In fact, he probably had no connection to the Mercedes that was recently pulled out of the Erie Basin in preparation of the June 18 opening of the Ikea that will offer a new mile-long waterfront park and free Water Taxi service - even to people who don't intend to shop.
The neighborhood is hardly the "Red Hook Riviera" the Post called it last week, but the additions of a cruise ship terminal and a Fairway market in the past two years have at least made cab drivers less afraid to travel to the neighborhood long isolated by the lack of good public transportation.
"We are introducing Red Hook to the rest of the city," Joseph Roth, the U.S. director of public affairs for the Swedish furniture maker told NewYorkology on Wednesday during a tour of the new Erie Basin Park.
Although the Municipal Art Society and others have decried the loss of Brooklyn's working waterfront, Ikea's new park makes great efforts to celebrate what remains and actually allows the public some of the closest access short of a hidden harbor cruise.
Not only will park goers get full views of the tugboats and barges that call Erie Basin home port, but Ikea has incorporated many remains from the Todd Shipyards into the 6.5-acre park -- including four gantry cranes, a spectacularly rotted pier, the WWII-era floating dry-dock gate, tools that have been painted red and are on exhibit (including on red hook,) as well as concrete chocks that Ikea intentionally left covered with the original graffiti but added the names of ships that were repaired in the yards since the Civil War.
Video of the new park:
The grassy park will be open from dawn to dusk and it will have its own 50-cent hot dog stand. The new Water Taxi dock will offer free shuttle service to Pier 11/Wall Street daily through the summer. And yes, you can use the free Water Taxi even if you intend to bypass the store and head to the soccer field food carts, Roth said.
The now-legendary weekends-only Central American food carts, which are scheduled to reopen sometime soon, aren't the only reason to venture out into the rest of the neighborhood.
Here's the 2008 Red Hook summer rundown:
July 3 will see the grand opening of home/made, the new Van Brunt Street venture of tini wine bar's chef/designer Monica Byrne and metal artist Leisah Swenson. "We've collected some unique antique, artisan crafted and new contemporary items to adorn your home and your body. When home/made is not operating as a retail establishment, we will host private parties in our garden," Swenson told NewYorkology by e-mail this week. They're located at 293 Van Brunt St. between Pioneer and King (in a storefront made famous when local real estate diva Barbara Corcoran bought the building a few years ago and proclaimed Red Hook the "it" neighborhood of the season.)
If you like Red Hook, you may find Metal & Thread is one of those I-want-to-buy-everything type of stores that mixes new craftsmanship in with funky antique finds (including lots with a working waterfront theme.) The store opened in March.
Both the Liberty Sunset and Chelsea garden centers have significantly expanded since opening last year.
For more Van Brunt shopping, check out Saipua for handcrafted olive oil-based soaps and flowers, Erie Basin for vintage jewelry and Atlantis for used books and furniture. Brooklyn Farm Table is open by appointment.
Food in Red Hook
Good Fork is still the star here, (especially since 360 shuttered and a "for rent" sign remains in the window.) Quality local food with a menu that changes monthly. Dinner only, reservations a must on weekends.
Tini wine bar, at 414 Van Brunt St, directly across the street from Good Fork, catches its overflow on its comfy couches and bar stools. They serve wine, craft beer and excellent bruschettas, cheeses, pates and fondues that make a meal or snack. They also do weekend brunch. On June 18th (Ikea Day) they're pouring "Swedish Cocktails" & "Big Box Seltzers" from 5 to 11 p.m.
Gothamist has pictures from inside the former Lillie's bar across the street from Ikea. Chef Neil Ganic has reopened half the space so far -- Annabelle's, with a garden and full bar with Six Point on tap and a short menu featuring crab cakes and other seafood. There's also a stage for bands. The other side of the enterprise, La Bouillabaisse restaurant, should open soon. He told NewYorkology he'll be open 365 days a year; and for now, it's dinner only.
