Newsletter 11 - June 8, 2000
We're sorry to say that after June 2000,
because of changes in our service provider's operations and a host
of other circumstances, we were forced to discontinue publication of
what -- we thought -- was a information packed digest. We hope to be
able to resume sometime in the future
Contents
1. Charley Roosh, Brooklyn's Favorite
2. Brooklyn Cooks
3. Greenmarket Report
4. Events
5. Cabaret & Jazz
6. Street Fairs & Feasts
7. Parades
8. Music & Dance
9. Broadway
1. Charley Roosh, Brooklyn's
Favorite
Charley Roosh was not a scrappy little infielder
for the Brooklyn Dodgers' teams of the '30s and '40s. Nor was he
that strutting lifeguard at the St George Hotel pool. Charley Roosh
as a person never existed
Charley Roosh was City talk for Charlotte Russe.
Unlike the elegant French pastry that celebrated a queen, the
Brooklynized version was a child's twisted tongue vision of bakery
heaven
Set alongside the éclairs, the charlotte russe
stood tall in the refrigerated display case of the local Ebinger's
bakery. Rich whipped cream peaked above the scalloped edge of the
white cardboard tube. At 10¢, 15¢, 25¢, whatever, it was a cheap
way to keep a kid happy
And simple. A 3-inch disk of sponge cake is
placed on a cardboard round inside a short (about 3-4 inch high)
cardboard tube. Whipped cream is piped on top of the cake to fill
the tube and swirl above the edge. Some bakeries decorated the cream
with chocolate sprinkles (sprinkled it with chocolate jimmies to
those in other parts of the country), but a charlotte russe was
always topped with a bright red Maraschino cherry
Eating a charlotte russe was fun. The tube was
just wide enough to make it a two-handed challenge for smaller kids.
All kids got a kick out of pushing the cardboard disk up from the
bottom to get at more of the whipped cream and, finally, that little
round of sponge cake at the bottom. The bit of sponge cake wasn't
that special, it just seemed you worked your way down to a reward.
That made it sweeter. And better
It's hard to find Charley Roosh in today's City.
One source is William Greenberg Desserts, 1100 Madison Avenue (at
82nd Street) and 1383 3rd Avenue (at 79th Street). Their version is
slightly more refined than that of Brooklyn, but as comfort food is
satisfying enough and reasonably priced at $2. For $2.25 you can try
one in chocolate, strawberry or, ugh, mocha. Why fool around with a
good thing?
Jim fooled around a bit with a recipe from one
of his favorite cookbooks and came up with a charlotte russe that
wasn't too bad. Rich cream, toothy sponge cake, all he needs are the
scalloped tubes. Give it a try. Click
here to find it
2. Brooklyn Cooks
The Brooklyn Cookbook is a great look at
the food of the cultures that peopled the borough in the great
immigrant waves of the last 150 years. The Italians, the Jews, the
Swedes and Norwegian, the Irish, the Afro-Caribbean, the
Puerto-Rican, the Poles, the German, the Greek, all are celebrated
in their lives and their food. Authors Lyn Stallworth and Rod
Kennedy Jr include recipes from friends, family and acquaintances
that illustrate the borough's diversity. The new immigrants are well
represented, among them the Russians, Mexicans, Indians,
Pakistani's, Syrians and others. Oddly, though they include a couple
of Southeast Asian recipes from Laos and Cambodia, they don't
mention the Chinese, though they live in two very large, vary
vibrant communities in the Sunset Park/Bay Ridge and Bensonhurst/Coney
Island areas. Unusual
What isn't unusual to an old Brooklyn hand are
the memories of Lundy's baking powder biscuits, sole with artichoke
hearts from Monte's Venetian Room, Bamonte's Restaurant grilled
scampi, Totonno's pizza, Mrs Stahl's knishes, Zei-Mar Deli's potato
salad, Junior's cheesecake, A&S' cream of garlic soup, Ebinger's
chocolate blackout cake, Peter Luger's Steak House fried potatoes .
. . the list goes on and recipes, or good approximations, are
included for all
This summer we'll feature a piece on Jim's
Brooklyn Riviera Culinary Tour, but until then, think about cooking
your way through a good book. [Old link] to find it at Barnes and
Noble
3. Greenmarket Report
It's been awhile since we were able to have
regular Greenmarket reports. First the winter and then work got in
the way. We're back with regular updates to our Greenmarket pages.
Construction has finished on the 14th Street subway station so the
Union Square Greenmarket is bigger and better than ever. The Verdi
Square Greenmarket is temporarily closed due to the renovation of
Verdi Square. It might relocate, stay tuned for updates
It looks like it's going to be a good season.
