Gable Erenzo, son of the founder of Tuthilltown Distillery, the first (legal!) distillery in NY since Prohibition, at Greenlight Greenlight Bookstore (686 Fulton @ S. Portland). Tasting to follow at 4:00 at The Greene Grape

4:00 - Pickling by Rick's Picks, also available at Provisions

- Comparative tasting of white whiskies at The Greene Grape (765 Fulton @ S. Portland)

5:00 - Deniz (662 Fulton @ S. Elliott),Turkish cuisine

PLUS: In front of Bati Restaurant (747 Fulton @ S. Portland) samples and an introduction on Ethiopian food and Smoke Joint (87 S. Elliott Place @ Fulton) will be offering samples of house-made grilled sausages.

For updates on the list of activities and schedules visit faballiance.org or facebook at fab fulton

About The FAB Alliance The Fulton Area Business (FAB) Alliance is a newly formed Business Improvement District working on behalf of property owners, merchants, residents and stakeholders along Fulton Street in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill—from Rockwell Place to Classon Avenue (plus adjacent blocks of Lafayette, Greene and Putnam Avenues). Goals are to retain current businesses and improve the atmosphere to make this area of Fulton Street a clean, safe and retail diverse environment that is a destination for people work, shop, dine and play. For more information, visit: faballiance.org

Credits

FABfest is presented by the FAB Alliance, the newly formed Fulton Street Business Improvement District in Clinton Hill and Fort Greene. FABfest is part of the Weekend Walks Program of the New York City Department of Transportation.

Friday Photo: Fort Greene History Edition

Before electronic surveillance gates, these "Rosie the Riveters" -- first-ever women to work at the Brooklyn Navy Yard during World War II -- had to open their handbags for security reasons. Assuredly the guards found nothing more sinister or explosive than a mirror, lipstick, sanitary pads and bobby pins.  In all, the Navy Yard workers jumped from 10,000 in 1938 to some 70,000 by war's end. (Courtesy National Archives, the Brookyln Navy Yard.  From "Fort Greene" by Howard Pitsch, Foreword by Paul Palazzo, Arcadia Publishing, 2010, $22.  Available online: HistoricFortGreene.org)

Cellars for Rent

Years after closing, the former Cellars bar space is available for rent.

What do you want to see in this space?  Personally, I think it would be cool to have a bar there with a similar vibe.

My Brooklyn "Stoop" (Sponsored Post)

I am pleased to announce that Clinton Hill Blog has been selected as a partner site for Absolut Vodka's launch of Absolut Brooklyn, a new apple-ginger flavor developed in partnership with Spike Lee that celebrates Brooklyn stoop life.

As part of today's big launch, I'm supposed to share my "stoop story" with readers.  Problem is, I don't have a stoop!  But I do have a courtyard, which is just as good in the Brooklyn sense.

When I moved to Clinton Hill, I was looking for the type of community that I always imagined existed in NYC but I hadn't yet been able to find -- a place where people said good morning to one another, and put down roots.  In my last building in Hell's Kitchen, my neighbors wouldn't even make simple eye contact with me, even though I looked at them hopefully every time, hoping we'd at least be able to smile and say hello.  And I certainly found that in Clinton Hill.

My building (and several others) face in toward a lovely courtyard with wooden benches and large, shady trees.  The benches are, as Brooklyn relaxation spots are known to be, reflective of the buildings and the neighborhood.  Every day, the old time residents set up shop to exchange neighborhood gossip.  New mothers sit rocking babies in the breeze.  Young people wait for their friends to meet up before heading out for some NYC adventure.  Whether you're stopping to sit and chat or just passing through -- on the way to do the laundry, get your heels fixed at the place across the street, or picking up some groceries -- the courtyard is always a buzzing hive of conversation, fixed and in transit.  The courtyard has contributed to my tardiness on several occasions when I've run into a neighbor that I just have to stop and catch up with, and has also been a place where I've met new people. Just off of the courtyard, my neighbors and I have cheered on marathoners every November, sipping hot chocolate and hosting brunches.

