But I'm scared they'll just disappear any minute. I like the new art galleries that are showing up there and Doughnut Plant, and I'm glad Kossar's bialys and Russ & Daughters is still in effect. Gertel's Bakery, Guss' Pickles, the fabric stores and wholesalers-they're all gone. I'm more worried about the Lower East Side. I also kind of approve of places like Union Pool, a bar that took over an old space and repurposed it, but kind of did it with real affection I think. Incidentally, they make a great espresso, too. has always been good to me and feels like a relic now in the neighborhood. Q: What other old Williamsburg places are you hoping will survive?Ī: The Garden Grill diner on Graham Ave. But the LES is definitely on its way now. I think Williamsburg has changed faster than the LES. But the troubling part is that development in the burg and on the LES is so accelerated-it just results in giant glass condos and big hotels and big buildings kind of plunking down and trying to sell as many cookie-cutter luxury apartments-that many people who've lived in these communities all their lives can't afford it. I think the hope is that whatever decisions get made, maintaining and enriching the community as a whole is the priority. So there's going to be development and there's going to be changes. I was definitely one of those new people who moved to Williamsburg in the late '90s. Longer answer: I think that all neighborhoods change and if they've got something good about them, there's usually an influx of people, so you're kind of forced to make room for new people. How would you characterize those changes?Ī: Short answer: troubling. Q: You grew up on the Lower East Side, and you've seen a lot of major changes there and in Williamsburg in recent years. The newcomers need to put some love in their decor! They're shiny, austere, and the music is usually very hip, which is fine but feels like it's not lovingly chosen. I think that the newcomers' coffee shops do have a uniformity to them that's sometimes a little troubling. They make a mean New Orleans (a lightly sweet iced coffee). If Caffe Capri is closed, I'll go to Blue Bottle. All that being said, the newcomer shops definitely have their place.
CAFFE CAPRI FREE
I write by hand when I'm there, or if I do bring my laptop to do some writing, it's nice being free of the Internet. It forces me to really stay off my computer when I go there. They don't have wi-fi and that's kind of nice, too. I don't normally go for Sinatra, but at Caffe Capri it's so appropriate and so clearly music that the owners, Joe and Sarah, enjoy, you can't help but dig it.
I also prefer the mellow atmosphere and the curated music-scape there. Q: How does Caffe Capri compare to the newcomer coffee shops in Williamsburg?Ī: Personally, I think the iced coffee is better at Caffe Capri. Plus, every neighborhood should have a place that makes a really killer iced coffee.
A nice personal establishment like Caffe Capri gives a neighborhood color and character that I think ultimately brightens the community. Let's face it, most neighborhoods these days are overrun with franchises that kind of blur together. I think it's important to have unique places in a neighborhood-that are owned by people who live in that neighborhood. I think places where people gather, in particular, can be great records of all the different generations of customers who have come and gone. The owners of Caffe Capri had so many great stories about former customers who used to come in, who lived and worked in the neighborhood. Q: Why do you think places like Caffe Capri are important to a neighborhood?Ī: I think they're important because they're links to the past. Watch the wonderful little film, and read my Q&A with the director. Cyber video sex.Filmmaker Casimir Nozkowski has made a short documentary about Caffe Capri, a longtime Italian coffee shop in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, that is quickly being surrounded by trendy newcomers and chains.
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