There was plenty of rain this Spring and, if our local farmers
aren't hit with the heat wave and drought-like conditions they
weathered last year, farm-fresh produce should be in abundance. On a
recent trip down to the Union Square Greenmarket, Jim saw promising
signs. Many varieties of salad and cooking greens, more than 20
types of fresh herbs, the first carrots and parsnips of the season
and much more. Add to this the usual assortment of poultry, meats,
fish, cheese, baked goods, jams, honeys, plants and flowers, well,
just bring a shopping cart
You can find a complete list of New York City
Greenmarkets, what's on the stands now and what's coming up at our
(old link)
4. Events
Don Henley's Inside Job
Tour hits Radio City Music Hall on Jun 8th
The Avon Women's 5K Mini
Marathon zips along the West Side on Jun 10th
Learn about the Japanese tea
ceremony, Shakuhachi music and Japanese culture at the Brooklyn
Botanic Garden on Jun 11th
On Jun 12th spend an evening with Audra
McDonald to benefit the Gay Men's Health Crisis
Bruce Springsteen and The E
Street Band are at Madison Square Garden from the 12th thru Jul 1st
Watch McEnroe, Borg, Connors
and others trade volleys in the LastMinuteTravel.com Masters at
Central Park's Wollman rink from Jun 13th thru 18th
You can find details, last minute listings and
info on what's coming up at our New
York City Events Guide
5. Cabaret & Jazz
The Bell
Atlantic Jazz Festival 2000 is in town through the 11th
Gato Barbieri sails on the
Seaport Music Cruise | The Roy Haynes Trio featuring Danilo
Perez & John Patitucci is at Birdland | Help celebrate Les
Paul's 85th Birthday at Iridium | Acoustic Vaudeville
featuring Aimee Mann, Michael Penn is at Town Hall
We will soon have a separate Cabaret & Jazz
Guide (and also Concerts & clubs), but for now you can find all
the details about who's playing where when at our New
York City Events Guide
6. Street Fairs & Feasts
Find details of all of your favorite street
fairs, feast, festivals and carnivals at our Street
Fair & Feast Guide. Here's a sampling of this week's fairs:
In Brooklyn:
Blessed Sacrament Church June Carnival,
Euclid Avenue btw Fulton Street & Ridgewood Avenue; Three
Heirarchs Greek Orthodox Church Grecian Festival, E 17th Street
btw Kings Highway & Avenue P; 86th Street Bensonhurst
Community Merchants Festival, 86th Street btw 19th Avenue &
Bay Parkway; 13th Avenue Merchants Association Festival, 13th
Avenue btw 69th & 83rd Streets
In Queens:
Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church Festival,
12th Avenue btw 150th Street & Clintonville; Maspeth Chamber
of Commerce Street Fair, Grand Avenue btw 65th Street & 72nd
Street
In Manhattan:
Old St Patrick's Cathedral School Street
Fair, Astor Place btw Broadway & Lafayette Street; Project
Open at Lincoln Towers Street Fair, Broadway btw 66th Street
& 72nd Streets; East Manhattan Chamber of Commerce, 2nd
Avenue btw 66th & 86th Streets; Abrazo Fraternal's 116th
Street Festival, 116th Street btw Park & 2nd Aves; Christopher
East Block Association Street Fair, Christopher Street btw 7th
Avenue & Greenwich Avenue; Tilden Midtown Democratic Club
Street Fair, 3rd Avenue btw 23rd Street & 34th Street; Museum
Mile Festival, 5th Avenue btw 82nd Street & 105th Streets |
Manhattan
Get all the times and details for your
favorite street fairs, feast, festivals and carnivals at our Street
Fair & Feast Guide
7. Parades
Two parades this weekend. On Saturday, the Hare
Krishna Parade marches down 5th Avenue from 41st Street to
Washington Square Park. The big parade of the weekend is the Puerto
Rican Day Parade on Sunday, 5th Avenue from 44th to 86th
Streets. Traffic will be backed up all around Midtown, the Upper
East Side and the Upper West Side
For more details and to preview upcoming marches
check out our New York City
Parade Guide
8. Music & Dance
The New
York City Ballet has full programs of repertory all weekend,
including Donizetti Variations, Sonatas and Interludes,
Summerspace, I'm Old Fashioned, 2 & 3 Part Inventions and
the premiere of a New d'Amboise Ballet
Just next door, the American
Ballet Theater gets back to repertory with performances of Pas
des Deesses, Diversion of Angels, Pas de Deux, Etudes and Manon
The [Parsons Dance Company]
continues thru the 18th at the Joyce Theater with a New York
premiere of Images and repertory performances of Jewel
Lost, Sleep Study, Mood Indigo, Caught and Mood Swing
Our Music
and Dance Guide has all the details
9. Broadway
If you haven't caught up on the 2000
Tony Awards now is the time to do it. Did you know Jim's Deli
had the winners posted before they got up to the stage? Guess we
didn't have anything else to do that night.
Coming Up
Kelsey Grammar's first Broadway turn is in Bill
Shakespeare's Macbeth.
Previews start Jun 8th
Broadway babe Nathan Lane is back on stage in The
Man Who Came to Dinner with Jean Smart. The show starts
previews at the newly renovated American Airlines Theater (nee
Selwyn) Jun 30th for a Jul 27th opening
Find details for all Broadway show at our Broadway
Theater Guide
Susie and Jim
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