Farm Truck Delivering to BPC, Looks to Expand Routes Soon

Food, , , , , ,
Will Holton Farms close the gap for BPC residents in search of better produce?

The produce options in Battery Park City are growing. Mainstay Gristedes and nearby newcomer Whole Foods have seen the World Financial Center’s Greenmarket open this year, while delivery service FreshDirect has been heavily targeting our area in an attempt to steal some of Whole Foods’ thunder. We can now add to the mix Holton Farms, a “farm to lobby” service based on a CSA (community supported agriculture) model.

Weekly deliveries from the Farm Truck have begun in the neighborhood for members of the CSA program living in all three “green” buildings, The Visionaire, The Solaire, and the Verdesian.

Holton Farms is looking to expand the program in Battery Park City soon: residents of Gateway Plaza received notification that the Farm Truck could begin making deliveries next year. An informational session at Gateway is scheduled for Saturday, October 9 from 11am-1pm.

Holton Farms seeks to distinguish itself from traditional CSAs by offering a customizable arrangement; customers receive only the produce and groceries they want instead of simply receiving everything the farm produces.

The farm-to-table movement is definitely trendy and likely will prove popular in the neighborhood’s pricier buildings (not coincidentally, some of Holton’s first customers). Whether they are a hit with the rest of the neighborhood remains to be seen. Regardless, competition for our grocery dollar should prove beneficial to everyone!

What do you think? Will you sign up for the Farm Truck delivery if its available to you? Do you think we need more grocery and produce options in Battery Park City? Let us know in the comments.

Eat: World Financial Center Restaurant Showcase Menu

EAT: WFC Restaurant Showcase

Food, , ,
Eat: World Financial Center Restaurant Showcase Menu
Eat: World Financial Center Restaurant Showcase

To all of you who work in or near the World Financial Center and are packing your lunch for tomorrow, or thinking about what to order from the usual catering menu, STOP!  Look no further, because tomorrow, the restaurants at the World Financial Center are gathering in the Winter Garden to offer you $1-$5 samples of their signature items, as well as some seasonal selections.

I managed to pick up a menu for the event on the way home, and many of the offerings seem very typical, such as P.J. Clarke’s mini cheeseburgers and pulled pork sliders (2 for $5), Au Mandarin’s pork and shrimp dumplings ($3 and $4 respectively), and Godiva’s chocolate-dipped strawberries, macaroons, and oreos.

However, there were some stand-out seasonal items such as Columbus Bakery’s Corn Chowder with Pomegranate ($4), The Grill Room’s Wild Mushroom Risotto with Parmesan Sauce ($5) and Butternut Squash Soup with Caramelized Apples and Pumpkin Seeds ($4), Southwest NY’s Pumpkin Seed Crusted Salmon with Mango-Jicama Salsa ($5) and Financier Patisserie’s Apple Pumpkin Cake with Vanilla Cream ($3) and Pumpkin Cheesecake ($3).

Here is a list of participating restaurants:

Au Bon Pain
Au Mandarin
Blockheads Burrito
Ciao Bella Gelato
Columbus Bakery
Devon & Blakely
Donald Sacks
Ed’s Lobster Bar
Elixir
Financier Patisserie
Godiva Chocolatier
The Grill Room
Harry’s Italian
P.J. Clarke’s on the Hudson
Quality Burger
Southwest NY
Starbucks Coffee
World Financial Center Greenmarket
Yushi

park 51 rendering

Park51 Looks to Improve “Image”

Real Estate,
Architectural rendering of Park51's planned futuristic design. (Image courtesy park51.com)

Park 51 developers have unveiled a few renderings of what they have planned for their controversial community center. The designs, by consultants SOMA Architects, aim to be hip, futuristic and architecturally forward-thinking while incorporating some traditional motifs common in Arabic architecture.

While it certainly doesn’t hurt to have plans for an impressive looking structure, do these drawings do anything to lessen the ire of the mosque’s detractors?

What do you think? Do you feel any better about Park51 in our area having seen what it could look like?

Plans to Overhaul World Financial Released Tomorrow

Real Estate, , ,
World Financial Center
The Winter Garden and World Financial Center could look a lot different in 2013.

Brookfield Properties are set to release their plans for updating the World Financial Center tomorrow, according to the Wall Street Journal.

We’d heard rumblings of these changes, including the planned removal of the Winter Garden Stairs. In a Batteryparkcity.com poll, an overwhelming 90% of you were in favor of saving the stairs, a sentiment shared by 32BJ SEIU, a local union whose members work at the World Financial Center. City Planning Commission chairwoman Amanda Burden and Battery Park City community board members also question the removal of the stairs, an unintended icon of our post-9/11 reality.

