Recently in Red Hook Category

First, apologies for not updating le blog more often ... Now, on to more important things, like that new coal-fired pizza place Anselmo's on Red Hook's Van Brunt Street that's been getting a lot of attention (Gothamist, Slice, NYMag, etc).

Here's the good news: It's not crowded, it's cheap, the waitstaff and pizza man himself, Anselmo Garcia, are super nice, and the ingredients are quality. Here's the slightly less good news: This is no Lucali, no Di Fara. It's good pizza, but it's not great pizza. Oh, and it's in Red Hook, so there's that pesky issue of busing it or walking it. (I prefer walking and suggest a meander through Red Hook Park and past the new Ikea.)

The concept at Anselmo's is a bit different than most of the coal places around town where your options are few. Here you get to choose your cheese--regular mozzarella is standard, and you pay extra for specialty cheeses like fresh mozzarella or ricotta--and your toppings. They go on either a $6, 10-inch pie, or a $14, 14-inch pie. Toppings are $1 on the small or $1.75 on the large. My money says ordering the small pie is cheaper and more personally satisfying as you get the whole thing to yourself.

Mr. Garcia and his 700+ degree oven turn out a lightly-charred-around-the-edges pie on a thin, but not particularly crispy crust. His sauce is pleasantly sweet and ordering the fresh mozzarella or the buffalo mozzarella add that slight necessary tartness. I wanted the crust to be more flavorful and crisper on the bottom. As well, I missed the olive oil drizzle that pulls pies together at similar coal shops. Still, my junior reviewer declared his slice of fresh mozzarella and wild mushroom pie a success, and I had no problem polishing off my bit, either.

Oh baby. The new Ikea is fun. It's gigantic. It's a baby overstimulation center. And, it's probably going to drain me of more money than I possess. Yeah, it's a bit ugly and bright blue, but it gets my two thumbs up.

There will be naysayers--there was one in my head, actually--who will say that the Red Hook Ballfields vendors aren't the same since the Health Department stuck its nose in their business. And those naysayers would be right.

The switch from tables and open grills to trucks has resulted in fewer vendors with less grill and prep space. This means the normally long lines are even longer, and this on Saturday when there was only one soccer game in sight. I will add that the ratio of whities to non-whities was about 3 to 1.

The impromptu nature has been replaced by a much more settled feeling. However, I give it up to the vendors who were there in great spirits and delivering the top-notch huaraches and tamarind drinks that I love so much. Also in the house--papusas, mayo-smothered corn and ceviche.

I've kept silent thus far on the "Is 'The Real World' coming to Carroll Gardens or not issue?" simply because it's been so back-and-forth. Today (again), Curbed supposedly has the word, which is that the show will be located in Red Hook and not Carroll Gardens or downtown Brooklyn. Red Hook certainly makes more logistical sense for the show, and it's also certain to make many in this neighborhood very, very happy.

On a related note, what's with all the filming in the neighborhood? In the past week, there's been a film shooting in front of the movie theater, a commercial on Smith Street and then today a whole crew was set up in front of the old Little Red Deli by the Cobble Hill Park.

Photo from Listen Missy on Flickr.

The countdown to the opening of the new Red Hook Ikea on June 18th at 9am has begun.

I know I'm not the first blog to report this, but I figure a new shop in Red Hook can use all the help it can get. And so, if you're wandering Van Brunt tomorrow (maybe say having a coffee and cupcake at Baked or brunch at Hope and Anchor), you should stop by metalwork and sewn-goods shop Metal and Thread at 298 Van Brunt, between Coffey and Dikeman streets. The work is the product of two artists, Denise Carbonell and Derek Dominy. See the Etsy store for a better idea of their stuff. The store opens at noon, and the party starts at 4 p.m.

Just got an email about the space was was formerly Lillie's in Red Hook. The word is that the chef behind Petit Crevette and Bouillabaisse (Neil Ganic?) will be serving food, and there will be an adjacent restaurant/music space, La Bouillabaisse. The spot will be named after Mordecai Gist ... That last bit of information makes me think "Is this for real?" Being that it's nearly midnight, a little too late to call for confirmation, but Gowanus Lounge makes an allusion to similar information in its July Red Hook quiz. I suppose why not Mordecai? (Makes me think of the biblical Mordecai in the book of Esther.) Good to see another bar opening in Red Hook.

Oh, I walked by Bouillabaisse 126 on Union Street Saturday night and it was dead. Anybody been lately?

Unfortunately, I took all my Red Hook photos on Saturday, before the What's the Hook photo project was supposed to start. If you're interested and a photographer, the peeps behind the group describe their mission thusly:

Open to locals and visitors alike, "What's The Hook" encourages photographers of all backgrounds to submit digital images captured during the week of August 12th – 18th. This week has been selected as it begins with Red Hook Old Timer's Day, an annual event at Red Hook Housing that has been going on for more than 30 years.

Again, these don't count, but I still like 'em :)

Check out my set on Flickr.