Celebrate Earth Day at Habana Outpost

Our favorite local eco-eatery is hosting a full day of fun to help celebrate the 40th annual earth day!  Schedule is below.  I'm most intrigued by the beekeeping seminar!  (In case you missed it, beekeeping just became legal in NYC!) Sean Meenan presents Earth Day Expo at Habana Outpost Saturday, April 17th 2010 Join us to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day with a day full of free workshops and events for the whole family!

Kid’s Corner:  12-6pm All day long there will be free arts & crafts, games, and entertainment for children focusing on recycling and nature:

FINDERS KEEPERS!!!! TOSSERS WEEPERS!!!:  Saturday 1 – 3pm Recycling within your environment with Habana Works and the Leadership Learning Lab.  This hands-on workshop will explore how to reuse what’s in your home, community and environment—or in this case, what’s at Habana Outpost!  Children will be asked to go on a scavenger hunt through the courtyard and use what they find to create new objects, or give old objects new purpose and meaning.

The ABC’s of Bees and Beekeeping:  12 – 5pm Local beekeeper John Howe (New York City Beekeeping Meetup) will explain how honey is made with a live observation hive and arts & crafts projects.

Free Eco- Face Painting:  12-6pm Let us turn your kid into butterflies, ladybugs and bumblebees…and while they’re at it, they can learn how important these insects are to our environment!

Eco-Fashion:  3 – 4pm Find it, recycle it, rock the runway in it!  Join us for the 2nd annual Scrap Kins Kids Repurposed Fashion Show where local kids will be strutting their eco-stuff front and center for all the courtyard to see!

Electronic Waste Recycling:  10am - 4pm The Lower East Side Ecology Center (LESEC) will be collecting your unwanted electronic waste in their e-waste container.  http://www.lesecologycenter.org/ Composting Workshops for Adults:  12 - 6pm Brought to you by The NYC Compost Project at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, funded by the Department of Sanitation, these fun workshops will teach you how to make the most of your trash and start composting at home. http://www.nyccompost.org

Shop Green:  12 - 6pm Local vendors and designers will showcase green products and services in an outdoor market.  Featuring: Still Hip Brooklyn, Via Nativa and Recycle a Bicycle.

Get Involved:  12 – 6pm Meet local eco-minded groups and individuals to find out how you can get involved!  Participating Groups: Green Home NYC, Greene Harvest CSA, Manhattan Young Democrats – Environmental Committee, and Transportation Alternatives, Greene Hill Co-op, and Fort Greene Compost Project.

Please visit our website for more information - www.habanaoutpost.com or call 718 858 9500. Habana Outpost - 757 Fulton Street

Free Tree Giveaway, This Saturday

The MillionTreesNYC Initiative is awesome!  This Saturday, pick up a free tree to plant on your private property as part of the plan to plant one million new trees in NYC at the "Putnam Triangle."  Love that they are making use of an interesting place that could function better as a community space. Sponsored also by the FAB Alliance and Greene Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, and the NY Restoration Project. Here are the details:

Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill and the FAB Alliance, in partnership with MillionTreesNYC and the New York Restoration Project, are giving away 200 FREE TREES on Saturday and Sunday, April 17-18th from 10am-3pm. Bring your friends and family to the "Putnam Triangle" in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn (Fulton St and Grand Ave) and leave with a tree to plant at home, at your business, at church, at school (as long as it's private property).

Are you planning your spring garden? Do you have an open spot for a tree? Plant a tree that will grow as your kid grows. Commemorate a loved one. Come to the Tree Giveaway and walk away with a FREE TREE!

All trees will be first-come, first-served. All you need is a place to plant and access to water. Free trees will be available to individuals, families and community groups for planting on private property only, and not in containers or on rooftops. Trees will be distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis until supplies run out. Limited quantities of the following species of trees are expected to be: Eastern Redbud, Dogwood, Cherry, Oak and Sweet Gum.

Need a hand or a shovel? We will have tools for you borrow. We will have help for those who need it to get a tree home and have people to lend a hand with planting if you (or the senior next door) need it.

Trees are renewable resources that benefit the entire community. They reduce air pollution, beautify the neighborhood, slow traffic and teach important environmental values.

Not sure what type of tree you want? Horticulture specialists will be on hand to answer questions and provide species selection recommendations. Simple tree planting and care instructions come with your tree.

