March » 2011 » Markets of New York

Dekalb Market Will Bring Local Entrepreneurs and Farmers to Downtown Brooklyn

Dekalb Market - Creating Commerce from Shipping Containers

There are lots of great markets growing and thriving in Brooklyn these days, and one of the most exciting ones is the coming Dekalb Market, soon to be a home to artisans, farmers, food innovators, and chickens.

I was incredulous as I walked along Flatbush Avenue towards the market site last December. I spent a semester studying at Long Island University (LIU) Brooklyn Campus as an undergraduate, and I could hardly imagine a market, let alone a farm, right across the street.

I squeezed through the fence to meet up with Eldon Scott, head of Urban Space NYC, the organization behind the Dekalb Market, as well as the Union Square and Columbus Circle Holiday Markets and the Madison Square Market. As we stood on the empty, frozen site, Eldon shared with me the plans for the market, which, if you look at the image from that day, was a testament to his vision.

Eldon Scott cut his market teeth on Camden Locks, London’s colorful craft, fashion, vintage and food market. His aim for the Dekalb Market is to help increase the market share for local production and entrepreneurs. Brooklyn has proven to be extremely receptive to this idea, not only with this new market but also with the continuing boom in artisan, food and flea markets in the borough. People are interested in buying from and supporting local businesses.

The market will be an incubator for these businesses. For Eldon, the shipping containers are like an artificial reef. The market provides the infrastructure, and the businesses bring it to life. The four founding concepts of the Dekalb Market are:

Entrepreneurship: The market will be a place for people to shop from local businesses, not national chains. These businesses will be able to thrive and grow, making a profit and providing jobs for the community and beyond.
Sustainability: The market concept has to work from a business perspective, and part of that is to “build it quicker, cheaper, and lighter.” Hence building the market from recycled shipping containers, which require less construction resources and which would otherwise end up being discarded. The market will be able to be up and running much quicker than if it required a traditional structure. The containers are actually “found objects,” rather than recycled materials, which means that they can be used in their original form and require no additional energy to be turned into something new. The market is also using salvaged building materials from Build It Green in Astoria. They are getting the other materials from the Green Depot, such as low toxicity paints and other low energy products.
Community: Eldon sees an inherent beauty in the way markets become a community in and of themselves. You have a group of individuals (buyers and sellers) who meet face to face for commerce. People establish personal relationships and come back not just for the products but also for the experience and friendships they form. I wholeheartedly agree, and I have seen the markets in Brooklyn and elsewhere embrace and be embraced by the greater communities around them.
Quality: The Dekalb Market is curated by Urban Space NYC to ensure that the businesses are sustainable and that their products provide the quality and value that their customers want, expect, and need. These businesses tell the story of local production of food and non-food products. Buying local doesn’t have to mean paying super-premium prices.

And what about those chickens? The Dekalb Market will host an incubator farm, featuring 6-7 guest farmers. They will produce and sell food to the community, as well as provide educational experiences around agriculture and food production.

More than half the spaces in the market are already filled with wonderful local businesses, including Robicelli’s Cupcakes (support their efforts on IndieGoGo!), Joe The Art of Coffee, Cuzin’s Dozens Donuts, Harriet’s Alter Ego, and more!

The Dekalb Market is scheduled to open in early summer. The exact date has not been fixed, so stay tuned here for details! And follow the Dekalb Market on Facebook and Twitter!

NOTE: The Dekalb Market is holding Not Just a Container – A Contest, one of the most exciting design contests since the High Line Park’s conceptual design competition. The market buildings will be constructed from recycled shipping containers. Contest entrants must submit a design for transforming a shipping container into a design/retail space. The details are on the website, and the deadline for entry is April 9, 2011.

Help Japan

For more comments, see cross-posting on Sirene MediaWorks

I am horrified and flabbergasted by the trifecta of disasters in Japan. So I am sharing two links with information about where you can contribute and support the people of Japan to help them recover from this unthinkable situation:

Doctors Without Borders: I saw their work in Mozambique, and I think they are a fantastic organization.
Manhattan Users Guide List: Thank you to the Manhattan Users Guide for this list of other organizations working to help the people of Japan, including the Japan Society and the NYC Mayor’s Fund.