I often have parties at my place, and my non-local friends always marvel at the fact that I actually invite neighbors.  If they'd spent any time in the courtyard, it would be obvious - we're all working together to cultivate our co-op equivalent of the Brooklyn Stoop.  And it's a really awesome asset to be able to share with my friends and neighbors.

Full disclosure: I received a bottle of ABSOLUT BROOKLYN and a pretty cool flip camera for writing about stoop life and stoop culture in Brooklyn! Any post displaying the Absolut seal is a sponsored post.

Building on Top of Associated

Brownstoner recently posted plans that show the design for the Associated buildout (buildup?) on Waverly Ave.  For some reason, I don't recall hearing about this before, and it looks pretty interesting.  I do hope the plan includes a few renovations of the market itself, although overall it's not bad.  They have definitely upped their selection of goods since I moved nearby in 2004 and the staff is super friendly. The footprint of all of the businesses on the block are interesting - they all have an enormous amount of space (as seen from above in the co-ops), but some of the storefronts are super tiny inside.

FABfest Schedule for June 6

FABfest Sunday, June 6, 12noon–6pm: • Salsa Dance Party & Dance Lessons • Children's Clothing Swap • Fashion Show featuring designers along Fulton Street, including Courtney Washington, Moshood, Michael Shane Bridal, Jacob's Garden, Tribal Truths, Raif Atelier, Super Nova, Swagga 360, B2 Gear and Senagelese Fashion Center • StoryCorps Listening Sessions at Greenlight Bookstore • Crafts, activities and giveaways for kids all day • 3-on-3 Soccer Games for Kids hosted by Ft. Greene Soccer • Streetside Mad Libs game for all ages • Environmental demos and activities presented by Habana Outpost • Pet CPR and First Aid classes presented by Brooklyn Cares Veterinary Clinic • Fitness evaluations and information from Crunch • Walking tour of historic Fort Greene with Adrienne Onofri, author of WALKING BROOKLYN (a different tour to be given on each day of FABfest)

Friday Photo: Ft Greene History Edition

Arrival of water mains, sewers and flush toilets in the 1860s created a new use of outdoor privy pots as spots for trash. All these bottles are more than four score years old, from deep down. The small bottle was the type usually contained bitters, heavy with alcohol, which women often used for cramps.  If a lot of those in a privy pit, you knew that Mama was a tippler.  Sunny Brook Rye at left, from Prohibition days, states that it is 50% alcohol by volume -- “For medicinal purposes.” Yeah, sure! As they’d say: “First ‘ya swaller, then ‘ya holler.” (Author's photograph.  From "Fort Greene" by Howard Pitsch, Foreword by Paul Palazzo, Arcadia Publishing, 2010, $22.  Available online: HistoricFortGreene.org)

Lunchtime With Tillie: Manee Thai

 

Greetings, all! It's Van and Tillie with the latest in Lunchtime With Tillieness. This time, we've encountered a bit of a "sticky wicket" with detailing our latest midday meal, all courtesy of Manee Thai on Myrtle Avenue, more of which I'll detail later. (Don't worry, not too late: I know you have things to do besides read LWT all day!)

It all started on that recent day when it hit 90-something outside. I was tempted to just stay in, but the only thing to eat was shells and cheese, which I don't think I'd eaten since I was T's age. So off we went to get food and pick up some sunscreen for Tillie along the way with me being the multitasker and all.

We made our way down to Walgreen's and after spraying some of the sunscreen on her, we started walking back toward the house. On our journey down Myrtle, we saw a few restaurants we hadn't hit before and ended up choosing Manee Thai.

We took our seats with no worries, and I gave a quick glance at the menu. I decided to get the Thai fried rice lunch special, which came with a spring roll, choice of soup or salad (I chose the soup) and a soda. And since I've recently become a fan of the Thai curry puffs, I decided to get some of those as well for an appetizer.

The first course came out, the salad. Oh, but wait: You read it right a second ago—I ordered soup. No biggie on the mix-up, I said to the waiter; the soup came out quickly.

After tasting it, though, I kind of wished it would've stayed in the back. It was exceptionally bland with tiny pieces of what appeared to be frozen vegetables and bits of tofu floating around. I had a couple of bites and was done with it. Tillie had nothing to do with it at all.