Do you want to help out? Volunteers are needed to give out trees, transport trees, help neighbors plant their free trees, publicize the event in surrounding neighborhoods and answer questions about tree planting. To volunteer, contact Marilyn Shaw at volunteer@greenfgch.org

Presented by Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill and the FAB Alliance in partnership with New York Restoration Project and MillionTreesNYC and through the generous support of Bloomberg Philanthropies and David Rockefeller

About MillionTreesNYC: Led by the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation and New York Restoration Project (NYRP), MillionTreesNYC is a citywide, public-private initiative that recognizes the benefits trees provide New York City’s residents, neighborhoods and environment, through an ambitious goal: to plant and care for one million new trees across the City’s five boroughs by 2017.

About Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill: Green Fort Greene & Clinton Hill is a volunteer project of the Fort Greene Association. It is reducing the neighborhood's contribution to global warming and lessening its use of non-renewable resources through projects created and staffed by neighborhood residents and others called to our cause.

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. www.faballiance.org

CHB Interviews: Kathleen Hyppolite of kat flower

Grady's Collective Market on Fulton is becoming a really cool mixed bag of wares - new, vintage, home furnishings, paper goods and now flowers.  Kathleen Hyppolite launched kat flower at the collective a few months ago and has recently moved her blooms to the front of the shop.  CHB chatted with her about her new business, how it fits into the Collective and flower shopping tips for spring.

1. Tell us about Kat Flowers and how it fits in to Grady's Collective. kat flower is boutique flower shop that combines charm, elegance, simplicity and beauty.  like the rest of grady's collective market, the assortment of flowers is well-curated, dynamic and fresh, interesting yet always accessible.  having fresh flowers as part of the collective is reminiscent of the markets in paris, amsterdam and london, however we remain true to our unique brooklyn style.

2. What's your background, and how did you start arranging flowers? i am a native brooklynite and event planner of many years and have had the opportunity to work and collaborate with some of the city's best floral designers.  i have always loved playing with flowers, arranging them for myself, family, friends and clients. i got tired and frustrated of having to leave my neighborhood for flowers and being limited to the farmer's market and deli tulips.  i want to make beautiful, fresh, high-quality flowers accessible.

3. What kinds of flowers are typically available this time of year? spring is springing so there is so much beauty to choose from.  i love tree blossoms...dogwood, forsythia, peach and of course cherry.  also lilac, sweet peas, hellebores, tulips, narcissus, hyacinth, daffodils and jasmine.

4. What kinds of services do you offer? kat flower sells blooms by the stem, hand-tied bouquet and arrangement. for gift orders, we buy fresh per order so please contact us and we will arrange something special for the next day. for weddings and events, please email kathleen@katflower.com for a consultation.

5. What do you recommend as a floral gift for a romantic partner who isn't into the cliche dozen roses? a floral gift is no different from any other kind of gift -- it should be thoughtful, personal and meaningful.  if they like fresh scents, an arrangement with freesia, hyacinth or lilies would be lovely.  if they love color, ranunculus and tulips have quite a range.  if they love simple beauty, you can't go wrong with an orchid.  and i also am in favor of the perfect single stem...a single peony or dahlia would definitely make me happy.

(flower photos by derrick raphael)

Kathleen maintains a blog on her latest inspirations and inventory at http://katflower.blogspot.com/.

kat flower 923 fulton street (inside gradys collective market) cross streets clinton & washington avenues c train to clinton-washington

tuesday-wednesday 12-7 thursday-friday 12-8 saturday 11-7 sunday 12-6

Want to Open a Local Business? View Local Available Storefronts!

Are you looking to open a business locally?  Join Pratt Area Community Council this weekend as they give tours of vacant storefront space: presented by Pratt Area Community Council, Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration, in partnership with FAB Alliance BID, Bed-Stuy Gateway BID, NYC Business Solutions, and NYC Small Business Services

Welcome Reception and Breakfast Saturday, March 20, 2010 Bed-Stuy Restoration 1368 Fulton Street, Between New York and Brooklyn

10:30am Breakfast Reception | 11-12pm info session 12-4pm self OR guided tour provided by Molly the Trolley

Maps and Property Info Pick up the list of vacancies at two starting points:

