Monthly Archives: January 2011

Food and Drink

Freddy’s Bar to Reopen on Feb 4th

Freddy’s Bar is rising from the ashes.

The bar, which was demolished to make way for the Atlantic Yards project and was a central meeting place in the battle against eminent domain abuse, is set to reopen on Friday, February 4th.

Clear your calendar, folks. This is going to be a raucous good time. The fun starts at 5PM and the bar will stay open until 4AM! The new owners want you to know that the entire bar has been created almost exclusively out of re-cycled, found or hand made objects, with next to nothing being purchased “New,”

“The creation of this bar is owed to the hard work of the new owners (all previous staff members), and especially to the generous efforts of other staff members and many a bar regular, who all pitched in,” the new owners write in a press release.

The new Freddy’s, located in the South Park Slope at 5th Ave between 17th and 18th Street, is just one block from the Prospect stop on the R train, and 8 blocks from the 4th Ave and 9th Street stop on multiple trains.

Many items from the old Freddy’s have been transported to the new,  including the original prohibition era red mahogany bar and the old booths and tables. The “Chains of Justice” will still grace the bar as a reminder of their  fight against eminent domain abuse and the power of the community bond.

Also on display: The video art of Donald O’Finn will still be prominently featured. According to the press release, “the decor is unique and vibrant, a mixture of old and new, antique Hollywood Regency chandeliers, steam punk accents, vintage wallpaper as well as handmade erotic wall-paper and permanent art installations from local art stars like Nancy Drew and Steve Pauley. The stamp of co-owner/artist Donald O’Finn is evident almost everywhere you look, from the fish tank sunk into a wall with giant albino frogs to the barn wood wall constructions and oversized gothic frame mounted to a flatscreen TV.”

They’ve got lots planned for the opening. Les Sans Culottes are the headliners and they will go on at midnight. Opening acts include Apple recording artist Brute Force and eclectic world roots band The Magpie kicking things off.

Also on display, an exhibition of glitter and flock paintings by NYC artist Nancy Drew.

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: First See Robbie Fulks Tonight, Then Plan Your February Music

If you don’t know Robbie Fulks you should.  Call him country, alt country or whatever.  He plays a mean guitar and writes funny, clever and yes, even poignant songs.   If you read his blog, you’ll find that he’s probably one of the most literate musicians anywhere.  If that’s not enough, Robbie moved to Brooklyn from his home base in Chicago and lived in Windsor Terrace for half the year back in 2009 (his wife, who is an actress was in a long running play).   See the details about his early show tonight posted at Now I’ve Heard Everything by clicking here.

If you like to plan things in advance, the Now I’ve Heard Everything monthly music calendar for February is now live, just click here to see it.  Remember, it is constantly updated, so go back and check it several times during the month.

–Eliot Wagner

Civics and Urban Life

The Old Stone House: Improvisation on the Theme of Giving

1 Comment

On February 10th at 8PM at The Old Stone House my friend Nancy Graham will perform in a play developed through improvisation on the theme of giving. It’s called To: From

It is sure to be an interesting evening and I hope you’ll join me there.

To: From:
an evening of improvisation on the theme of giving

With Jerry Wintrob + Nancy Graham
Directed by Amy Poux

Thursday, February 10, 2011
The Old Stone House
336 3rd Street at 5th Avenue in Park Slope
Tickets $10

arts and culture

OTBKB Music: A Video from The Louvin Brothers

If you are wondering why I would post a 50 year old country video, it’s because Charlie Louvin, one half of The Louvin Brothers, died earlier this week after a bout with cancer.  The Louvin Brothers broke up in 1963, and Ira Louvin, the other half of the act, died in a car accident in 1965.  But Charlie kept recording and touring, on and off, right up to the end.  So I’ll say goodbye to Charlie with a video of the Louvin Brothers singing I Can’t Keep You in Love with Me.  Just click here to see it.

–Eliot Wagner

Food and Drink

Crop to Cup Opens in Gowanus

There’s a really interesting new cafe in the neighborhood. And it opens today.

