Red Hook, a neighborhood lost in time. Photos by Meghan Doherty.

It’s been a bit overcast, but Sunday is going to be sunny and eighty-motha-flippin-two degrees: What a perfect time to go on a bike ride together, for real this time. We’re going to a place where no subway dares to go, where only a bus (that takes forever), fisherman and cheap-furniture lovers venture. Sunday at 11am, come join me and the Brokelyn crew for a wonderful breezy bike ride to Red Hook. Never been? Here’s your chance! No money? Us too! Even if you’re saving the ride for a later date, check out our second installment of Brokelyn Bike Tour: Sunny, splashy Red Hook.

Things in your backpack: Water, swim suit, towel, $20
Round-trip distance: 7.46 miles
Difficulty rating: Easy (the map)

Biking is more fun with friends! Join the Brokelyn Bike Crew on Sunday, June 25 at 11am. We’ll meet at the gazebo on the west side of the Grand Army Plaza entrance (near Prospect Park West) to Prospect Park. I will have some Brokelyn gear. So I know how many cats to plan on, leave a comment below to RSVP!

The famous food trucks

FIRST STOP: FOOD
Red Hook Ball Fields
Bay St btw Henry and Court (near mile marker 5 on the map)

YES! I know a lot of people have been here, but I know more people who haven’t yet. It’s a hub of amazing Central American food, where everything is under $10, with platters ranging from $5-$8. You can’t beat pupusas for $2.50, and my favorite Mexican-style corn on the cob for only $2. You just have to go. Have a foodgasm.
COST: $4.50 for me. $10 if you’re hungry.

Wait a half hour after eating, then go across to the street to…

SECOND STOP: ACTIVITY
The Red Hook Pool
Bay St between Henry and Court (near mile marker 5 on the map)

SECOND (ALT) STOP: COOL SHIT
A circus, and Baked
290 Conover St at Pier 44 then
359 Van Brunt Street

Apologies about the pool y’all. Turns out they open on June 29 (thank you, Sarah, for the heads up); which is absurdly late. Instead, you guys wanna go to a circus? On a showboat, no less? At the Waterfront Museum they have Circusundays. I chatted with them today, and they assured me it’s going to be a very sophisticated show this weekend, with a flat-wire walker, comedy, puppets and an aerial act. How many times do you get to go to the circus? And for only $10? It might be cutting into our Miller Lite fund, but afterward we can head over to Baked and get a chocolate marshmallow for only fifty cents! Sorry, Steve’s Key Lime Pies. You were the obvious choice.
Cost: $10.50

THIRD STOP: DRANKS
Bait & Tackle
320 Van Brunt Street at Pioneer St (btw mile marker 3 and 4 on the map)

Yes, this is the place that Anthony Bourdain went to when he checked out Red Hook. Not too groundbreaking, sorry about that. But with $3-$6 beers, I’m going to stretch the last of that $20 out for you. Also, if you’re lucky, they’re still rocking the $2 Miller Lite. You’ll have enough money in your pocket to enjoy a few beers with enough money to tip.
COST: $3-$15

THIRD STOP: DRANKS (remix version)
Sunny’s
253 Conover Street btw Reed and Beard

I really really wanted to fit Sunny’s in, but it’s only open three days a week, and opens at 8pm. So, if you decide to rock the bike ride another day, with a friend or perhaps a date, please go to Sunny’s. It’s a great dive, with live music, and cheap beers. If it wasn’t supposed to rain on Saturday, I would treat you to some Sunny’s love. Next time.

Shortly afterward, this spidey balloon fell 5 stories and hit an onlooker.

FOURTH STOP: VIEW
Piers
End of Van Brunt (near mile marker 4 on the map)

When visiting Red Hook, you have the check out the view from the piers. Simply, bike from the bar, down Van Brunt St to the very end. You can go down Beard and check out the longer pier at Columbia. It’s lovely, great at sunset, and you can buy some cheap cheese and olives from Fairway on your way home.
Cost: free!

Don’t forget! You can join the first-ever official Brokelyn Bike Tour this Sunday, June 25 at 11am starting at the Grand Army Plaza entrance to Prospect Park.

Follow Meghan: @mdoherty04

A happy Erie Basin Parkgoer. Photo by Timothy Krause.

For no reason in particular, it’s double-shot-of-Ikea Friday! Even if tonight’s lingonberry meatballs aren’t your thing, you have all summer and beyond to explore Ikea’s adjacent Erie Basin Park, as it’s officially called, one of the most underutilized outdoor spaces in Brooklyn. We discovered it recently, and now no trip for particleboard shelves is complete without at least an hour lolling amid the reedy something-or-other grasses or taking a round-trip cruise on the (hello! free on weekends!) Ikea water taxi. If you haven’t noticed that the blue corrugated mega-box is surrounded by picturesque parkstuffs, click the pic below to see a wondrous photo collection by Broketographer Timothy Krause. Thanks Tim!

More happy, and extremely cute, parkgoers at Ikea Erie Basin Park. Photo by Timothy Krause.

BROOKLYN ICE HOUSE
318 Van Brunt St. between Pioneer & King, Red Hook

What is it: This Red Hook staple is a neon-lit beacon of hope on an otherwise “where the f am I?” stretch of Van Brunt Street.

