Fairway Market - in RED HOOK???

Thanks to Amy, I heard about a new food blog "This Little Piglet". Lia's a relatively new blogger, since June of 2006, but her blog has some great recipes on it, including this excellent looking Pink Grapefruit Margarita. Rumor has it that she works for the Food Network, but I don't know for sure...

As I read her blog, she was mentioning all the favorite grocery stops around my old neighborhood in Cobble Hill (Brooklyn) and then I almost had a heart attack when she mentioned that of course, she went to the new Fairway in Red Hook.

Now when I moved onto the bad side of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in 1981, also known as Red Hook, this is where the mob used to set cars on fire to get rid of evidence! I was only a couple blocks off the better neighborhood of Cobble Hill and I worked the Gourmet stores of the area, La Violette (later known as Monkey's Wedding), and Cranberry's. Back in the day, these were the only places you could buy decent mustards and vinegars, good cheese, Schaller and Weber's meat, etc.

At the time, Fairway was the ultimate neighborhood shop, on Broadway and 74th in Manhattan, and it had great meat, fish, veg, treats, sauces, cheese  --everything you needed for a great dinner.  It was up there with the bastions of gourmet in NYC, Balducci's and Zabars. We Brooklynites were jealous.

Did Hell freeze over? Has Red Hook gone so upscale that they have their own Fairway? I can't wait to get back to New York and check it out...

Comments

[annulla]

Ooops, sorry for the typo. Meant to say, "You'd be surprised at how much it has changed." Bet you already knew that, though.

[annulla]

And now, less than a year after you posted this, Red Hook has become a sort of foodie haven.

Believe it or not, I found your post while googling for information about LaNell's (aka "New York's Best Liquor Store") on Van Brunt Street, which is right near Baked (known for the city's best chocolate chip cookies) and Steve's Key Lime Pies.

C'mon back to Brooklyn for a visit. You'd be surprised at home much it has changed.

[Lia]

The rumors are true. I do in fact work at Food Network.

As for Fairway, if I remember correctly, it opened last spring or summer. I have to admit I don't get over there as much as I'd like, but it's good for big shopping trips.

I'm glad you're enjoying the recipes I've been writing about (and those margaritas are good -- they go down a little too easy, so be careful!).

And if you haven't noticed, I can't get enough of Brooklyn! When did you live here?