Heath Ledger Leaves Brooklyn a Bar
Heath Ledger, currently in the spotlight for his role as Joker in The Dark Knight, has also posthumously anchored down his Brooklyn presence in a new nautical-themed bar. The designer behind it, John McCormick, also designed one of Ledger's Manhattan hangouts, the Beatrice Inn.
Down by the Hipster first reported the Greenpoint bar (located on the corner of Lorimer and Bedford) and has now followed up with some photos of the joint. They note that Ledger "was a key backer of the the project and was going to be a full partner. His untimely death put the project in jeopardy, but his father became executor of the estate and because he knew how much the project meant to Heath, he released the funds to finish construction."
Currently called The Five Leaves (after "Swan cigarette papers that tell you when there are just five left in a package"), it's slated to open within the next few months. No word on what Michelle Williams may think about this, but last month it was reported she was worried Ledger’s father would blow the millions before the ex-couple's daughter, Matilda, reached 18.
Photo of The Five Leaves exterior via Down By the Hipster.
Sammy Hagar Serves Up Tequila Secrets at La Esquina
Move over Jimmy Buffet, Sammy Hagar was in town at La Esquina last night and he brought mucho Cabo Wabo tequila, and his flowing golden curly locks, with him.
Hagar's main tequila guy, Julio, was also by his side, and schooled those in attendance on what makes a good tequila (something about agave) in a competitive tasting wherein three Cabo Wabo's were compared with three Patróns. Secret #1: Sammy sort of liked the Patrón Silver better!
When asked when he brought Hagar into the fold, Julio answered, "No, Sammy brought me on." Secret #2: Julio is starting his own tequila distillery and will one day compete with Hagar. It is unclear if the ex-Van Halen front man is aware of this.
Finally, and most importantly, Secret #3: After one or two shots, all tequila tastes the same.
More Victims Come Forward in Case of Brooklyn Heights Identity Theft
Dan Kaufman, the co-owner and manager of Busy Chef in Brooklyn Heights who stands accused of identity theft and credit card forgery, is out on bail thanks to his girlfriend, who put up $50,000 after a judge refused to believe that Kaufman's own bail money was obtained legally. A grand jury convened this week to hear the 19 charges against Kaufman, who allegedly charged a total of $24,978.53 to 19 customers' credit card accounts. The Brooklyn Paper reports that Kaufman also has a notorious reputation in Boston, where the landlord of a wine bar run by Kaufman was forced to sue him for unpaid rent. And a former supplier to Kaufman in Boston says “He screwed people three ways to Sunday. I don’t know how he does it — he can look at you smiling and lie to your face, and not even bat an eyelash.”
Top Chef Loads into New Williamsburg Condo
Further evidence that Top Chef contestants are staying at one of the fabulous new Williamsburg condos at McCarren Park was obtained this weekend when production assistants were seen loading cameras and equipment into 20 Bayard. A laminated sign on the dashboard of one of their vans read "Magical Elves," which is a production company that often works for Bravo. The fifth season of the popular reality show is being filmed in New York, but Bravo is understandably tight-lipped about details. Nevertheless, contestants were spotted at Whole Foods yesterday and Craft this morning.
When asked what they were filming in the thus-uninhabited luxury condo, one crew member said with a smirk, "A mayonnaise commercial. Just a mayonnaise commercial." When pressed to name the brand of mayonnaise, the crew member fell silent and his co-worker blew cigarette smoke in our direction. We felt awkward and left, but will return later to stake out the building. Developing...
Grimaldi’s Pizzeria Seized By Taxman
Newsday is reporting that beloved coal-oven pizza institution Grimaldi’s was shut down today by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. The paper's website has it that the Brooklyn restaurant was seized because of over $150,000 in tax warrants. Agency spokesman Tom Bergin told Newsday that Grimaldi's has been in a dispute with tax officials over allegedly unpaid state sales and withholding taxes for two years.
