SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

A sign hangs in the newly constructed glass storefront of Munchinette, at 1738 Sheepshead Bay Road, proudly declaring that the business will reopen soon.

The eatery – with its smoothies, wraps, sandwiches and protein shakes – has been closed ever since Superstorm Sandy flooded the corridor. Although we haven’t spoken to the owner since the storm, we know he has been planning to give the entire place a facelift for several years.

The new space is already looking good, with the storefront’s walls built out all the way to its property line, adding a bit of space. We, and hundreds of Bally’s members, I’m sure, are looking forward to their reopening.

Brooklyn Bloom, a new cafe serving coffee, baked goods and more, is now open at 1607 Avenue U.

The cafe replaces Donut Connection, which itself carried misleading signage, as most of the place was given over to El Mexicano Restaurant Y Panaderia Mexicana, which we once gave rave reviews for their chicken enchiladas mole.

We’re not sure when El Donut Conexión shuttered, but Brooklyn Bloom opened about a week and a half ago, an employee told us.

Welcome! We hope Brooklyn Bloom blossoms!

It seems like every spring there’s a new thing going on over at the 1307 Avenue Z Puff Caffe storefront. Back in 2011, they renovated and introduced cheese and chocolate fondue to their lineup. In 2012, they closed for renovations.

Now, in 2013, they’re switching gears altogether and are going full-steam-ahead on a true cafe concept – and with a tweaked name, Puff Cafe & Coffee. There’s counter-service for coffee, tea and espresso beverages from Italian coffee maker Lavazza, pastries, comfortable seating and free wi-fi. There’s a whole new menu, and I’m assuming the signage will change soon to reflect that it’s more of a cafe than a hookah and fondue lounge.

One very important change is that they’ve opened up the front of the store to natural light with a glass storefront – making the whole place a lot more welcoming.

They haven’t changed their website yet (puffcaffe.com – not cafe!), so we can all still enjoy the boo-bee-boo-bop dance beat that starts playing on every single load of every single page without a way to turn it off. We’ll miss that.

A rendering of Manhattan Beach’s Subway Cafe interior.

Manhattan Beach will be the site of the borough’s first publicly-accessible Subway Cafe, a new upscale concept that blends together a sandwich shop and a coffee bar.

Subway’s local franchisee signed a lease for 1613 Oriental Boulevard, the former site of Quick Break Deli just outside the gates of Kingsborough Community College (2001 Oriental Boulevard).

A rendering of Manhattan Beach’s Subway Cafe interior.

The 2,000-square-foot Subway Cafe will feature cozy couches placed before a decorative fireplace, free wi-fi, and a new line of espresso beverages and baked goods. There may also be outdoor seating.

“The cafe concept looks better than Starbucks, especially the way it will look in Manhattan Beach,” boasted Daryl Meyers, Brooklyn development agent for Subway. “It’s not like a Starbucks, but it’s similar in what it offers – cappuccino, latte. It’s actually Starbucks-branded coffee; it’s Seattle’s Best, which is owned by Starbucks.”

Subway began testing out the cafe concept in 2008, and slowly expanded to just 15 locations nationwide by 2011. The Manhattan Beach location will be the third publicly-accessible one in New York City, with one in Queens and another in Midtown Manhattan. There’s another location in Brooklyn that opened up around Labor Day weekend, but it’s on the Long Island University campus and only accessible to students and faculty, Meyers said.

All of those locations, though, will pale next to the size and investment Meyers’ team and the franchisee are putting into the Manhattan Beach location, though.

“This one is going to be much better,” Meyers said. “[In addition to the traditional Subway offerings,] we’re going to have dedicated staff for just the cafe, and the owner is dedicated to doing it properly … It has updated decor. Really, pretty nice.”

The 10-year lease for the space was brokered by Arsen Atbashyan, the CEO of Commercial Acquisitions Realty Services, and includes two five-year options. The franchise sought the space for the cafe because the proximity to the school, the beach and nursing home provides a strong customer base for a cafe atmosphere, Meyers said.

“It’s right across the street from Kingsborough Community College; there’s a high school right there. There’s a nursing home and the people in the healthcare industry tend to be some of our best customers. And it’s right on Manhattan Beach, so all summer long, all those beach customers,” Meyers said.

Subway Cafe is tentatively slated to open February 22.

Clarification (3:25 p.m.): Atbashyan adds that agent Shlomi Albagdadi also helped put together the deal.

Amid all the damage from Superstorm Sandy, at least one new eatery has been born. Espresso & Grill Room is now open at 1613 Voorhies Avenue.