Brookfield maintains that the stairs need to be removed to allow for an expansive street level entrance that will connect with new PATH and subway stations at the World Trade Center.

Stairs or no, expect to see more retail offerings in the World Financial Center. Citing the population increase in Battery Park City, Brookfield would like to offer more to residents who frequent the property on nights and weekends.

Construction could begin as soon as the end of this year, with completion scheduled for 2013.

Pig Island

Pig Out this Weekend at Pig Island

Food, , , , ,
Pig Island
Governors Island will be transformed into a pork-lover's paradise this Saturday. (Photo: pigisland.com)

Yes, that’s what I said.  Pig Island.  It’s exactly what it sounds like: every Vegan’s nightmare, and every fatass’ food fest fantasy!

Tomorrow, October 2nd,  from 11:30 AM- 4:30 PM, Governor’s Island will be transformed into a “pork-lover’s paradise.”  20 + chefs will be entertaining your senses and your stomach with both innovative and traditional pork dishes, ranging from bbq and porchetta sandwiches to Vietnamese pork soup and Maple Bacon sticky buns.

Tickets to the main event cost $85, although there is a group rate of $80 for groups of 4 or more people.  Although the price seems steep, this ticket gives you unlimited access to the pig feast, as well as Sixpoint Craft Ales and NY State Wines.

For those of you who don’t think an all you can eat and drink pork festival is worth $80, there will be a public area with snacks and drinks available for purchase.

As always, transportation to Governor’s Island is free via ferry, departing from the Battery Maritime building at 10 South Street.

World Trade Center bombing scene in 1993

Homeland Security Cuts to Lower Manhattan Lambasted

News, Politics, , , , , , , ,
World Trade Center bombing scene in 1993
World Trade Center bombing scene in 1993 (Credit: Stevenspak.com)

As Lower Manhattan is the only United States community to become victims of 2 terrorist attacks, Homeland Security funding cuts to our neighborhood makes little to no sense.

In light of yesterday’s admission from Feisal Shahzad proclaiming his intent to bomb the Ground Zero and/or the World Financial Center, it’s quite clear our community still stands to be a target even a decade after the 9/11 terror attacks.

In response to the continued Homeland Security cuts, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Chairperson of Community Board 1 Julie Menin have joined forces to make a public outry against the cuts.

According to an article published in this week’s Downtown Express the pair asks, “Why does New York City, one of the top terrorist targets in the world, continue each year to face cuts to its homeland security funding? Just this year, the Obama Administration, several days after the attempted plot to bomb Times Square, cut New York City’s transit security by 27% and its port security by 25%.  While the Administration argued that the $53 million in budget cuts to the city’s homeland security funding would be made up by stimulus dollars, those are one-shot funds. When the stimulus money runs out in two years, replacing those missing dollars will be a Herculean task.”

Both claim that controversy surrounding the Park51 Islamic community center has taken away the focus and concentration towards general safety in our area.

“Instead of arguing about the precise location of the Islamic center, why don’t we put aside our differences and focus on the common goal of keeping our children and all of us safe?” asks Stringer and Menin.

We can’t help but agree. The rest of the article can be read here.

Park Place Subway Station

Death on World Trade Center Platform

News, , ,
Park Place Subway Station
Park Place Subway Station

A subway mugger fell to his death today after running from the police on an E-train subway platform at the World Trade Center stop.

The suspect was a man in his 20’s who had allegedly robbed another passenger of $150 at knifepoint early Thursday morning.

While fleeing between cars, the man had purportedly fell onto the tracks.

The victim had called 911 and asked officers to meet him at the World Trade Center stop. While under chase by the NYPD, the mugger fell onto the tracks and was hit by a northbound E-train, leaving the station.

According to WABC, “Police said he tried to jump from the platform to the train, attempting to land in the space between train cars.”

The mugger is believed to have been involved in another armed robbery yesterday near Pace University.  Authorities have not released the identity of either victims.

2 Gold Street Rental Apartments

Murder at 2 Gold Street

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2 Gold Street Rental Apartments
2 Gold Street Apartment

A Pace University student was fatally shot inside  his apartment at 2 Gold Street in the Financial District, early this morning.

According to authorities, the victim is 22-year-old Max Moreno. He was rushed and later died at Bellevue Hospital.

Moreno was found in the downtown luxury rental building on the 37th floor. Police are looking for two suspects who got past doormen to fatally shoot Moreno in the head. According to reports, Moreno was a known marijuana dealer and the shooting may have been a drug deal gone bad.