The curry puffs arrived next. The taste was OK, but they were so doughy and dense. Tillie had a bite, then another, then another, then … you get the idea: She was killing them! You would've thought these were pastries handed down from the gods the way she was eating them. She ended up polishing them off.

So I was at two strikes so far on the food, while T was basking in the glow of finishing those Thai curry boulders. The rice and spring roll came out and I thought, you really can't get rice wrong, right? Wrong! It looked intriguing on the menu: fried rice with tomatoes, onions, peas and chicken. And that's how it was served. The problem with it was the overwhelming burnt flavor. That wasn't what I was looking for! There was no way Tillie was going to eat this.

Now I've been wrong about a lot of things in my life—giving Tillie's mom half of my sandwich one day when I was really hungry, wearing parachute pants in seventh grade when they had been out of style for a year—but I couldn't be more wrong than I was with Tillie and that rice! I know I fed her breakfast and snacks during the day, so it wasn't like she hadn't eaten anything. Maybe it was a growth spurt she was going through. Whatever the case, what she did to those curry rocks was nothing compared to how she handled that rice! I don't think I'd ever seen her eat something like that. Most of the time, she even gets bored with her meal, but she was determined to stick it out on this one. I ate the spring roll, which wasn't that good (how do you mess up a spring roll?) and Tillie finished up the main course.

So here's that "sticky wicket" I alluded to earlier: Do we go there again? I mean, the staff there was really nice and accommodating, and it was clear how Tillie felt about the food. But that meal just really didn't work for me. We might go back to see if she likes it as much the second time around. If so, she's picking up the tab!

Off for Memorial Day Week

We're off this week, except for Friday Photo.

FABfest: Weekend Walks Coming to Fulton Street

Exciting news!  DOT's cool Weekend Walks program, which creates temporary pedestrian streets for recreation and education, is coming to Fulton Street!  The FAB Alliance will be hosting the event on Sundays during the month of June. We'll be posting the weekend schedule every Friday on CHB.  I have to say, the events look pretty awesome.  Here's the official press release.

For Immediate Release Contact: Phillip Kellogg, Manager / FAB Alliance 718-928-3322 pkellogg@faballiance.org May 23, 2010

FABfest, a month-long three-block street festival, jumpstarts Brooklyn summertime fun, featuring fashion shows, reggae and gospel concerts, chef demonstrations, activities for kids, dance parties, author readings, community mural painting, and a tribute to Michael Jackson

Headlining artists include Victor LaValle, Urban Word Poets, DJ Reborn, Jahdan Blakkamore, Geka Jones, and Matt Shadetek of Dutty Artz Free Outdoor Festival—Sundays, 12noon—6pm, June 6 through 27, on Fulton Street between Lafayette Avenue and South Oxford Street, in Fort Greene, Brooklyn

Presented by the FAB Alliance, the newly formed Fulton Street Business Improvement District in Clinton Hill and Fort Greene. FABfest is part of the NYC DOT Weekend Walks program.

Brooklyn, N.Y./May 21, 2010— The FAB Alliance announces FABfest, a weekly street festival on Sundays in June (June 6, 13, 20, and 27, 2010) from 12noon— 6pm. Every Sunday in June, Fulton Street heats up with a blazing line-up of outdoor performances, readings, cooking and environmental demonstrations, family activities, games, and sports. Closing Fulton Street to all car & bus traffic, FABfest transforms three blocks of Fulton Street into a pedestrian-friendly public space where locals can stop, shop, party, and play while enjoying neighborhood eats, arts, activities, fashion, and culture.

Each FABfest kicks off with a salsa dance party at 12noon and the fun continues until 6pm, rain or shine! With FABfest, neighborhood businesses, property owners, organizations, and residents take over the street with free activities that highlight the variety and vibrancy of local entrepreneurs and artists. FABfest partners include many Fort Greene and Clinton Hill businesses and organizations, ranging from local churches to BAM to StoryCorps, and CakeMan Raven.

“Fulton Street in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill is Brooklyn’s premiere destination for good eats, arts, and recreation. FAB Alliance is proud to provide a new and creative opportunity for driving foot traffic to Fulton Street, while celebrating the abundance of neighborhood-based talent,” said Wellington Sharpe, President of the FAB Alliance.

