The anonymous Carroll Gardens hater who cannot tolerate the smell of roasting coffee from the 64-year-old D'Amico coffee shop will not stop complaining. This year they've called the DEP on the shop, called 311 on the shop, and even called the Fire Department on them. And really, anonymous hater, D'Amico's has gotten the message. And they're working on it. So take a deep breath (through your mouth). more ›

Joycians and drinking enthusiasts, prepare yourselves! The brains behind San Francisco's Litquake will be bringing their literary bar crawl to book-and-beer loving Brooklyn! Manhattan has had its own event since 2008, but this year the city's getting not one but two booze heavy fests, one of which will take crawlers to about a dozen different venues in Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill. Next month, lovers of the written word can get their drink on at Lit Crawl Brooklyn, which will feature over thirty authors and offer up fourteen separate events, like literary-themed trivia, Taboo, and a cabaret. more ›

Yes, cobblers still exist! No, they won't for much longer! It's just so much easier to buy a stylish new pair of shoes than it is to get your old ones repaired. That trend, plus skyrocketing rents, means that lifelong cobbler—sounds like something out of the last century right?—Michael Dadidov will close his shoe repair store in Carroll Gardens, according to Pardon Me For Asking. Last August, way before news that he was closing up shop became official, Dadidov told us his story: more ›

Mark Iacono, the chef and owner of Lucali, has finally decided to talk to the press about the nearly fatal knife fight he was in last year that made front page news—but no convictions. He still won't say what the fight was about, but he will say that, despite tabloid reports, it "was not over a girl." more ›

Science says that kids need recess (nevermind that Science also says winos won't get sunburned—Science works in mysterious ways) to work out the wiggles* and show kids that they can indeed interact with their friends away from a computer screen. Parents of students at PS 58 want to ensure that their children get recess, even when it's snowy, and they want to close Carroll Street between Court and Smith Streets in Carroll Gardens on days when the playground is too ice-covered to be used. But a few civic leaders are opposed to the pint-sized block party, claiming that the street is too busy to be closed. Clearly, they have never played games of manhunt that spanned multiple recesses. more ›

When we last left alleged Lucali stabber Battista "Benny" Geritano, he was making an obscene gesture with his sandwich to a Daily News photographer, presumably in celebration that the attempted murder charges were dropped against all parties involved. However, the reputed mobster tested positive for marijuana while on parole, and now faces up to two years in prison despite allegedly using a Whizzinator while he submitted his samples. Maybe there was something in his sandwich? more ›

Unlike most knife fights, this one seems to have a happy ending. Murder charges have been dropped against Lucali pie man Mark Iacono and reported Genovese family associate Batista Geritano related to the April daytime meleé in a Carroll Gardens deli. As predicted, because both men refused to speak to authorities about what exactly happened inside the now-closed Joe's Superette, authorities had little to bring before a grand jury. "They've been uncooperative," a spokesman for the DA in the case told the Brooklyn Paper, "They haven't been talking the whole time." Iacono and Geritano reportedly have known each other since childhood, and the spat was reported to have been caused by a love triangle between the two men and Geritano's girlfriend. more ›

Early this morning, vandals set playground equipment at the recently renovated PS 29 on fire. Building manager John Russo told Carrol Gardens Patch he was planning to call the contractor who built the playground to see if any of it was salvageable. "This is just heartbreaking. We haven't even finished painting yet," said parent Lisa Trollbäck. more ›

Was the stabbing last week in Carroll Gardens over a woman? Sources tell the Post today that Benny Geritano and Lucali's owner Mark Iacono were fighting on Friday over the love of a 37-year-old greeting-card store owner. In fact, the knife fight that afternoon which led both men to be charged with attempted murder may have been the second fight of the day for the pair. more ›

Friday afternoon Benny Geritano and Lucali's owner Mark Iacono got into a knife fight on Smith Street, for unclear reasons (nobody is cooperating with the authorities). What is clear is that both men have been charged in the fight. Iacono has been charged with assault and Geritano, though initially only charged with assault, yesterday saw his charges upgraded to attempted murder and was smacked with a $250,000 bail. Geritano is due back in court on Thursday. Update: Scratch that, the Brooklyn DA today upgraded the charges against Iacono to attempted murder as well. more ›

Police have identified the man who brutally stabbed Lucali's Pizza owner Mark Icaono yesterday as Benny Geritano, an ex-con who was charged with murder in the 1990s and is currently on probation. And sources also say he may have been off his medication. "Mark was trying to get the guy to calm down," the source told the Daily News. "They made their way up the block and the guy started stabbing Mark." Geritano is also a reported associate of the Gambino family. more ›