Please use the comments section below to share any other events in support of Japan Relief and also post on our Facebook Page.

Canadian Artist James White of Signalnoise Studio in Nova Scotia created this beautiful poster to raise funds for Japanese relief. He is donating proceeds to the Canadian Red Cross.

Thank you.

Book Review: Professor Chocolate Presents The Ultimate Guide to Finding Chocolate in NYC

Professor Chocolate helps us find the best bonbons in town

Professor Chocolate Presents: The Ultimate Guide to Finding Chocolate in NYC – Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn is a labor of love, spanning three years of research and discovery (ie. eating a lot of chocolate!) by two friends, fellow chocolate afficcionados, and elementary school teachers, Rob Monahan and Neill Alleva, who together comprise Professor Chocolate.

I am a chocoholic. No bones about it. So I was happily surprised when I found a whole slew of chocolate shops I didn’t know about, as well as all of my favorite ones listed in this fun, quirky guidebook. Several of the best chocolatiers and chocolate shops in the city are in the markets, including Roni-Sue’s Chocolates (at the Essex Street Market); Jacques Torres and Chelsea Market Baskets (at Chelsea Market); NuNu Chocolates (at the Brooklyn Flea, Urban Space NYC Markets, Old Can Factory Markets and more), and Mast Brothers (at the New Amsterdam Market). They’re all in the book.

Chocolate isn't just for bonbons - Chocolate Muffin from FIKA Espresso Bar

The book presents eleven self-guided tours through different neighborhoods in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. But don’t fret: Volume 2 covering other parts of the city is in the works. We took the “Historic Walk” through the Financial District, including the fine French Maison du Chocolat and Swedish FIKA Espresso Bar. It was a Sunday, so several of the shops were closed, but the chocolate we did find was new to us and extremely tasty. We had chocolatier Håken Mårtensson’s pear liqour and cardamom bonbons at FIKA, as well as the moist, rich chocolate muffin.

The “High Line Picnic” tour includes four chocolate shops in Chelsea, including the lovely Three Tarts. There are three tours in Brooklyn, including the “Brownstone Tour” through Boerum Hill and the aptly named “Stroller Tour” through Park Slope.

The Professor Chocolate guide devotes two full pages plus copious illustrations and photos for each shop in the book. They also provide pages for you to take notes about all the chocolates you tried, and even a star rating system. You can find addresses, phone numbers, hours of operation, maps, and the closest subway stops for each location. The detailed icon list, such as “Stroller Friendly,” “Only in NYC,” “Ice Cream,” and “Wi-Fi,” will help you plan your excursion. Several of the shops are closed on Sundays, so make sure you read the fine print before you head out!

In addition to being a chocoholic’s survival guide, the guide has loads of fun details. On page 98, for example, the Professors tell us, “Chocolate has consistently been shown not to cause acne in studies conducted over the last 50 years!” On page 58, they ask, “Is chocolate as good as sex?” (You’ll have to find out the answer in your own copy of the book.) Rob and Neill recommend places in the neighborhoods to enhance your tour, like the High Line Park in Chelsea, or the Brooklyn Flea.

Rob and Neill state, “We do not judge the quality of chocolate, nor do we consider ourselves connoisseurs in the traditional sense. We simply love chocolate, love finding it, and love sharing our research with anyone who is interested.” They do give suggestions for some of the bonbons they like the best, like NuNu Chocolate’s Absinthe Delight and Ronnie’ Sue’s Pig Candy (bacon and chocolate confections).

This book is self-published, and it is currently available online and in Chelsea Market Baskets and several other shops. Rob and Neill will be burning up the shoe leather visiting shops and bookstores in person once school lets out in the summer. They’re also going to be giving tours, which I will definitely let you know about!

They are so committed and passionate about this project, and they could really use our support! Here’s how:

1. Buy the book!

2. Ask your local bookstore to order multiple copies!

3. Contribute to their crowdfunding project so they can finish Volume 2!

Are you ready for some chocolate now? Professor Chocolate will show you the best bonbons in town!