The location’s interior was still incomplete when the flood waters came, sparing them the cost of needing to redo everything, an owner told us when we stopped by before it opened. That allowed them to make a quick recovery and launch this business this week.

The business has been in the works since at least August, when we reported that it would replace Cupcake Kings, which closed in June.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Espresso & Grill Room, and good luck!

Those who take the Voorhies Avenue route to the Sheepshead Bay train station may have been dismayed about the loss of a morning coffee place when Cupcake Kings closed back in June. But, don’t despair, Espresso & Grill Room will replace the coffee and cupcake locale at 1613 Voorhies Avenue very soon. And they’ll be serving breakfast, lunch and dinner – as opposed to just the sweet stuff.

And, yes, we got a lot of tips about this one – including from our friends over at Arbuz (1706 Sheepshead Bay Road). So thanks to everyone who let us know!

Espress & Grill Room, welcome to the neighborhood.

Gravesend will soon gett a frozen yogurt joint , this time over at 811 Avenue U, where a local outpost of the national Yogurt City franchise is setting up shop.

The storefront is still under construction, with work crews getting the counters and machines ready to go. The company’s website said the grand opening is scheduled for July, but it looks like it’ll be pushed back until August at least.

Yogurt City has 41 locations listed on its website, spanning states from Massachusetts  to South Carolina, Ohio to Connecticut, the majority of which are labeled “Coming soon.” In New York, they have open locations in Manhattan, Bronx, Staten Island and Sunset Park.

We thought, at first, maybe they’d be serving kosher frozen yogurt, as that part of Gravesend is densely populated by observant Jews. But, with items on the menu like Maple Bacon Donut frozen yogurt, well, we think not.

UPDATE (7/31/2012 @ 11:00 a.m.): A representative of YoCream, which apparently supplies Yogurt City, wrote in to note that all of their frozen yogurt flavors – Maple Bacon Donut included – are kosher. He wrote:

I thought I would clarify that our Nonfat Maple Bacon Frozen Yogurt is OU-D Kosher Certified along with all of our 83 other frozen yogurt flavors and varieties. This frozen yogurt flavor was inspired by Portland’s famous Voodoo Doughnuts, Bacon Maple Bar. The YoCream Frozen Yogurt version is flavored with vegetarian ingredients.

Puff Caffe, a hookah and fondue joint at 1307 Avenue Z is, uh, “close for renovation,” according to a sign on its roll-down gates.

The sign tells passersby to call for information, but calls to the number given went to a disconnected line.

It was about a year ago that Puff changed up its sign and began offering fondue, but, I guess they decided it was time to turn over a new leaf yet again. Maybe hookah and fondue just don’t mix well…

Barcode Cafe opened at 822 Kings Highway in January, serving kosher coffee and more.

The location was previously Hookah Coffee Shop, a bodega serving coffee, tea, shisha and falafel.

It’s great to see new businesses opening  their doors. Good luck, Barcode Cafe.

Arbuz on Sheepshead Bay Road

The future site of TreatPetite, the Arbuz spin-off.

Accompanied by the sweet smell of fresh fruits and its colorful motif, Arbuz draws the attention of even the tiniest hands—a baby—who unknowingly nibbled away at some frozen yogurt and fruits.

The dessert-filled cafe has existed at 1706 Sheepshead Bay Road for two-and-a-half years. It was a business co-owner Rovshan Danilov calls a side venture from his fulltime job in finance. Though many of his colleagues thought he was crazy, it didn’t discourage his “love for food and entrepreneurship,” and the shop opened in August 2009.

And now Danilov and his partners are proving just how far they can take the crazy side venture: all the way to Manhattan.

Danilov & Co. are opening another frozen treat venture they call a “spin on Arbuz,” and it will be right in the heart of Greenwich Village.

Named TreatPetite, the new store will carry many of the same products that exist at Arbuz – plus a new signature item: Frozen Kefir.

“Think of it as a liquefied yogurt drink! It is healthy, delicious and very dear to us,” Danilov said. “Kefir was a very popular drink in the former Soviet Union, especially in the Caucasus region republics. It is also gaining a wide popularity here in U.S.”

Danilov also hired a “talented interior designer” to help give TreatPetite its own feel. The plans aren’t finalized yet, but he said, like Arbuz, “it will still have coastal tones. We have chosen a boardwalk for our inspiration for design.”

Currently under construction, TreatPetite will be located at 61 Grove Street, on the corner of 7th Avenue. An update on the construction, and the expected grand opening, is in the works.