On their blog, the folks at Crop to Cup say that they’ve been “sandblasting, knocking down walls, building, sanding, painting, sealing, plumbing, electrical-ing (?) for about 3 months now.  So what do we have to show for it?  An awesome cafe for y’all, if we may say so ourselves.”

The brand new Crop to Cup Cafe, which serves family farmed coffee from Uganda and Burundi, opened today (Friday) at 7:30 AM and they’re selling the coffee for half price. They’ve also convinced Four and Twenty Blackbirds to make baked goods for them, making Crop to Cup Four and Twenty’s first wholesale client.

What is Crop to Cup?

Crop to Cup is an espresso bar, a pourover/brew bar (choose between Hario, Clever, Beehouse or French Press). The location also houses C2C’s importing operations, their wholesale operations, a garden (all hail Spring) and baked goods from our neighbors at Four & Twenty Blackbirds who are right down the street.

The location is 541A Third Avenue in Brooklyn, not far from the G/R/F stop at 4th Ave/9th St. Right next to Lowlands Bar.

Civics and Urban Life

City Gets High Grades for Snow Response This Time

1 Comment

Why was this response so much better than, you know, the city’s response to the Christmas snowstorm? Turns out that storm had only 1 inch more snow than this storm and yet it was a veritable snow disaster and it took days for Brooklyn and other outer-boroughs  to get plowed out.

In contrast, when we all woke up in the morning Third Street was plowed, as were most of the other streets in Park Slope.

I said to Hugh this morning. “Hey this is the way it’s supposed to be. The street is plowed…”

Guess the city did a bunch of things right:

–The mayor declared a snow emergency at the right time.

–He advised motorists to stay off the road.

–At midnight the MTA stopped bus service so that there wouldn’t be stuck buses that would prevent plowing.

–They decided to close the public schools and non-essential government offices to ensure the safety of New Yorkers.

Good job city, good job!

arts and culture

Feb 3: Your Drunk Uncle’s War Stories Were Never This Good

Just letting you know about a reading with Roy Scranton, Jake Siegel and Phil Klay, three of the writers who were at the Brooklyn Reading Works’ Writing War event last Veteran’s Day.

This reading is at Pete’s Candy Store on Thursday, Feb. 3, @ 7:30PM in Williamsburg. Roy Scranton Jake Siegel, and Phil Klay are gonna read, according to Scranton, “some hard-hitting, visceral, authentic, front-line, true-life stories and poems about eating in the chow hall, shining our boots, and sunsets in Iraq. Come on out! Your drunk uncle’s war stories were never this good.”

Civics and Urban Life

First Event of the Park Slope Interfaith Social Justice Network

1 Comment

The Park Slope Interfaith Social Justice Network is newly formed organizations, which includes Old First Reformed Church, Congregation Beth Elohim, Kolot Chayeinu, St. Augustine Roman Catholic, Church, Greenwood Baptist Church and The Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture.

Other congregations (and individuals outside congregations) are welcome to join!

The group is having its first community event sponsored by Brad Lander on Monday, January 31st at Old First Dutch Reformed Church 729 Carroll Street at Seventh Avenue.

At 7PM, there’s a potluck dinner. Participants are asked to bring a dish to share as well canned or dried goods as a donation to the food pantry at St. Augustine’s Roman Catholic Church.

At 7:30PM, there will be a discussion about homelessness in New York City with a representative from Coalition for the Homeless and CAMBA. Conversation points to include: Where do we stand? What can we do to combat homelessness? What can we do to help out?

You can RSVP for this event here.

Monday night is also the HOPE Count, the annual Homeless Outreach Population Estimate (HOPE), sponsored by the NYC Department of Homeless Services.

In this event, NYC DHS and volunteers canvass parks, subways, and other public spaces to count the number of
people living without shelter in New York City. You can register for this event here.

The Hope Count begins at 10:30 PM.