The website for Anselmo's Bakery says it's shooting for a July 4 opening of its new Coal Brick Oven Pizza & Bread restaurant at 354 Van Brunt. They've already got a second location in the works for 204 Van Dyke Street at Pier 41.
Ikea will have food options as well, including a 450-seat restaurant with some spectacular views. Here's NewYorkology's video of the view taken during Wednesday's press preview:
The Ikea restaurant will be open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. (that's half an hour before the store itself opens/closes.) Breakfast = 99 cents, and the regular menu is cheap as well, in part because, as the signs state, the store would like you to bus your own tables. They're big on Swedish meatballs with lingonberry sauce and other Swedish foods, but there's also a kids menu and American-type fare on offer. Downstairs, you can buy their foods to-go at the Swedish Foodmarket, including gummy Swedish fish and Abba-branded seafood pate.
Elsewhere, Viva serves a free margarita with every entree, DeFonte's will give you old-school sandwiches to go, Fairway has a sandwich counter and indoor/outdoor waterfront deck and Hope & Anchor is still going strong.
On July 5, the Added Value farmers market opens for the season across the street from Ikea.
The Cheyenne Diner is also schedule to move to Red Hook, but it's not here yet.
Under "coming soon," the Southwest Brooklyn Industrial Development Corp. brochure also lists Grindhaus "beer & sausage house with outdoor garden" at 275 Van Brunt.
Drinks
Six Points Craft Ales is still offering free brewery tours by appointment only. They ask you e-mail them at tours@sixpointcraftales.com. However, on June 14 the brewers will be at Carroll Gardens' Bar Vendetta from 3 to 8 p.m. with $4 dollar pints of their Apollo, Bengali Tiger, Righteous Ale and Brownstone.
Rocky Sullivan's has replaced Liberty Heights Tap Room, but they still host bands and kept the roof deck. They've added a full Irish breakfast for weekends and occasional book readings.
Brooklyn Ice House has opened in the old Pioneer bar space on Van Brunt. It's directly next door to the Bait & Tackle bar still going hipster strong.
The granddaddy of them all, Sunnys, is only open a few days a week, and also hosts book readings, concerts, and plays.
LeNell's liquor store is still open at the same location and offering frequent tastings and classes. (But the Brooklyn Paper reported she's getting forced out because the building's owner
"who works for the Balucchi’s Indian restaurant chain — said he did not intend to renew her lease because he wants to use the ground floor himself.")
There's also news of a Red Hook winery, but that's not open yet.
Recreation and galleries
Valentino Park and Pier has actual water access where the local kids swim and the Red Hook Boaters offer free canoe and kayak rentals. There's also quite a view of the Statue of Liberty.
What's the Hook photo exhibition is moving through several locations in the neighborhood, documenting the swift-moving changes of the area.
While Pier Glass is infrequently open to the public (next dates are July 12 and 13 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.,) they do offer one-on-one glass blowing classes.
If you're lucky, you may also find steel horses for sale on Van Brunt.
The Waterfront Museum Barge is open with free access on Saturdays from 1 to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays 4 to 8 p.m. On Sundays it hosts Circus Sundays at 1 and 4 p.m. through June.
Transportation
The Daily News says "getting there is a cinch" which sounds great on paper. The Water Taxi plans to run one boat daily on weekdays from Wall Street's Pier 11 (not to be confused with their nearby hop-on, hop-off service at the South Street Seaport,) and two boats on weekends. For weekends, boats will run every 40 minutes between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.; then every 20 minutes between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m.; and then back to every 40 minutes from 6 p.m. until the store closes at 10 p.m.
From June 18 through that first weekend, three ferries will work the route. In September, the NY Water Taxi will start charging for weekday service but weekends will remain free, Ikea spokeswoman Lorna Montalvo told NewYorkology.
Starting June 18, the B61 and B77 MTA buses will both add a stop in front of Ikea. However, another Ikea spokesman said there is no plan to increase the frequency of those buses, which can be non-existent especially on the B61 on Sundays, despite what the posted schedule states.
