Brokelyn

Red Mango vs. PinkBerry. FIGHT!

It’s not even official summer yet and it’s already been jorts-soakingly hot. Your options for finding a cooling treat when you’re out of cash include: digging through the trash at your local grocery store and consulting that Pee-wee episode on how to make Dumpster ice cream soup, or hanging around ice cream parlors on windy days hoping a kid’s scoop gets blown your way. Or, you could weigh in on the debate between the Manhattan-centric Pinkberry and Brooklyn-friendly Red Mango to win a sweet free gift card for some cooling froyo. Read the rest of this entry »

Have you heard of Ecofreek, the new search engine that scans sites like Craigslist, Kijiji and Classified Ads for free and swap/trade items people no longer need? We hadn’t either, and maybe there’s a good reason for that. The site promises “the most diverse and accurate results anywhere in the world,” and after running a few test searches, we can confirm that the results are diverse indeed. Read the rest of this entry »

If you’re a confirmed foodie, you already  know that celeb chef Katy Sparks recently joined the kitchen at Bussaco, the Mediterranean American bistro across Union Street from the Park Slope Food-Coop. Sparks has brought along some dreamy new dishes to the place, like oyster stew with saffron, leeks and anise bread crumbs; along with a “30-second” squid salad with chickpeas and chorizo. (Check out the full menu here).

So why is a humble blog like Brokelyn writing about a snazzy (but not obscenely expensive) joint like this? Because everyone needs a big night out, and one lucky Brokelyn reader is going to have that night, on us. We have a $75 gift certificate to give away to a random reader—just email us at bussaco@brokelyn.com by noon on Wednesday, Dec. 16 with some version of the words “feed me!” in the subject line. You must be a Brokelyn subscriber to win, which means you’ll get occasional emails from us that we promise you’ll like. Not already on our list? Sign up here.

Bussaco (Park Slope) 833 Union St., between Sixth and Seventh Aves., 718-857-8828

Some people (not us) have a hard time believing the concept “free.” Organizers at the Score! swap meet in BKLYNYard on Saturday repeatedly had to remind visitors that yes, it’s free, as in, just take as much as you can carry, and if you want more than you can carry, come back later with a bigger bag. Get used to it, folks—Mean Red Productions, the group behind the event, told us they’re trying to open a semi-permanent swap-meet store. But can you really get anything decent at these things? We performed a  spot check. Read the rest of this entry »