Follow Professor Chocolate:

Twitter

Facebook

Youtube

Update on Jeffrey’s Meat Market

On February 24th, I published the press release from Jeffrey’s Meat Market at the Essex Street Market about their increasing rent and business troubles. Sadly, Jeffrey’s is closed, at least for now. Last Thursday, the Bowery Boogie posted some sad photos of empty cases that used to be full of meats and bare walls that used to exhibit works from local artists.

Mr. Ruhalter sent out an update on Friday, which I wanted to share with you. Unfortunately, he has closed his shop for now. Hopefully he can find the resources he needs to move forward. Please note his comments on the Economic Development Corporation (NYEDC) and how wonderfully supportive they have been.

“I speak to my/our community.

“I sent out a press release last week in a last ditch effort for help because I have run out of time and options. Only one of my issues was rent. The press release resulted in a barrage of responses directed toward EDC and I understand that the “landlord’ is an easy target. In response to the press release EDC requested a meeting with me. I expected to meet with their representative and expected to hear, “pay rent or get out”. Instead, when I arrived to the meeting, I was met with the top four executives of EDC. C’mon, really, I’m just a butcher, I don’t deserve this attention… Only after an hours long meeting did they bring up the issue of rent. I found myself meeting with the community, not my landlord. All they wanted to do was to find ways to help me. They represented you, the community, and they played their roll in helping me as your representative of the community. I was astounded at their position. I’m a black and white guy, if I can’t pay rent, I have to get out. Instead, they gave me options to survive. I don’t really know how to define what happened to me in that meeting but I started to breath again. While we worked out a plan to keep my rent the same, at this time I still must temporarily close, as we have other financial considerations that we must try to resolve.

“This is my world; a week ago a lady came to my shop, drunk, and I knew that she needed food. I went to the Pain D’Avignon bread store in the market and wanted to buy bread for her, in which the bread company gave me some bread for free to help my cause, I came back and made her a sandwich to fill her belly. Moments later the next customer spent 45 dollars on some of my prime dry aged steaks to feed her family for dinner. I don’t decide who gets what, I respond to the communities needs as they arise because if it were not for the community I wouldn’t be here. I can say that the community feeds my soul as their butcher but in addition, is that the community fuels my existence. What I know to be true is that we belong to each other and without the community, you, I don’t exist. Thank you for giving my family our life blood.

“For many reasons, I regrettably closed the store today, temporally. I need time to re-group, to tap into resources that can help keep this piece of antiquity alive. I’m in trouble and I’m going to rely on fate to decide the future of my store; my families history. It’s okay, I’ll continue to be who I am as a representative of the Ruhalter family. I know you’re out there and thank you for being with me and my family for 75 years.

“Because this may be may my final ado I offer this:
I walk with my eyes open and closed.
I take a breath.
Feel the past.
Touch my soul.
Feel tomorrow.
Lay my head.
I say a prayer.
That you are here.”

Jeffrey Ruhalter
Jeffrey’s Meat Market

Inspired by Squash & This Art Print Could Be Yours!

Winter Squash Print by Claudia Pearson for Greenmarkets (image from Claudia Pearson)

Who doesn’t love a squash? Butternut, Potimarron, Spaghetti, Acorn, Blue Hubbard – there are more varieties than I ever gave this humble vegetable credit for.

And I absolutely love this new Squash Print by talented illustrator, Claudia Pearson, which she created in partnership with GrowNYC. I first saw this print in December in the Union Square Greenmarket information tent, where I was doing a very very cold book signing. The print is 18″ x 24″ and will be available shortly on Claudia’s Etsy Shop for purchase.

However, if you visit Claudia Pearson’s blog and leave a nice comment about one of your favorite ways to cook squash, you could win a poster of our very own! Claudia will pick the very lucky winner randomly on March 8th.

This winter, I picked out a few new kinds of squash at the Greenmarkets and peeled and hacked them up with my newly sharpened knives. I usually toss the firm, cool chunks in a bowl with olive oil, sea salt, and pepper, and popped them in the oven on a cookie sheet fro 45 minutes at 375°. They invariably came out crispy on the outside and warm, soft, and full of flavor on the inside. Frankly, it was kind of a revelation for me how much I love squash. Next winter, I’m making potimarron soup.