Brighton Beach will be home to a new Dunkin’ Donuts in the near future, with construction set to wrap up soon at 361 Neptune Avenue, on the corner of Brighton 3rd Street.

The lot has been home to the shell of an old gas station and garage for quite a number of years, and it looks like plans for the franchise coffee and sweets shop have been in the works since late 2012, judging from Department of Buildings records. The plans were finally approved in January and work began thereafter.

It doesn’t look like they’ll have a drive-through operation, but there will be parking for as many as 13 cars in the lot – which has yet to be paved. It looks like they’re still working on the interior, too, and the cracked, weed-covered sidewalk around the perimeter will probably be redone as well.

What do you think – good place for a Dunkin’ Donuts?

This is a paid announcement from UFC Gym Brooklyn, located at 16 Brighton 11th Street.

Get out of the heat and join us for the annual UFC Gym Summer Party on Saturday, July 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In one hour of a fun and exciting group training session, you will burn up to 1,000 calories and learn what #traindifferent is all about.  Space is limited, so please call ahead to schedule an appointment. We offer Boxing, Kickboxing, TRX, Trigger Point Boxing, UFC Fit, and Daily Ultimate Training classes. We offer MMA and Muay Thai classes, and we’re also starting a brand new Brazilian Jiu Jitsu program in August.

• Special schedule for this Saturday:
  • 9:00 a.m.: MATRX (MMA with TRX)
  • 10:15 a.m.: Kid’s MMA
  • 12:00 p.m.: Kickboxing
  • 2:00 p.m.: DUT (Daily Ultimate Training)

• Live DJs Gio and Alex Edge will provide the ambiance!
• Free Personal Training Sessions all day (by appointment only)
• Free Fitness Assessments all day (by appointment only)
• The Best Deals on Memberships
• Free Food and Healthy Snacks
• Prizes and Giveaways
• Free classes
• Personal training specials
• 20% OFF on ALL merchandise!

Come join UFC Gym Brooklyn family this Saturday for a great workout and an awesome Summer Party!  Call us at (718) 975-7100 to reserve a spot.

UFC Gym Brooklyn, 16 Brighton 11th Street, (718) 975-7100, [email protected]. Follow UFC Gym on Facebook and Twitter.

The above is a paid announcement by UFC Gym Brooklyn. Sheepshead Bites has not verified the claims made in this advertisement. If you own a business and would like to announce a special offer to tens of thousands of locals, e-mail us at advertising [at] sheepsheadbites [dot] com.

Update (2:13 p.m.): We just spoke to outgoing owner Edwin Grichanik, who said the businesses wasn’t struggling at all, but that he “just got a big offer I couldn’t refuse.” The business has been sold to an employee of Delmar Pizzeria further up Sheepshead Bay Road. For Grichanik, this is business as usual. “I’m a serial entrepreneur. I buy businesses, I build them up, and then I sell them for a profit.”

Original post:

It’s getting hard to keep track of how many incarnations and owners the bagel place next to Sheepshead Bay train station has had over the years, but we can add one more.

Bagels R Us at 1424 Sheepshead Bay Road closed down about three weeks ago and was snatched up by new owners. A person connected to the business said it will reopen in a few days.

The location certainly has struggled since it was known as Bagel Stop & Deli, which closed in 2009 after many years of business.

Approximately a year later, it reopened under new ownership as Dish D’lish. After just a few months under that name, it rebranded as Jonathan’s Bakery, but still had the same ownership. That was part of an attempt to expand on their baked goods offerings.

That lasted about two years, when Jonathan’s owner decided to move on. It was scooped up by another buyer, who renamed it Bagels R Us in 2012.

That wasn’t the end of the ownership musical chairs. About a year went by and it was sold again in 2013. The latest owner kept the name but renovated the interior and changed up the menu. After a year, that owner has moved on, too.

That’s five owners and or rebrands in as many years. You’d think a coffee and bagel joint next to the busy Sheepshead Bay train station and abutting several bus stops would be a gold mine, no? What do you think the struggle is about?

A new, 16-suite building opened in Manhattan Beach on June 30, providing hospice care for terminally ill children.

The site, called Sixteen Lights and operated by MJHS, is located on the Menorah campus at 1516 Oriental Boulevard, wedged between Kingsborough Community College and Manhattan Beach Park.

Wall Street Journal reports:

The 16-suite building will cater to younger patients, offering a playroom, a playground and a homelike atmosphere with kitchens where parents who live there with their children can cook.

“The sad part is that today in our community, other than using a hospital-bed setting there really is no extended-stay place that a family can go to be with a child,” said Eli Feldman, MJHS’s chief executive. “It’s just not natural that a child dies before their parents.”

… MJHS was started by four Brooklyn women in 1907 to take care of the elderly. Its budget has grown to $1.1 billion from $45 million in the past four decades.

Dying adults also will be able to stay there. Their foundation paid the $7 million cost of the new hospice and so far they have raised $2 million to offset it.

Families can use the hospice as a respite, staying for up to five days, to relieve some of the pressure of constantly caring for a terminally ill child.

An artist’s rendition of the interior of a hospice unit, used in the planning stages. (Source: MJHS)

It appears to have been a long road to the site’s creation. After years of fundraising – which still continues – they broke ground in September 2012.

Here’s how the foundation describes the facility and its purpose:

When asked, people overwhelmingly choose to spend their last days at home, surrounded by family. Unfortunately, in the New York City area, too many people with advanced illness, especially children, must spend their final days in the sterile, impersonal environment of a hospital.

