Brooklyn Flea / Smorgasburg and other Spring Summer time offerings on the way
…and very soon at that!
The Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg return for their eighth and fifth outdoor seasons, respectively, the weekend of April 4 and 5, following a successful winter run at 1000 Dean in Crown Heights. For the first time, all four market locations will remain the same as last year: Saturday Flea in Fort Greene, Sunday Flea at 50 Kent (between N. 11 and N. 12 St. in Williamsburg); Saturday Smorgasburg at East River State Park (Kent Ave. and N. 7 St.) in Williamsburg, Sunday Smorgasburg at Brooklyn Bridge Park Pier 5 (Furman and Joralemon St.). (Note: The opening date of the Sunday Flea at 50 Kent has been slightly delayed due to the recent fire at an adjacent building. That market should be open by May 3.)
The quality of vendors at all markets has never been higher than it will be for Opening Weekend 2015—from vintage modern furniture and handmade kids clothing at the Flea to San Diego-style burritos and a sit-down tasting menu at Smorgasburg, the more than 250 total weekly vendors have each carved out a unique niche that makes them a destination unto themselves. And as the markets have grown over time, so have those hundreds of small businesses, establishing the Flea and Smorgasburg as among the biggest entrepreneurial incubators in New York City over the last decade.
The Smorgasburg team held almost 100 “tastings” of potential vendors at its Crown Heights office this winter, selecting them from more than 300 total applications since December. About 15 new vendors were accepted for the new season, including Rise & Swine’s home-cured bacon sandwiches; Birds & Bubbles’ hot chicken on a biscuit; The Imperial Egg’s innovative scotch eggs; Fermin Iberico’s world-class Spanish ham, sliced fresh off the bone onto sandwiches; Piece of Velvet’s red-velvet cakes; Duck Season’s classic duck confit; Antica Pesa’s frittata di pasta and bolognese ragu “spaghetti burger”; and Big Mozz’s mozzarella, made fresh onsite at the market and “injected” with roasted-garlic pesto. (Details on all new Smorgasburg and Brooklyn Flea vendors can be found in an attachment to this email. Photos are available upon request.)
This summer, Smorgasburg returns to the Seaport District NYC for a seasonal operation, starting Memorial Day Weekend through October. (A similar project ran at the Seaport in the summer of 2013.) Featuring eight food vendors along Fulton Street (between Front and South Street) in innovatively designed pod-style booths, plus a bar at the corner of Fulton and Front, the operation will be open for lunch, dinner, and drinks seven days a week. Cultural and special events will be programmed throughout the summer, and vendors plan to offer food delivery to local residents and businesses. The food vendors for the 2015 season will be: Cemitas, Lonestar Empire, Lumpia Shack, Milk Truck, Pizza Moto, Ramen Burger, Red Hook Lobster Pound, and Schnitz. In addition, Brooklyn Oyster Party, The Good Batch ice-cream sandwiches, Kelvin Slush Co., and People’s Pops will be available at the bar.
On Saturday, May 16, the Brooklyn Flea Record Fair teams up with the Red Bull Music Academy for the third year, featuring 50 record vendors and an all-star DJ lineup including Eamon Harkin (of Mister Saturday Night), Jefre Cantu-Ledesma (Mexican Summer), and Justin Miller (HAKT). Highlight vendors include record labels Luaka Bop, Sacred Bones, Warp, and The Bunker NY, plus shops Other Music and Jammyland. The record fair takes place adjacent to Smorgasburg in East River State Park, rain or shine, 11:00am to 6:00pm, and features special craft beers from partner Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales. Brooklyn Vegan is the official media partner of the Brooklyn Flea Record Fair.
On Friday, July 31, Smorgasburg returns to Central Park SummerStage for a special food event featuring 20+ vendors and a DJ on a midsummer evening, 6-10:00pm. The event will be ticketed and cost $10 (plus $2 service charge), and a $5 food voucher will be issued to each customer at the gate, for an effective price of $7. Smorgasburg at SummerStage follows a successful first event in September 2014, which reached capacity far faster than anticipated. For the July 31 event, capacity will be limited to 2000; tickets are available at www.summerstage.org.
Berg’n, the Crown Heights beer hall featuring Smorgasburg food vendors, launches a new partnership with Fort Greene’s Greenlight Bookstore called “Book Cooks,” featuring top local and national chefs and food writers presenting their latest books in conversation with Smorgasburg and Berg’n co-founder Eric Demby. Each event also includes tasty samples prepared by the chefs as well as a copy of the featured book. The first three “Book Cooks” events are: Eli Sussman (formerly of Mile End Delicatessen) and Max Sussman (formerly of The Cleveland, Roberta’s, and The Breslin) discussing their new cookbook, Classic Recipes for Modern People, on Thursday, April 2, at 7:30pm; April Bloomfield (The Spotted Pig, The Breslin) discussing her new book, A Girl and Her Greens, on Monday, April 20, at 7:30pm; and George Weld (Egg, Parish Hall) discussing his new book, Breakfast: Recipes to Wake Up For, on Sunday, May 2 at 1:00pm. Future events will feature Joe Carroll (Fette Sau, St. Anselm, Spuyten Duvil) and Van Leeuwen Ice Cream. Tickets are available at greenlightbookstore.com/bookcooks. (More details on “Book Cooks” can be found in an attachment to this email.)
Other events coming up at Berg’n include a screening of “The Chicago Party,” a dance and music show that aired on Chicago UHF TV for 23 weeks in 1982, featuring post-disco outfits, dancing, magicians, and more. The screening begins at 9:00pm on Friday, April 24, followed by DJs from The Numero Group, the Chicago record label reissuing “The Chicago Party.” The event is free (with RSVP) and is the first Berg’n partnership with BAM. A new Friday-night DJ party called “Differenc” features longtime Brooklyn DJs Spencer Blake and Asen James, weekly (and free) at 9:00pm. Saturday-night DJs include Paul Collins (of Beirut) on April 4 and Edan on April 18. Trivia Tuesdays happen every week the Berg’n Back Room, which is always available for private/special events.
The week of April 6-10, Smorgasburg will participate in the second World Street Food Congress, in Singapore. Organized by “hawker food court” impresario KF Seetoh, the Congress brings together tens of thousands of people from around the world to celebrate this year’s theme of “Empower, Engage and Opportunities.” Smorgasburg co-founder Eric Demby’s presentation will focus on the market’s role in Brooklyn’s food-entrepreneur scene.