A man and a women were purported to have initially tried to rob Moreno of both money and drugs.

Moreno died from a single gunshot wound to his left temple.

Moreno’s roommate was home at the time and fled the apartment after the shooting but was followed and beaten by the suspects.

According to NYPD, detectives are investigating whether this was a set up.

Anyone with any information on the incident are asked to contact the NYPD at (212) 334-0611 or Pace University Security at (212) 346-1800. All tips will be held confidential.

Feisal Shahzad the Times Square Bomber

World Financial Center Was Second Target for Times Square Bomber

News, , , ,
Feisal Shahzad the Times Square Bomber
Feisal Shahzad admits in federal court he considered bombing Ground Zero.

Feisal Shahzad the dubbed “Times Square Bomber” apparently had his targets set on both the World Financial Center and Ground Zero according to federal court documents released today.

However, after analyzing foot traffic patterns, Shahzad decided that an attack on Times Square would cause more damage. Although not his initial target, admitted several other NYC locations would be secondary targets including our neighborhood.

According to the federal court documents, “during the late afternoon of May 1, 2010, Shahzad drove his car, which was packed with the bomb he had built, from his residence in Connecticut to Times Square and parked the car on 45th Street near Seventh Avenue. He then attempted to initiate the bomb detonation process inside the car by lighting a fuse, and after doing so, he got out of the car, armed with the semi-automatic rifle that he had brought with him, and walked to Grand Central terminal. While walking to Grand Central terminal, he listened for the sound of the bomb exploding. Two days later, he was arrested at John F. Kennedy
International Airport while trying to the leave the United States on a commercial flight.”

Shahzad will receive a mandatory life  sentence next week for his bomb attempt in Times Square on May 1. He has since plead guilty for the bomb attempt.

Lower Manhattan's Best Coffee Shops

National Coffee Day: Battery Park City’s Best Cups of Joe

Food, Restaurant Reviews, , , , , , , , ,
Lower Manhattan's Best Coffee Shops
Battery Park City's Best Coffee Spots

Did you know today was National Coffee Day? Which is mind boggling to me because I quite frankly can’t live without the stuff, so everyday is national coffee day in my house.

Whether it comes from your house, from a cart or on the go, we’ve got a million different places in Lower Manhattan to enjoy a freshly brewed cup, but we’ve rounded up some of our favorites.

Several places around the city are giving away cups of Joe in celebration, including our neighborhood. Manon’s Cafe is holding special coffee events for the rest of the week at all three of their locations. To find our more, check out the event page.

Although it has long since shuttered,  an honorable mention to Oren’s Daily Roast which used to grace us in the North Cove area. Here are some other fantastic places to celebrate National Coffee Day.

La Colombe @ 319 Church Street (212) 343-1515
This Philadelphia based company set up shop in NYC and has quickly risen to be one of the top coffee shops in the city. If you like to grab and go, this place might not be for you as the art of the cup is in how you make it.

Bean and Bean @ 71 Broadway, New York (212) 422-8083
One of the great advantages of being a coffee lover in NYC is access to Porto Rico beans. However, if you can’t make it to any of the Porto Rico locations, you can quickly grab a cup from Bean and Bean on Broadway. The coffee shop serves Porto Rico beans as well as offering freshly roasted beans for anyone who wants to brew a cup from the comforts of their own coffee machine.

Kaffe 1668 @ 275 Greenwich St (212) 693-3750
A purveyor of some of the best beans available in the country, Kaffe is a great place to sit, chat and meet new friends. If you’re also interested, you can buy a wooden sheep. (Has anyone reading this actually purchased one of those?)

Dean and Deluca @ 100 Broadway (212) 577-2153
If drinking coffee is only as good as the donut it’s sitting next to, then Dean and Deluca is your place. Before you start clamoring, “But … what about Dunking Donuts?!” I’ll quickly explain. Dean and Deluca offers freshly made and seasonal Doughnut Plant donuts. Never had one? It’s worth the trip to Borders to check it out. They sell out everyday so your best bet is to grab the joe and the dough in the morning.

Financier @ Several Downtown Manhattan Locations
They used to brew Illy beans, but have since started serving up their special house blends. Honestly, they taste just like their former Illy brews, but we will trust they are special. Every cup comes accompanied by a bite sized morsel of their signature financier, a madeline type cake.

Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds, Starbucks, (Yada yada!)
You know where they are, and I know you know where they are — but the coffee is worth mentioning. 🙂

Hooray coffee! 🙂 If we’ve left out any of your favorite spots, let us know in the comments!