*Fort Greene/Clinton Hill Area* for info on vacancies between Flatbush and Bedford, pick up listings at PACC's Fulton Street Office: 896 FULTON STREET (between Washington and Waverly Avenues) CONTACT: DALE CHARLES 347-823-5700 EXT. 16

*Bedford-Stuyvesant Area* for info on vacancies between Bedford and Troy, pick up listings at Bed-Stuy Restoration Plaza: 1368 FULTON STREET (between New York and Brooklyn Avenues) CONTACT: BERNADETTE MITCHELL 718-636-6989

Reading at Greenlight Bookstore by Gabriel Thompson: TONIGHT

Tuesday, March 16, 2010 7:30pm - 9:00pm Greenlight Bookstore 686 Fulton Street (@ the corner of South Portland) Join Young Friends of PACC for the Working in the Shadows Book Reading!

What is it like doing the back-breaking work of low-wage immigrants? To find out, Gabriel Thompson spent the year working alongside Latino immigrants, who initially thought he was either crazy or an undercover immigration agent. He stooped over lettuce fields in Arizona and worked the graveyard shift at a chicken slaughterhouse in rural Alabama. He dodged taxis as a bicycle delivery “boy” for an upscale Manhattan restaurant and was fired from a flower shop in Chelsea. Combining personal narrative with investigative reporting, Working in the Shadows shines a bright light on the underside of the American economy, exposing harsh working conditions, union busting, and lax government enforcement—while telling the stories of workers, undocumented immigrants and desperate US citizens alike, forced to live with chronic pain in the pursuit of $8 an hour.

Not so long before he went undercover as part of the low-wage immigrant workforce, Brooklyn-based author Gabriel Thompson was the director of community organizing at PACC. The Young Friends of PACC are thrilled to host this book reading at Greenlight Bookstore in Fort Greene.

Arrive early, light refreshments and wine will be served.

Young Friends of PACC is dedicated to engaging community members in their 20s and 30s in activities supporting affordable housing, tenant rights, community and economic development in Central Brooklyn.

For more info on this event, please call 718-522-2613 x 14.

Valentine Happenings

It's that time of year once again to show your special someone how much you care.  If you're going to participate in the holiday, here are some options for keeping it local: FULTON

Greene Grape and GG Provisions: Fondue tastings and wine tastings, Friday and Saturday

Aqualis Grill 773 Fulton Street (between S. Portland and S. Oxford) $55/person four course and champagne and/or wine included

Dajeh Restaurant and Wine Bar 919 Fulton Street (between Clinton & Waverly) Caribbean-Influenced, Wine-Paired Tasting Menu for Valentine’s Day. 5-course tasting menu $129 per couple. Each of the five courses is paired perfectly with a different wine in collaboration with Wine Consultant Veronique Fitzgerald, DWS. (the price without wine: $105.00 per couple).

Stonehome Wine Bar 87 Lafayette (between S. Elliott and S. Portland) 4 courses for $65 per person, with wine pairings add $40 per person. Seatings at 6, 7, 9 and 10pm For Reservations, call 718-624-9443

Cure Beauty Bar: Valentine Special:  Basic Mani/Pedi/ 1 Dozen roses/glass of sparkling wine - $90 or for couples $165 (which can be friends/Spouses/sibling etc.) Runs from Feb. 12th -14th. Must make a appointment and pre-pay by Feb. 11th 2010

Social Therapy Group What’s Love Got to Do With It? Prepare for Valentine’s Day by getting better at loving.  Explore where you are with love and friendship and create more intimacy in your all your relationships. Come to a social therapy group and work at making your Valentine’s Day more loving.  Come alone or bring your loved one –whether it’s your friend, your partner, your mother or lover.  We will help you get better at creating loving conversations. Saturday, February 13, 2010, 11am – 1pm.  Fee: $30/person or $50/couple or twosome.  Contact:  Ann Green, 718-797-3220 ext. 319 or agreen@socialtherapygroup.com

DEKALB

iCi: Brunch from 9am to 4pm and a $45 5-course-prix-fix Menu for Dinner from 5.30 to 11pm

Chez Oskar: $36 Prix Fix menu Sunday evening

MYRTLE

Tamboril: $25 Prix Fix 5:30-11 on Saturday Jazz music at 7 and 9pm on Sunday

Chez Lola: $32 Prix Fix menu Sunday evening

FAB Fridays on Fulton!