Why we love it: It’s the answer to the question people are always asking: “what there is to do in Red Hook? Plus, cheap beer, pulled pork and a spacious backyard to chill out.

Who to bring: What might look like a strictly neighborhood dive, is in fact, a well-cared-for and tended establishment with a come-one-come-all atmosphere fit for locals and out-of-neighborhooders alike; Anyone with wheels (getting out to Red Hook can be tough!) or a beer connoisseur.

What to order: Two pulled pork sandwiches for $5 and onion rings. Absolutely delicious.

Ice House fun fact: The bar has 60-plus beers, categorized by country for your convenience, and minus the pretension.

ROCKY SULLIVAN’S
www.rockysullivans.com
34 Van Dyke St at Dwight St, Red Hook

What it is: Authentically Irish, this pub serves as the perfect place to escape after spending too much money at Fairway.
Why we love it: Everyone who works there is awesome, and let’s be honest: we’ve been dreaming of their roof deck since Thanksgiving.
Who to bring: People with bikes, a friend who really needs a new bedspread from Ikea, or a quiz master (trivia every Thursday).
What to order: With Sixpoint housed right next door, you’ll get to enjoy their freshest and best brews at Rocky’s. And over the summer, enjoy their roof deck munching on lobsters from Red Hook Lobster Pound.
Rocky Sullivan’s fun fact: Rocky Sullivan’s was started in 1996 by Irish musician Chris Byrne (from Black 47) and journalist Patrick Farrelly (from Michael Moore’s TV Nation). The original location was in Manhattan.

The Shadow Monster, Saturday, Oct. 16

This weekend you can see lightning-strike victims, a corpse dumping ground, a half-naked Bushwickian and a battle for water rights in Michigan all in the same place. It’s the Red Hook International Film and Video Festival we’re talking about, a two-day showcase of shorts and features, Brooklyn-centric documentaries, fiction and experimental films hosted by Red Hook’s Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition. Best yet, it’s all free, and that includes the popcorn and Steve’s Authentic Key Lime Pie.

The fest begin Saturday, Oct. 16, at 1 p.m. with two films about the waterfront, followed by a block of documentaries about living spaces in BK. The day finishes with a run of fun fiction like the recent Twitter fave, Va Fa Napoli Hipster. And if that’s not enough, there’s a mid-fest fest at Sunny’s Bar (253 Conover St.) at 6 p.m. with live music and… more free food.

On Sunday, the films return with awesome animation and documentaries by first-time filmmakers. A block of short portraiture anchors the day with films about a Brooklyn repair shop proprietor, a pizzeria owner and a late-night taxi driver.

All screenings will be held at the screening room of the Brooklyn Waterfront Artists Coalition, 499 Van Brunt St. Visit their site for all the details on the festival, films and, of course, the free pie.

Six, the beer-swilling donkey, design by Erik Zimmermann

Pop in that Bob Ross tape, crack open a cold one and get inspired. Sixpoint Craft Ales is calling graphic designers, illustrators and any schmo with open-source Photoshop to design the company a great new poster for its Red Hook brewery (apparently, animal puns are encouraged). The top three designs, chosen by popular vote, will be rewarded with a care package of rare homebrews, t-shirts and some tasty edible from the brewery’s resident master chef. And, of course, your design could soon grace the brewery walls.

There’s not much more to it than coming up with a kick-ass design and uploading it to Sixpoint’s Facebook fan page. The contest won’t be on for much longer (through Monday or thereabouts), so get designing and beg your friends to vote. Or just vote on an existing design—you can see them all here.

MoMA-store looks, Ikea pricetag. The new Tradig Bowl, $24.99.

Even if your iPhone fund went to student loans and the price of a single Chanel clog is more than your share of the rent, there’s one product launch we can all get in on:  IKEA’s annual catalog release.

The print version, won’t be in local stores for a few more weeks, but the online 2011 catalog is now available for browsing.

New products officially launched in August have been quietly appearing in stores throughout the summer (some are not yet available online) while a few old favorites have dropped in price.  The highlights:

New stuff

* For about the cost of a 64GB iPad with 3G, you could loll in the memory foam comfort of a Kivik sectional. The new Kivik series includes 95 products: sofas, sofas with removable arms, sofa beds, loveseats, chaises, ottomans, and slipcovers. The sofa bed includes arms that cleverly flip open to store bedding or your roommate’s yippy dog. Sofas: $450-$600. Sectionals: $750-$900.

* The Stall series of flip-open cabinets addresses the hopeless task of getting all those shoes off the floor. $89-$129 (about four bucks a shoe).

* The Vika Veine, a new table top in the Vika series (I came, I saw, I cleaned my desk?), has a felt-lined lid that opens up to become a memo board and closes to hide your junk. $159

* The wiry red Tradig bowl looks like you bought it at the MoMA. $24.99

Old stuff with a new look

* The earth mother Karlstad sofa finally got dressed up to go out with a new grey cover and chrome legs. $659. Not available until 2011.

Brada Bing! The snazzy new $9.99 laptop-in-bed tray from Ikea.

* The cottage-style Hemnes wood furniture collection is now available in grey-brown.

If you still crave that new tech-gadget smell or need to possess at least one hot fashion trend, consider the Brada laptop tray. For $9.99 you’ll get polka-dotted style and an end to that 11-pound HP Pavilion singeing your thigh.