Last Sunday, two Alaskan Malamutes fatally mauled a Schnoodle named Kaiser at a Carroll Gardens dog park. It was their second victim in the past few weeks, and now city investigators are investigating whether the dogs should be euthanized. Malamute owner Robert Harney says, "I'm horrified over this," but Schnoodle owner Alexis Russo says Harney's pets are too dangerous, and should either be put down or muzzled at all times. He told the Post, "They have tasted blood, and it's only a matter of time." more ›

Carmen Ojeda, who claims a police officer blocked her from going to the hospital when her daughter was suffering from an asthma attack in her back seat, wants the officer responsible to come forward and apologize for his actions. "Show your face and say you're sorry!" she told the Daily News. "I just want you to be a man. Let her rest in peace!" more ›

The mother of an 11-year-old girl who died of an asthma attack on Friday says a man, whom she believes to be a cop, kept her from getting her daughter to a hospital. Carmen Ojeda's daughter, Briana, began suffering an asthma attack in a playground in Carroll Gardens on Friday afternoon. Ojeda, not wanting to wait for an ambulance, took off with Briana in her car, and turned down a side street to avoid traffic. The street ended up being one-way, and she either crashed into or was blocked by other cars. That's when she waved down a "marked car" and a "uniformed man" got out. more ›

Earlier this year opossums became Brooklyn's newest threat—since then their #1 spot has been reclaimed by some stealth raccoons, but they may be making a comeback! According to the Brooklyn Paper, the creatures are terrorizing some Carroll Gardens residents. In particular, Rose Unes, and more specifically, Rose Unes's roosting hens. more ›

Second Place in Carroll Gardens is one of the quietest, quaintest streets (places?) in Brooklyn, but one 30-year-old woman wants you to know looks can be deceiving. She was walking her dog around 3 a.m. on May 30th when she was nearly raped near her stoop, by a man who followed her as she returned to her apartment. "When I saw him at the gate, I thought s—, here we go," she tells Brooklyn Paper. "I walked away from my door because I didn’t want him to force me inside. I know it can get a lot worse if they get you inside." more ›

This week Sam Sifton at the Times bestows two precious stars on Carroll Gardens charmer Prime Meats, and you get the sense he would have tossed in an exceedingly rare third star if it weren't for a couple of annoying policies at the restaurant: they don't take reservations or plastic. Meals are "executed with a rare degree of excellence, from the salad with its silky nap of dressing and perfect, peppery greens to the complementary textures and deep flavors of the chicken," writes Sifton. "Cash only, though? At a restaurant where a dinner for four might run a considerate host more than $400?... Forget to line your pockets in the manner of a Biggie Smalls impersonator and you’re going to need to leave your guests before the end of it all, and walk to a bodega A.T.M. to rustle up enough cash to pay your bill. This is a grim feeling for a grown person to experience, right up there with walking around all day with a large knot of $20 bills in your pocket only because you’re going to dinner someplace that doesn’t take credit cards." Sifton also says Bobby Flay's Bar Americain "is still quite on top of its game." more ›

They're back! We just received this tip from a reader about a manhole explosion on Union Street near Smith Street in Brooklyn. Apparently the manhole exploded under a minivan! Abe Lincoln Jr. said, "The minivan belonged to the owner of the korean deli on the corner of smith and union. Pretty lucky as theres a street fair on Court Street Today. He was able to drive the van away but the back fender was pretty mangled. Stinks like burning car here." more ›

Police are investigating a possible hate crime that allegedly took place in Carroll Gardens shortly after 8 p.m on Tuesday, March 2nd. Investigators say the victim, an unnamed 22-year-old man, was severely beaten by five men shouting anti-gay slurs, near Luquer Street and Hamilton Avenue. He suffered "cuts to the back of his head and bad facial bruises," an NYPD source tells Fox. more ›

If you live on Union Street in Carroll Gardens, you may have a holiday card coming to you. That is, if the dreaded Williamsburg Post Office ever figures out that the 11215 ≠ 11211. The envelope above, sent in by a Gothamist reader, was apparently mis-scanned by the post office and then delivered to the same wrong address four times. One theory by the 11211 recipient is that the bar code is causing the envelope to be sent to the wrong address again and again. But, as it turns out, the letter was delivered to the same address a fifth time even after the bar code was blacked out. Clearly, there was some sort of error in the complex USPS sorting process. Quick, cue Elvis! more ›

Questions surround the death of a Brooklyn man, whose body was found in his Carroll Gardens apartment yesterday. Troy Young, a drummer in a number of local bands, was, according to the Daily News, "shot in the shoulder and the bullet went through his heart." more ›

This morning the body of 29-year-old drummer Troy Young (of the band Curious Mishap) was found dead, with a bullet wound in his head, inside of his Carroll Gardens apartment. NY1 reports that police are currently investigating the shooting death. They only discovered the body this morning, after receiving a missing persons report. more ›