The new Fulton BID is starting a new local business promotional program, offering special discounts at select retailers on Fridays.  Tomorrow will be the first "FAB Friday."  Eight retailers on two blocks of Fulton are offering specials (and since these two blocks are near me, it's a good excuse to check it out).

Chance 11 Restaurant/Lounge 895 Fulton Street "Happy Hour" with 20¢ buffalo wings, from 4:30-8pm Bar Olivino Wine Bar 899 Fulton Street Free bar snacks from 6-8pm, and wine specials by the glass Just Taste It 901 Fulton Street Take-out Lunch specials ($6 or less ) extended to 7pm You-Niques Salon 903 Fulton Street Special prices from 5-8pm (first-time customers only) Olivino Wines 905 Fulton Street Free in-store wine tasting from 6:30-8pm Autour du Monde Restaurant & Bar 860 Fulton Street Selected dessert on the house with dinner Dajeh Restaurant 919 Fulton Street Menu of small plates for $6-10 each, as well as $3 beers and $5 wine specials

Cure Beauty Bar 921 Fulton Street 10% all services all day

FAB Alliance / Fulton Street in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill /Tel: 718-928-3322 / e-mail:contactus@faballiance.org COMING SOON: More FAB FRIDAYS along other parts of Fulton Street www.faballiance.org

Haiti Support Fundraiser at Kush- TOMORROW

Kush Cafe is holding a fundraiser for one of their servers, who lost several loved ones in the Haiti quake.  The price is good, and attendees will enjoy an all-you-can-eat buffet.  Kush's food is excellent - check it out. Please join Kush Café for an evening of remembrance and hope as we honor the family of our very own server Darnelle Dasne, who lost several loved ones when her childhood home in Port-au-Prince, Haiti was destroyed by the earthquake.

Dasne Family Fundraiser Wednesday, February 3rd 
5pm-11pm $20 Per Person All-You-Can-Eat Buffet Salade de Saint Marc
Mixed greens, tomato, onions, egg, lemon dressing Main Courses Beef Tassot au Riz Djon-Djon
Crisp beef bites with black rice & banana pesée Lambi
Fricassee of conch, mirepoix vegetables, red kidney beans, rice & banana pesée All profits will be donated to the Dasnes. RSVP: kush@kushcafe.com or (718) 230-3471 Kush Café
17 Putnam Ave (@ Fulton btwn Cambridge & Grand)
Brooklyn, NY 11238
 www.kushcafe.com

Friday Photo

(Fulton Street)

Burned Shells?

I have long noticed these vacant buildings on Fulton near Outpost.  Anyone know what happened to them, or remember them when they were livable / workable?

It's "FAB" to Shop on Fulton

And yet another reason to shop locally!  The new Fulton BID (known as the FAB Alliance) just sent me some very convincing reasons to shop on Fulton this month. The new FAB Alliance is giving away 4 FREE TICKETS to a performance of the "Christmas Spectacular" at Radio City Music Hall - featuring the Rockettes! All people have to do is to go into a participating SHOP BROOKLYN businesses along Fulton Street (and parts of Lafayette, Greene and Putnam Avenues) in Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, fill out an entry form and drop it in the box. You can enter to win at as many businesses that have the raffle box as you want (but you can only complete one entry per person at each business). No purchase necessary and all that stuff. Complete rules are on the entry forms. Tickets donated by the local branch of Capital One Bank, 858 Fulton Street (@ Clinton Avenue). The drawing will be December 17, 2009, and the tickets are for the 8:00pm performance on December 23, 2009. You can enter to win at the local Capital One branch and at any of the participating Fulton Street SHOP BROOKLYN businesses (see flyer attached) - there are nearly 50! Shop Brooklyn is a program of Borough President Marty Markowitz designed to encourage people to shop locally during the holiday season (and all year long!). Each of the businesses is offering a special "Brooklyn Bonus" through Christmas… Free desserts with dinner... drink deals.... discounts on clothing... gift cards... drawings for free books... spa upgrades... eye exams... and even discounted therapy sessions. The variety of businesses on Fulton Street is amazing, and if you haven't explored the entire strip in a while, you have a lot to discover. Check out the list of businesses attached and what they are offering... and enter to win those free tickets to Radio City.

