A day in Greenpoint
Hi, Greenpoint! This Brooklyn borough in some ways feels like a different world. Primarily a Polish neighborhood back in the 1880’s, many stores and restaurants still bear signs of this bygone era.
First stop? Peter Pan Donut & Pastry, obviously.
Opened in 1953, this classic donut shop has never been renovated…AND I LOVE IT. Some say its NY’s best donut. An old soda fountain vibe with kitschy signage, it’s 100% perfect. Did I get this glazed bow donut? Yeeeeep. Also: I’m “knot sorry.” <—(Well, I’m kinda sorry about that.)
STOP 2: Greenpoint Clock
This is the only surviving cast iron street clock in the borough of Brooklyn, and one of only four street clocks that remain in the whole city today. In the late 1800’s, the clock sat outside of “Bommelstein’s Jewelers” at 753 Manhattan Ave (an early way to “advertise” for the store). Like, “Oh, look at the time—oooooh, look at that jewelry!” Boom. You’re hooked and in the door. It was renovated in 2017 and now bears the neighborhood name.
Stop 3? St. Anthony of Padua
Built in 1874, this is a gorgeous church with a 240-foot spire. The fact that it lives on such a busy, bustling street shows how churches were the heart and soul of early communities.
STOP 4: Sunshine Laundromat
If it’s not CoVid times, you can walk straight back and open what looks like a stacked dryer and enter into a pinball arcade + bar paradise. The mosaic tables were designed by the owner, Peter Rose, who featured images of his dogs drinking, eating and playing pinball. The bathrooms have pinball flush handles and lights.
STOP 5: Head down Milton Street. Check out the colorful mural on the corner and its row of historic homes dating back to 1894 (139-151 Milton). If you keep walking, you’ll pass one of my favorite graffiti’d signs in New York: LIVE POULTRY SLAUGHTER house. Someone long ago tried to cross out the “S” (Live Poultry Laughter) and then “Comedy Club” was added underneath. THE. BEST.
STOP 6: LOCKWOOD
This is the best kind of store. Odds & ends, stationery, gifts. It’s wonderful.
STOP 7: PAULIE GEE’S SLICE SHOP
There are two shops in Greenpoint. We went to the original at 110 Franklin. If it’s still CoVid days, you can take your slice or pie and eat at Transmitter Park along the water. Once the home of WNYC radio transmission towers, it’s now an adorable green space with gorgeous views.
On the walk you’ll see “Word”, a great local bookstore and then turn down Greenpoint Ave to see the old Faber Pencil Factory. An adorable building with pencil mosaics decorating the top, it made the world’s first colored pencil back in 1923.
Do you also need a “nostalgic” chocolate cake? Ovenly, is keeping the “blackout cake” alive. The name comes from the blackout drills that were routine during World War II to protect New York’s Navy Yard. Iconic bakeries like Ebinger’s sold it from 1898 - 1972, and now Ovenly is filling the void with their own stylish predecessor, one that uses dark cocoa powder and Brooklyn Brewery’s Black Chocolate Stout.
STOP 8: “HBO GIRLS” set locations. Lena Dunham’s iconic character, Hannah, lived (and occasionally worked) in Greenpoint. 193 Meserole Avenue is home to Cafe Grumpy, the coffee shop that Ray managed and Hannah briefly worked at. Hannah’s apartment is at 102 India Street.
Fun Fact: Greenpoint started as a working class and immigrant neighborhood: factory jobs, heavy industry and manufacturing, longshoremen and dock work. Some of the neighborhood’s best bars & restaurants are from that era. Also: feisty actress, Mae West, was born here in 1893!
Irene’s Capri Social Club, 156 Calyer Street, has been around since the 1890’s. Get a little dyslexic and fast forward to the 1980’s and you have yourself a crazy story. In the middle of the bar you’ll see a wooden divider that once separated the women from the men. Men were on the bar side of the divide and females had to sit in the back room. If females wanted drinks they had to go to the door at the side of the bar. This has also been the site for loads of movies and TV Series: Kevin Bacon’s “Sleepers”, Jennifer Lopez in “Shades of Blue” and the show “Blue Bloods”. There’s a jukebox, Jell-O shots and it’s cash only.
Achille’s Heel, 180 West Street, is a restored dockworker’s bar from the 1900’s. The interior space is perfect and unpretentious. Food is thoughtful, drinks are great. In the winter, there’s a fully functioning fireplace that makes the room smell like summer camp.
Anella, 222 Franklin Street, is a neighborhood gem. The bar was originally a work table from the Steinway piano factory and an old sound board serves as wall art. Fried chicken anything is amazing here. They’re known for their jalapeño honey butter chicken sammie but the kale Caesar salad topped with fried bird is a perfect “light” option. Their secret backyard and herb garden is sweet and inviting.
Don’t wanna bike/walk/take the train home? Grab the East River Ferry at India St./Greenpoint. Ferry rides are an angelic way to see NY and Brooklyn. LOVE. THEM. SO. MUCH. Oh, and you too, Greenpoint.