However, Ikea will also provide their own free shuttle buses to several nearby subways stations (Borough Hall & Court; Smith & 9th Street; and 4th Avenue & 9th Street,) at 15 minute intervals.
If you're driving, NYPD traffic officers will work the streets of Red Hook daily for the next three to four months, directing Ikea traffic away from the neighborhood's main (but narrow) commercial strip on Van Brunt Street. Ikea will reimburse the NYPD for that service, Montalvo said.
Overflow parking will be available through the summer at the adjacent Revere Sugar Factory site, which is almost completely demolished.
Zipcar hourly car-rental company will also have cars at Ikea.
Bikes are becoming more popular, but it's important to keep in mind that the neighborhood remains mainly industrial and big-rig trucks are plentiful. The frequently flattened street signs and hydrants should serve as a clue that the truck drivers have a hard time seeing obstacles. Parking near corners is also a bad idea.
IKEA remainders
Just a few last notes ... there is no ATM at Ikea. Fairway has an ATM inside near the cash registers. (The only proper banks in the area are the Chase near the end of Hamilton Avenue and a Signature by the projects.)
Cell phone reception is problemataic inside Ikea. Roth said Ikea is working on a plan to improve cell phone service in the store, and possibly add wi-fi (and to the waterfront as well,) but that's something that would come only when they work out a plan for all 281 Ikea stores worldwide.
Ikea is family friendly, with a supervised play area, mini-play stations through the store, and an extensive kids shopping section (including rat plushies, pictured, for $3.99.)
For the grand opening, Ikea is encouraging people to camp out in tents from June 16 until the 8:15 a.m. opening ceremony, which involves sawing a log for good luck. There will be giveaways to the first people in line, including sofas, chairs and gift cards. Also, if your brthday is June 18, you get a $10 gift card.
Worldwide, the average shopper spends 2.5 hours in an Ikea, covering three miles, Montalvo said. She wouldn't give out any estimates of the number of shoppers they expect, except to say there 100,000 shoppers daily at all their worldwide stores combined.
Delivery is $79 to a Brooklyn address and $89 elsewhere in NYC. Courier service (whatever you can fit in a 3-cubic meter box,) costs $39 for Brooklyn, $49 elsewhere in the city, and they're aiming for courier delivery within two to four hours from time of purchase. There's also a new U-Haul a block away.
If you're going to jog along the Erie Basin Park, it's a mile from the Beard Street entrance to the Columbia Street exit near the old grain silo - (not including the pier that sticks out into Erie Basin.)
And finally ...
Google Maps recently added some of Red Hook to its street view offerings. Still no respect for the waterfront, Van Brunt or even the Ikea location, but you can check out the soccer fields, the cruise ship parking lot and the weirdly blacked-out Battery Tunnel toll plaza.
See the schedule of which ships will dock at Red Hook, (usually it's the Queen Mary 2 or Crown Princess.)
Ikea opening day update: The Water Taxi is indeed running for free every 10 to 15 minutes, no Ikea receipt required. See the new video of the park.
Do expect long lines for the Ikea food:
Red Hook is home to a massive outdoor public pool that opens for the summer on June 27. It’s free, but in the past, they won’t let you in the complex unless you have a lock for your locker (even if you don’t plan to use a locker.)
There’s a free screening of the documentary "The City of Water� on June 19 at 7:30 p.m. at the Waterfront Museum at Pier 44.
Also June 19, there will be a one-night preview and sale of new pieces at Metal & Thread from 6 to 8 p.m.
If you want Red Hook’s industrial grit under your fingernails, hit up the retire oil tanker Mary Whalen, which will someday be open to the public but is seeking volunteers on June 26 (and earlier) to help it prep for the New York Harbor School graduation at Brooklyn Bridge Park.
Rumblings at the much-lamented, shuttered 360 restaurant. And at that same link, news of upcoming Smokey's Round-Ups at Sunny's bar on June 18 and 25 at 9:30 p.m.