Civics and Urban Life

Tonight: 6:30PM Community Conference Call with Brad Lander

Tonight at 6:30 PM: There’s a Community Conference Call with Brad Lander to review his annual report on his office’s 2010 accomplishments.

I want to encourage you to join me and my staff for the conference call we are hosting to review my annual report on our 2010 accomplishments this evening at 6:30.

To RSVP for the conference call click here, and we will send you all the information you need. You can RSVP right up until the last minute this evening.

Civics and Urban Life

Simone Dinnerstein’s New Album is a Bestseller

Park Slope’s Simone Dinnerstein has a new album out, Bach: A Strange Beauty (Sony Classical), and it made its debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Traditional Classical Chart.

The woman is amazing. Not only is she a bestselling recording artist and concert pianist but she runs Neighborhood Classics, a series that brings adventurous classical music to Park Slope and the Lower East Side and raises money for local PTAs.

Talk about giving back. The next Neighborhood Classics concert at PS 142 on the Lower East Side is on February 4th at 7PM, a preview performance of a new piano/cello duo by Philip Glass with Maria Bachmann and Wendy Sutter.

Dinnerstein is the only Traditional Classical artist to grace the Billboard Top 200 chart which compiles the entire music industry’s top selling albums.

Bach: A Strange Beauty also spent time as the No. 1 top selling album on Barnesandnoble.com and No. 2 selling album on Amazon.com, in good company with The Decemberists, Cake, The Black Keys and Bruno Mars.

Bach: A Strange Beauty, which is Dinnerstein’s first orchestral disc as well as her first for Sony Classical, sees the pianist return to Bach. She plays three transcriptions of Chorale Preludes with one of his English Suites and two of his Keyboard Concerti.

Simone Dinnerstein’s special affinity to the music of Bach began with her self-funded recording of his Goldberg Variations ranked No. 1 on the Billboard Classical Chart upon its release in 2007.

For more information about the February 4th Neighborhood Classics concert at PS 321 click on read more:

Continue reading Simone Dinnerstein’s New Album is a Bestseller →

Civics and Urban Life

OTBKB’s Weekend List: Thursday – Sunday

It’s Thursday and we’re snowed in. Time to plan the weekend. Staring tonight there’s lots to do as usual. But will you do any of it? It’s easy to get all couch potato-y on cold, snowy days.

But get out, I tell you. GET OUT!!! It’ll do you good.

Notice that there’s an interesting sounding documentary at Zora Space and my man Roy Nathanson will be playing sax with The Alphabet Lounge Band on Saturday night. Click on read more for all the essential details.

Continue reading OTBKB’s Weekend List: Thursday – Sunday →

Civics and Urban Life

Thunder Snow

Snow and thunder. Snow and thunder. Yet again the Northeast is hit with a weird thunder snowstorm and the pile of fresh snow on the air conditioner outside my window is growing and the trees look like they are festooned with cotton balls.

The Mayor declared a a weather emergency on Wednesday afternoon and the Department of Education said it would make the big snow day decision by 5 AM Thursday morning whether or not schools would be closed.

The storm has already caused the cancellation of hundreds of flights, and the Port Authority has closed Newark, Teterboro, and JFK Airports. The MTA suspended all of its bus services across New York City and Long Island for early Thursday.

Children all over Brooklyn are on tenterhooks.

I asked my daughter if she thought tomorrow would be a snow day. “They’re being SO prepared now. Probably not,” she said wearily. But she doesn’t really know does she? Those two glorious words could still greet her tomorrow morning when it’s time to wake up.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning through 6 AM Thursday for the city, Long Island and parts of northeastern New Jersey. There’s also a coastal flood advisory through 5 a.m., in parts of Connecticut, New Jersey and Long Island that streets and roadways could experience minor flooding.

There’s nothing cozier than being inside in the middle of the night when it’s snowing outside. The city streets, trees, the cars, buildings, stoops, already white from yesterday’s dusting, are filling with fresh piles of snow. It’s a whole other thing if you actually have to go out in it.

Will it be a Snow Day tomorrow? I’ll let you know around 5AM.