And yet... we swung by Grimaldi's just now and the pizzeria is in fact open for business and half full with customers. When asked about the Newsday story and unpaid taxes, an employee told us, "I have no idea what you're talking about." A handwritten sign on the door (above) said the business had been shut earlier because of electrical problems. Maybe they managed to scrape together the 150K?
Pinkberry Mandarin Citrus Juicer Sparks Outrage
Chai Park and Jin Hee Lee, a law student and a lawyer, were stuck on line at a Manhattan Pinkberry last summer when they spotted the product seen here, an Alessi “Mandarin Citrus Juicer” that the frozen yogurt chain sells at some locations. They found the designer’s characterization of Chinese men as smiling toadies whose heads are great for squeezing juice a tad offensive. Though the Korean owners of Pinkberry insist the juicer has offended "no one," according to Racked it's no longer sold at that particular location in Koreatown.
Not satisfied, Park and Lee decided to draw a line in the sand and launched a “Drop the Juicer” campaign to “eradicate all Mandarin Juicers from the planet.” They say “the ‘mandarin juicers’ are to Asians what Aunt Jemima is to African-Americans, Frito Bandito is to Latinos, and anti-Semitic caricatures are to Jewish people… The message is simple: the ‘Chinaman’ will always remain a ‘Chinaman.’” (Of couse, Chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature.) And this isn't the first Alessi product to raise eyebrows among Asian-Americans: Behold the Mr. & Mrs. Chin Salt & Pepper Set!
UPDATE: We've received an email from Weber Shanwick, a p.r. firm that does "crisis management" and claims Pinkberry as a client: "We wanted to let you know that these items are being removed from our store. We started removing them awhile ago. We understand the concerns our customers had and we always appreciate and value their feedback. They were part of an eclectic collection and we in no way ever intended to offend anyone by displaying them." When asked if by "store" they meant "stores," the rep told us that all locations have been removing the Mandarin Juicer.
Brooklyn Bowl Teams Up With Blue Ribbon
Earlier this month news of Brooklyn Bowl opening in Williamsburg started to spread. The bowling alley, located over by The Gutter and right next to the Brooklyn Brewery, is also a venue, and has promised to offer up some grub once they open in the fall. So far former Wetlands owner Peter Shapiro and manager Charley Ryan, who are opening the joint, have been hush hush about the dining options at the place, but now Eater reports that they'll have "a full Blue Ribbon menu." The downside? The menu might only be served in the VIP section, which (if true) would seriously harsh the vibe, Wetlands dudes.
Country Restaurant Draws Fire from DOH for Sous Vide
There was some surprise when Geoffrey Zakarian’s three star restaurant Country (pictured) was shut down by the Department of Health last Friday. But it turns out that fruit flies, mouse droppings and a fly in the Maker’s Mark were the least of its problems – the main infraction was the restaurant’s unapproved sous vide method, which Country utilizes to vacuum-seal raw meat in plastic for slow cooking at low temperatures.
The Times reports that Zakarian was forced to dump hundreds of pounds of meat before reopening last night, and the article takes an in-depth look at the controversy that’s arisen from the city’s attempt to regulate sous vide. Some chefs say they’re being required to cook at temperatures that are too high and ruin the flavor intensity. Dave Arnold, the director of culinary technology at the French Culinary Institute, says “The food code is based on what kills bacteria in very short order. Do you really have to cook it to that temperature? No. There are temperatures lower than the food code, where if you cook it long enough it will be safe.”
A Health Department rep explains that “the thing we don’t want to have happen is someone going to Best Buy and buying a vacuum-processing machine because they saw it on TV." So... that's why they shut down a top chef's three star restaurant.