Toy Drive, Discounted Manicures and a Grand Opening

Tomorrow, there's lots going on down on Fulton, thanks to Lashunda Davis (owner of both 'Cure and Grady's).  Head down to donate some holiday cheer to a needy child, get a well-deserved holiday mani, and celebrate the opening of a hip new boutique!

• From 11am-7pm, bring a new, unwrapped toy to 'Cure Beauty Bar and receive a $10 mani'cure (921 Fulton St)
• Gradys Collective Market (923 Fulton) holds its Grand Opening: Wine and food tasting, discounts, raffles, flowers and of course Fashion...Men and Women!

Greenlight Bookstore: Beautiful!

I finally made it over to Greenlight Bookstore, the indie Fort Greene bookstore venture that's been in the works since early 2008.  While I was excited, I kept it in check.  I've seen a lot of indie bookstores that end up being hyper-specific to one subject I'm not interested in (new age, self-help, children - the list goes on and on).

I'm happy to say I am delighted with our new local shop!  The space is beautifully designed, and full of all sorts of books.  I was happy to see a healthy selection of best selling fiction and literature, and even a display of those gorgeous new clothbound Penguin classics.

Greenlight Bookstore 686 Fulton Street

This Just In: Olivino Wine Bar Broken Into

Olivino Wine Bar was broken into this weekend.   I'm very sorry to hear the news, as it's one of my favorite places.

Grady's BK

Fulton Street in Clinton Hill has a new boutique!  Located next to Cure BK, Grady's Collective Market BK had their soft opening last weekend. For now, the shop features clothes, shoes and a few home items.  They'll be ramping up before their grand opening in early December.

The new shop has a brand new blog featuring store products.  They're planning on e-commerce functionality in the future. Staff was friendly and welcoming, and it looks like it'll be a chill place to browse and shop.  Check back for an interview with the shop's owners.

Go Fulton!

GRADYS COLLECTIVE MARKET BK* 923 FULTON ST. BROOKLYN NY,11238 GRADYSBK@GMAIL.COM

TUES. - FRI. 12PM TO 7PM SAT. 11AM TO 7PM SUN. 12PM TO 6PM

Sign Up in Fulton Storefront

The mysterious new storefront on Fulton now has a sign up!

Thanks, Dahlia, for tweeting it to me!

Embora: Closed

A tipster recently emailed me to ask what happened to Embora, the yoga-dance studio on Fulton near Washington.  Sure enough, it is closed.  The sign is still up, but the interior is empty.  No explanation, no nothing.  Embora moved to the neighborhood around the same time I did, coming up on six years.  Their website is still up, but their phone number has been "temporarily disconnected."

A comment on Yelp from September 15  laments their closure.  Wish they had something up on their site!

Anyone know any specifics?

A Sports Bar for Fulton?

Speaking of new establishments on Fulton, a reader informs us that a sports bar will open on the same block as Olivino.  Maybe in the former home of BKNY?  Or is that something else now?

Halloween at Habana

Free Habana Halloween Kid's Party!

October 31st from 12- 6pm

Bring your little monsters and ghouls down for our free Habana Halloween party. Candy, games, crafts, prizes and more!

Monster Bash Dance Contest with DJ Juice E: 4- 6pm

Costume Contest @ 5pm

THE OFFICIAL Halloween and Last Call Party

Free – No Cover

Sat. October 31st from 9pm- 4am

Help us celebrate the end of another great summer at Habana Outpost on Halloween night with DJ Juice E in the Lowpost lounge (below Habana Outpost) There will be free giveaways throughout the night and a costume contest at Midnight!

Where : Habana Outpost

757 Fulton Street (Corner of South Portland ) Brooklyn NY

718 858 9500

www.HabanaOutpost.com

A New Bar for Fulton?

Recently, a reader tipped me off to a potential bar opening on Fulton next to Brooklyn Cares Vet: Hi! I think there might be a new bar going in around 946 or 948 Fulton St at Cambridge Place (next to the Brooklyn Cares vet clinic). It's under construction, but the door was open the other day and I saw what looked like a big long plywood counter going in. Do you know anything about it?

I walked past last week and only saw what looked like construction - but no one was around to ask.  Have the scoop?  This could be pretty cool, and a good way to link western Fulton (home to Olivino wine shop and bar and the new Just Taste It) with the eastern end (Outpost).  Maybe they'll even be open when the post office is.  I know I usually feel like a stiff drink after leaving that place.