FiPS Exclusive: A Peek Inside Construction At Owl Farm

After old-classic-filthy Irish bar Harry Boland's met its tax-related MC Hammer-esque demise, we all wondered what was going to happen with the empty space. Was it doomed to become another Starbucks or PetCo? Would FiPS finally get that salad place? Turns out brothers Mike and Ben Wiley, who are part owners of Bar Great Harry in Carroll Gardens and Mission Dolores on 4th avenue in the Slope, snatched the space up and will be transforming it into a new joint called Owl Farm.

Mike and Ben Wiley

Mike and Ben, along with middle brother Seth, have spent the past few months renovating the space, which was named after Hunter S. Thompson's old ranch in Woody Creek, CO (it's also a fair homage for the shit that used to go down at Harry's). The brothers recently gave FIPS a preview of what the place is gonna look like for their (hopefully) soft opening on Friday, June 15th.

When that happens, be prepared for a whopping 28 beers on tap, plus two cask lines...

Click to read more ...

Calexico Is Bringing Its Vendy Award-Winning Ass to 5th Avenue!

Photo via CalexicoHoly tacos and tortas, Batman! Calexico, the much-buzzed about Vendy award-winning Cal-Mex food cart turned brick & mortar restaurant WITH A CHIPOTLE SAUCE NICKNAMED "CRACK," is making its way to our neighborhood. Here's Park Slope recently reported that brothers Jesse, Brian and Dave Vendley, along with pal Peter Oleyer, will be opening a new location on 5th Avenue and and 1st Street where Blue Ribbon Sushi once stood. 

In a written letter taped to the door of the soon-to-be restaurant, the owners introduce themselves, saying, "The restaurant will be very similar to our other Brooklyn locations. We will offer fresh, healthy Cal-Mex cuisine at an affordable price. We will also offer a kid's menu... Our restaurant will be food-focused, but we hope to be able to serve beer, wine and margaritas as accompaniments."

Click to read more ...

[Review'd] Casa Ventura

Some people don't believe in ghosts & curses. Personally, The Blair Witch Project & the face melting scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark really freak my shit out. Tell me a story about how your roommate's friend saw a little girl sitting at the end of his bed one stormy night and I'll get radiating chills up & down my body as I imagine awaking to the same spectral sight.

The folks behind Casa Ventura, the new Latin American restaurant on 7th Ave & 3rd St that opens for dinner tonight in the former Barrio Barrio Plates Mix space, have no need for such supernatural tomfoolery. Sure the space has gone through some rapid changes recently. Sure it seemed like things were a bit askew a few weeks back. After sitting down with Avi Kravitz & Courtney Ebner (two of the partners in the business) and then trying the food last night at their opening event, all signs point to them ending whatever bad mojo had taken over the space.

The story of Casa Ventura starts back in the days of Barrio, when Jose Ventura (Casa Ventura's director of operations & fearless leader) and Devonna Middeleer (his wife) worked there. Avi & Courtney lived just upstairs and would always be in for dinner. After a while they struck up a friendship. Fast forward a few years, when the owner of Barrio offered to sell the place to Jose. He jumped at the opportunity & soon after, the two couples were in business together.

Click to read more ...

Lucky Lou's ReOpens as Lucky 7 Cafe & Grill (and Other recent storefront changes in the nabe)

After unexpectedly closing up shop shortly after opening, Lucky Lou's has reopened with a new name, owners and menu. For some reason, the previous ownership partnership dissolved and the place was closed and put up for sale just after opening.

A husband and wife team named Edgar & Sammie bought the joint, called it Lucky 7 Cafe & Grill, and are now cranking out American Western-inspired food. You can check out their menu HERE. I stopped by and ordered a grilled steak salad off of the specials menu. The portion size was great and the price completely reasonable.

Click to read more ...

Baked in Brooklyn...That's a Lotta Bread!

I'm a man of simple means. It doesn't take a bucket of caviar or a wall-mounted spigot of Cristal by my bedside to put a smile on my face. Shit, If I ever went to prison, I'd be cool with a bread & water diet as long as that bread was fresh & flavorful and the water was cold from a woodland spring. One Dixie cup of primo olive oil & extra ice cubes please (though I would regret the fact that I'm WAY too boy-faced for the slammer).

So yeah...good bread's a simple pleasure. I mean, as it is, bread is a part of the foundation of the USDA food pyramid. If you don't get 6-11 SERVINGS of the stuff every day, Obama's secret police will bust down your door & repeatedly stab your eldest son about the face & groin. True story.

So yeah...fuck Robert Atkins & his fantastical anti-carb agenda. Don't deny the bread. It's key to human existence. Embrace it like I did on Tuesday night, when I was invited to the opening event for Baked in Brooklyn, the recently-opened storefront on 5th & 26th for Greenwood Heights' Aladdin Bakery.

Click to read more ...