Midweek Special: NYC Restaurant Review Roundup
The Sun’s Paul Adams is the latest critic to get around to Hundred Acres (pictured), the meticulously-sourced, farm-to-table restaurant which used to be Provence. While the Daily News was haunted by the ghosts of the old restaurant, Adams says “the transformation is a delightful blast of fresh air. A sultry Southern accent marks the restaurant's menu… where "seasonal" isn't just a buzzword, but where you actually look forward to returning season after season to see what new ideas are blossoming.”
For the Times, Frank Bruni rhapsodizes about the fiery Szechuan Gourmet, not just another Chinese restaurant in midtown: “Sichuan’s inimitable heat is a big part — for me, the main part — of what makes this cuisine such a riveting adventure. It’s fickle, tricky, fierce. It can light a match to your tongue, numb your lips, snap you to attention and do a job on your stomach that lasts a good long while.” Also for the Times, Betsy Andrews reviews three vegetarian lunch options for under $25 (‘SNice Brooklyn, Crisp and Maoz) and sides with the carnivores: "A Reuben is sinful fun even without the corned beef. But here, stalwart tempeh crashes the party like a cop. Swap the Swiss for soy cheese, and you’ve deputized the remaining bad boy; the good times are all gone from the plate."
The Village Voice’s Robert Sietsema “passed the Pharoh (sic) Café in Ridgewood several times before finally deciding to stop.” But once he gave it a chance, he found the Egyptian restaurant/hookah lounge worth the 45 minute wait. There was a nice babaganoush… the meat, too, was on the money, including an oniony beef kufta.” After dining, Sietsema and company “succumbed to curiosity about the hookahs. The smoke was cool and sweet, and we soon slid into a nicotine reverie, dreaming of bidets.”
Danyelle Freeman at the Daily News has a rave about Sheridan Square, the newish “globally influenced American” restaurant in the West Village that recently lost its chef, Gary Robins, who she simply adored at the Russian Tea Room; his resignation makes her review pretty much obsolete: "So once again, the question is: Where in the world is Gary Robins?" And the Post’s Steve Cuozzo wants to know where all the other chefs are, too: “Chefs are now like travel magazine editors-in-chief: rarely in their offices, but out doing more important things like global junketeering, which in the restaurant world is called ‘sourcing.’”
Photo courtesy <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/ryancharles/2532236792/"Ryan Charles.
Red Hook Food Vendors Worth the Wait? Not for Line-Cutting Senator Schumer
Yesterday’s notice about the long-overdue return of the Red Hook ball field food vendors elicited comments from disgruntled eaters who were disappointed by the new carts, which limit the vendors’ cooking space and caused massive, hour-plus lines. Commenter sofabait seems to reflect a growing consensus that the new Health Department oversight has changed things for the worse: “The exhaust fumes from their constantly idling trucks totally killed my appetite. Not sure if that is better for our health. The city sure knows how to fuck a good thing up.”
Or as Red Hook resident Jon Goch told 1010Wins, “It's completely changed and not for the better. It used to be very organic, more open, more social. Now it's just another city-controlled event. There was an awesome thing going on, and they came in and ripped the soul out of it.” And blogger I Am the Mill reports waiting on line Sunday for 90 minutes. Of course, queuing up is fine for some, but we can’t expect VIPs like Senator Chuck Schumer to join them:
He was there to give a little speech and try some food – the bastard cut right to the head of our line for a photo-op and a taco – but no one took more than a moment to care. All in all, this was not the ideal way to spend a Sunday… We were dehydrated, tired, hungry, and combative before we were even halfway to the front of the line. Chuck Schumer’s barging ahead of everyone was like a jalapeno right in the eye – while at the same time, a soccer ball to the groin.Still, I Am the Mill says he plans to go back; it was “a living nightmare – but at least the food was pretty good.” And the Village Voice’s Sarah DiGregorio argues that “the vendors attracted the city's regulatory attention only when they became so popular with the wider community. Now that the vendors have spent $30,000 to get in compliance, I think they deserve our loyalty and our continued business.”
Photo courtesy I Am the Mill.