This 16-suite hospice inpatient residence will be a private home-like setting and it will be the first in New York City, and one of the few in the region, to serve children as well as adults. It will redefine hospice care by offering patients and their families a home away from home without sacrificing the best in medical care.

There are volunteer opportunities offered at the hospice. Learn more by clicking here.

Photo by Robert Fernandez

A new Mexican restaurant, Sante Fe Mexican Delicatessen, is now open at 1206 Avenue U.

The new eatery replaces Eddie’s Hair Salon, on the southside of the block between East 12th Street and Homecrest Avenuue.

Has anyone been there yet? Let us know how it is. Here at Sheepshead Bites, we’re always looking for a good taco. We’ve been informed by the owner that there are no tacos. They have deli and grocery items, hot and cold sandwiches and soups and will add a salad bar.

And welcome to the neighborhood, Santa Fe!

This article was amended on July 3.

Council Member Mark Treyger (center) and his office staff including (left to right) Deputy Chief of Staff Igor Vaysberg, Community Liaison Angel Fung; Community Liaison Jeannine Cherichetti and Constituent Services Supervisor Dilyora Rahimova.

The following is a press release from the offices of Councilman Mark Treyger:

As part of his efforts to serve and represent residents of the 47th Council District, Council Member Mark Treyger has announced the opening of a second district office to better connect all constituents of Bensonhurst, Gravesend, Coney Island and Sea Gate with local government and services.

The new office, located at 2015 Stillwell Avenue, is in addition to the office at the Warbasse Houses on Neptune Avenue serving the southern portion of the district including Coney Island that Council Member Treyger opened immediately upon taking office in January. The new Stillwell Avenue office is intended to provide much greater convenience to any residents who need help with issues related to city government and agencies. Council Member Treyger made constituent services and addressing neighborhood issues a top priority during his campaign and since taking office, and this new location is a major step towards fulfilling that pledge.

“My top priority is to assist every resident of my district with issues regarding city government and to deliver the services our community deserves. This new office will help ensure that my staff is convenient and accessible for all residents of Bensonhurst, Gravesend, Coney Island and Sea Gate, not matter which area of the district they live in. My great staff is ready to assist the public, so I urge everyone to call or stop in for help with local issues,” said Council Member Treyger.

The new office has been open for several weeks assisting district residents with government issues. It is open from noon to 8 p.m. on Mondays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and 9 a.m. to noon on Fridays. Residents can reach Council Member Treyger’s Stillwell Avenue staff, which includes multilingual speakers, by phone at (718) 307-7151 or by stopping by the office, which is accessible via the B1 and B4 buses and the D train.

Council Member Treyger will host a community open house and ribbon cutting ceremony at the Stillwell Avenue office on Sunday, June 22nd from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. All residents are invited to stop by and meet the Council Member and his staff and visit the new office space.

It was just last week that we reported that the Sprint store at 1743 Sheepshead Bay Road had shuttered, kicking off a flurry of construction. Well, now we see that City World Tobacco is preparing to open in its place.

Rovshan from Arbuz sent us the photo above, joking that “Smoke shops are froyo stores back a few years ago,” probably referring to our musing last year, in the wake of a spate of frozen yogurt shops opening, that frozen yogurt might be becoming the new sushi.

A few “smoke” shops have opened recently, but they all appear to be focused on “vaping” – or vaporized liquid tobacco products. It’s just a guess, but I’ve got a feeling this one’s going to be an old school smoke shop, with cigarettes and rolling tobacco, lottery tickets and gum. That’s just a guess.

Good luck, City World Tobacco.

Kay Opticians opened recently at 2105 Avenue U.

The business replaces a T-Mobile / TMZ Wireless store that closed earlier this year, or late 2013.

As one passerby noted, with the optician on the first floor, and the psychic on the second, you’re bound to leave this address having seen something, right?

Good luck to the new business!

(Source: NextGen via Yelp)

NextGen Vape Shop, a new business dedicated to e-cigarettes and liquid nicotine vaporizers, has opened at 2417 Avenue U, the former location of Kings County Divers.

The store opened its doors within the last few days. It’s the first vape shop we know of that has opened in the area, and, as we previously reported, another one is headed to Sheepshead Bay Road.

Although both stores seem to be positioning their vapeware as their primary offering, they both also have signs that say “smoke shop,” which suggests tobacco, glassware and accessories.

The business is replacing Kings County Divers, which closed in February after 40 years serving the community.

It’s been a long journey, but Rocca Cafe & Lounge is finally open to the public at 2712 Emmons Avenue, the former site of Dunkin’ Donuts, which closed in 2009.

The revamped building is not only the latest restaurant to open on Emmons Avenue, but one of the few to take advantage of its waterfront location. With huge windows on the interior, and outdoor, waterside seating for fairer weather, it showcases the Bay with pride.

The restaurant has been in the works for years. We were the first to note, in 2010, that a new restaurant was coming here. At the time, it was to be a second location for Masal, currently in the Lundy’s building. Some squabbling led to changes in ownership – again and again – as well as a few different names. Superstorm Sandy hampered its opening further, but it’s finally here.

The restaurant is Turkish owned, but it looks like a number of Italian dishes are making its way onto the menu, and the owners have previously described it to us as pan-Mediterranean. Regardless, the location looks spiffy, and we’re looking forward to checking it out.