The restaurant formerly known as W – located at 2812 Ocean Avenue and Avenue X – has changed its name to Le Bouchon. It’s got new owners to boot.
We’re not quite sure why the old owners decided to bail, and calls to the restaurant went unanswered. But from what we can gather with a little online research, the new guys bought into the place at the end of 2009. They kept up with the W brand until just a few weeks ago, when the new sign went up.
Just as W did, they’re pushing French and steakhouse food at upscale prices. Though we haven’t tried the food there, our favorite thing on the new menu is the “Galamâ” – a gussied up spelling of the Brooklynese pronunciation of calamari. Cute.
Thanks to Arthur Borko and BrooklynQ for the tip.
Photo by BrooklynQ
Looks like our prediction about Walgreens and Duane Reade closings around Southern Brooklyn is coming true even faster than we thought it would. A Kings Highway Duane Reade store closed just two weeks ago, and a reader then told us that the Duane Reade location on Avenue J and East 16th Street also closed.
Now word is coming in from tipster extraordinaire BrooklynQ that the Walgreens at 1721 Avenue U (between East 17th Street and East 18th Street) is closed for business.
The closing shows that the chain is not at all timid in shuttering newly-constructed facilities. This particular location was previously the last bastion of our beloved local chain Morris Discount, which Walgreens purchased in June 2008. Since it took up the property, it seems work on it has been never-ending, with a storefront expansion a year ago, and finally a reconstructed facade just finished within the last few months.
And now… it’s closed. For good. A whole lot of work for nothing, and a storefront not so easily adjusted for non-Walgreens uses. What will happen to the newly-completed Bragg Street Walgreens, which sits in spitting distance from the high-traffic Duane Reade Nostrand Avenue location? We don’t know, but if they shut it down it means an entire new construction goes to waste…
But back to 1721 Avenue U – be advised that pharmacy records have been transferred to the Duane Reade at 1417 Avenue U.
A reader sent us this photo and a note saying Century Mart of Avenue U, located at 2309 Avenue U, appears to be closed for good. The Asian food market has served the neighborhood for several years, and there didn’t seem to be any advance notice about its closure. We tried calling the business’s number, but found it was disconnected.
In the window of the store is a sign advertising commercial lofts for rent on the second and third floors of the building, but no information about the ground-level business. Could it be temporary? Keep an eye on this space and let us know if you see any changes.
Tuesday Tips is a series of articles from local experts to help you save money, make better decisions and plan for a better future.
A debt collection agency froze your bank account and you didnt know about it? And you never got served? Just something in the mail months after a judgment had been entered against you? You’re kidding!
Welcome to the world of debt collection in Brooklyn. Far be it from me to say whether or not service was correct, but I literally have hundreds of clients that have called me with the same problem. Out of nowhere, their bank accounts have been frozen by debt collection agencies. Many of my clients in my Sheepshead Bay office also have social security payments going into these accounts, making it completely illegal for creditors to freeze the accounts, but they do so anyway.
Find out your rights, and how to protect yourself from a debt collector.
Just a month after we corrected naysayers and pointed out this spot is doing just fine, the final commercial tenants of the residential-retail development on Ocean Avenue and Avenue Z are either open or gearing up to open.
The latest to welcome customers is Voyage Unisex Hair Salon, another in a long line of spiffed-up Sheepshead Bay hair salons offering the works (including manicures, pedicures, waxes and all kinds of stuff I don’t know anything about). To celebrate their grand opening, they’re doing all haircuts for the supremely mediocre price of $15. They’re also hiring, so if you have good hands and a penchant for taking aerosol fumes to the head, give a call.
The other new business, which is not yet open and is only heralded by a cardboard sign in the door, is Chipp Neapolitan Pizza (and thank you, BrooklynQ, for catching this and sending the photo). With two buses stopping in front of the store and no other pizzeria for several blocks, the business should do very well.
Good luck to all the new businesses of the now totally booked development.
Photo and tip by Arthur Borko
When Walgreens bought up the New York City-based Duane Reade chain in February, the growing corporate giant said there were no immediate plans to close any of the branches. But we knew better, and publicly worried that the number of stores that competed with their new sister branches would cause the company to shutter locations.
Well, six months later and that fear is becoming a reality. The corporate overlords are starting to cut back on redundant services. The Kings Highway Walgreens branch near Coney Island Avenue is now shuttered. Presumably because it competes with two other pharmacies with the same ownership – one across the street and the other on Kings Highway and East 14th Street.
Continue Reading »
Sneaker Corner's old look - Source: Google Maps
Three businesses on and around Nostrand Avenue are fixin’ up the joint, including Brooklyn’s Sneaker Corner, which redid its storefront. The decades old business at 3570 Nostrand Avenue has a new look with a real sign on the way. It’s old sign has been a Sheepshead Bay fixture with a lot of character, so I look forward to see if the new sign will be an improvement to this rather dreary stretch of Nostrand Avenue businesses.
Currently closed for renovations are two Avenue U businesses a few blocks shy of Nostrand Avenue. Pizzeria Del Corso (3003 Avenue U) has been closed since at least last week with a sign in the window informing readers of the work going on inside. No word on when it’ll reopen. Also, Jay & Lloyd’s Kosher Deli at 2718 Avenue U is shuttered for repairs. We’ll let you know when the area’s only kosher-style deli is reopened. I hear good things about this place, but never had the chance to try it. I’ll remedy that when doors are open again.
Screenshot from iShopBrooklyn.com
In an effort to bolster neighborhood economic centers across the borough, Borough President Marty Markowitz has launched Shop Brooklyn, a partnership with more than 190 Brooklyn businesses to offer back-to-school and other promotions.
The problem is, none of the businesses are in the Sheepshead Bay area, and only a smattering are in Southern or Eastern Brooklyn.
We found just five establishments in the seven area codes that cover Sheepshead Bay and nearby communities.
Keep reading to find out what’s wrong with the Borough President’s planning, and see which (somewhat) local stores are participating.
Residents living along the border of Sheepshead Bay and Marine Park now have a new store to pick up their Coca-Cola, canned beans and candy bars. GRA Convenient opened last week on the corner of Avenue U and Haring Street.
Stocked with the usual bodega merchandise, the owners are waiting for their permits to sell booze. There’s a sandwich counter for people to sit and eat the store’s Boar’s Head sandwiches, but don’t look for ham – it looks like they’re keeping halal. (An employee said it will be a “mixed” store, but the display was conspicuous in its absence of pork products.)
The space was previously occupied by Car Toys U.S.A., which sold automotive accessories.
Photo by Arthur Borko
Everyone knows that you can lose weight by eating Subway sandwiches. But did you know if you get the right combination of bread, meat, cheese and condiments you can actually travel back in time? It’s true!
Here’s the recipe: 9-grain honey oat bread, Monterey cheddar cheese, Black Forest ham, lettuce, LSD, red onions, jalapeños, meth and chipotle sauce. Don’t forget to pick up a bag of Sun Chips… you’re going to need them where you’re going.
And now there’s a new location for you to have this sandwich carelessly slopped together with subpar ingredients (well, almost all the ingredients listed above). A Subway Restaurant is now open at 1806 1817 Avenue U, just off East 19th Street. They’ve replaced a beauty supply store that offered absolutely nothing to the time traveling community.