For updates on the list of activities and schedules (still in development), visit faballiance.org

FabFest Schedule for Sunday, June 6 (We'll be off next week, so including this now)

• Salsa Dance Party & Dance Lessons • Children's Clothing Swap • Fashion Show featuring designers along Fulton Street, including Courtney Washington, Moshood, Michael Shane Bridal, Jacob's Garden, Tribal Truths, Raif Atelier, Super Nova, Swagga 360, B2 Gear and Senagelese Fashion Center • StoryCorps Listening Sessions at Greenlight Bookstore [ed. Awesome!] • Crafts, activities and giveaways for kids all day • 3-on-3 Soccer Games for Kids hosted by Ft. Greene Soccer • Streetside Mad Libs game for all ages • Environmental demos and activities presented by Habana Outpost • Pet CPR and First Aid classes presented by Brooklyn Cares Veterinary Clinic • Fitness evaluations and information from Crunch • Walking tour of historic Fort Greene with Adrienne Onofri, author of WALKING BROOKLYN (a different tour to be given on each day of FABfest)

Friday Photo: Ft Greene History Edition

A local resident for nearly 30 years and one-time chair of the Fort Greene Association, Howard Pitsch recently published a fascinating pictorial history of the neighborhood.  For the next six Fridays, we'll be posting images from his book.  The Local will also feature some of the book's photography, but CHB will be posting its own unique set of imagery from the book.

Horses, the unrequited and often abused heroes of wagons and carriages, did not pose for this picture when everyone had to "freeze" for the slow shutter speed.  In 1860, Vandergaw was at the junction of Fulton Street and DeKalb Avenue, probably where the Dime Savings Bank stands today. The buildings in the background are not identified, although the center one would appear to be a church.  (Courtesy Roger Whitehouse collection.  From "Fort Greene" by Howard Pitsch, Foreword by Paul Palazzo, Arcadia Publishing, 2010, $22.  Available online: HistoricFortGreene.org)

Photos from Stem

Again, another one I'm totally late to.  So late it's not worth saying it's a new place.  But I recently stopped in and took some photos of the tiny but gorgeous flower shop with a small but beautiful selection of blooms.

Stem 112 South Oxford

CHB Finally Visits Urban Vintage

I know, I slacked big time on this one.  I missed their small preview and then hadn't made time to go check them out after the grand opening.  But I finally made it last weekend and boy am I glad I did!  Urban Vintage is GORGEOUS!  I love the combination of merchandise and retail.  The bright, spacious shop is stylish and comfortable, and the owners Elizabeth and Emily Hazelwood couldn't be any nicer.

Urban Vintage is closed on Saturdays, which seems like an odd choice given the crowds just down the block at Choice (and the limited seating there).  However, they're closed so they can host private events on Saturdays.  And let me tell you, I would have loved to do my bridal shower there had they been open last summer.  Keep it in mind.

I didn't check the prices of all of the home furnishings, but the stuff I looked at was surprisingly reasonable.  Like this cute clothespin-inspired garbage bag holder for less than $30:

What an awesome way to re-purpose a small plastic bag as a garbage bag and make it look cool!  I'll be back for this, for sure.

The Local's covered it here and reviewed some of the food.

Urban Vintage 294 Grand Avenue

Piano Lessons on Hall Street

I've always loved this house on Hall Street, just south of Myrtle.  The windows have custom ironwork and the front walk has a trellis covered in climbing roses.

The house is home to the Clinton Hill School for Piano, run by Jim Porter.  While his website does say he teaches beginners and children, it looks to be mostly a school for advanced students.  Have you taken a lesson here? What do you think about the school's philosophy?

CHB on the Coffeebeaners

Mom-and-Toddler duo Rebeca and Diego of thecoffeebeaners.com visit indie coffee shops around Brooklyn and Manhattan.  Rebeca reached out recently for some local suggestions and I obliged. The blogger-and-son team visited all of these places, and here are some of their reviews:

• Outpost
• Bittersweet

Sounds like they enjoyed our local offerings.