New York: Williamsburg & Brooklyn

May 26th, 2010 | Posted in: travel

Wow, it seems forever ago since I was there, but here is the last bit of tips I have for you on NYC: Brooklyn and Williamsburg. Not as many a before as I wasn’t able to explore these area’s exhaustively, but nevertheless worth checking out. Let’s go!

Egg
First up is Egg. This is a great no nonsense restaurant where you can enjoy a breakfast with plenty of egg variations and other great meals. During the weekend these dishes are served all day as they are the best hangover-cure. Trust me. Besides that they serve lunch and dinner too, which I haven’t been able to try but I am sure are as great as the breakfast.
135 north 5th street.

Beacons Closet
One piece of advice: When looking for affordable vintage in New York, get out of Manhattan (Except for Fab. Fannies, Cobblestones and Tokio 7 of course) and head straight for Beacons Closet! This must be one of the biggest collections of awesome vintage clothing, shoes and accessories I have ever seen. Browsing through it made me smile, and that smile became even bigger when I saw the modest amount charged to my credit card. A must for every fashion-conscious person on this planet!
88 north 11th street.

Peachfrog
Another stop for fashion bargains is Peachfrog. Here you can buy contemporary fashion, accessories and even furniture at 70% to 90% discounts. That’s what we like!! Ranging from big international designers to local talents the collection is very diverse. Besides that, the store also served as a platform where local designers can show off their products/ art etc. Add to that the great events they organize and you have a great destination.
136 north 10th street.

powerHouse Arena
Moving over to the D.U.M.B.O. area of brooklyn we find powerHouse books at the base of Brooklyn Bridge. I posted about this store earlier so I’ll keep it short: Awesome collection of books by publisher powerHouse, great photo exhibitions, and the occasional great event. If you love book stores like I do, you can surely spend a lot of time here.
37 Main Street.

Grimaldi’s
There are two places in New York claiming to have the best pizza in town, if not the world. Lombardi’s is one, and Grimaldi’s in Brooklyn is the other. Their coal-fired brick oven cooking gives their pizza a unique smokey flavor and an amazing crispy crust.  After the long walk over Brooklyn Bridge this is an amazing stop to chill for a bit, enjoy great food and have a taste of New York. Which one of the two places is better? I can’t say. Let’s call it a tie.
19 Old Fulton street.

That’s it for Brooklyn. As I said, I must have missed tons of great places. So send your tips, put them in the comments for others to read etc. Just make sure I get them. I’ll surely be visiting them next time around!

More NYC tips? Also see:
Nolita, Soho and West Village
Eastvillage & Lower East Side

powerHouse Books Brooklyn

April 2nd, 2010 | Posted in: books, photography

When I was was in Brooklyn the other day, I wandered into the powerHouse Arena and was amazed by the quality of their collection, the cool photo exhibiton and the great looks of this store/gallery. powerHouse are the kind of publishers laughing at the fact that the internet is killing publishing as it was. In my opinion these are the guys who have carved a niche for themselves and are thriving.

powerHouse Books is best known for a diverse publishing program — specialized in fine art, documentary, pop culture, fashion, and celebrity books. I was especially struck by the quality of their photo books.

Since the company was founded in 1995 they have built up a massive portfolio of great work. So check out their website for the entire collection, and if you are in the neighborhood head for 37 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY and see for yourself!