Gothamist publisher Jake Dobkin is blowing the cover on this whole overhyped PokPok "Beer Slushie." Here is his exclusive report: more ›

A Red Hook club billing itself as a "cabaret and burlesque lounge" is pissing off its neighbors, who claim the place is really just a strip club, bringing with it all the delightful patrons that a strip club in an industrial stretch of Brooklyn could ever hope to attract. more ›

Drug dealers are reportedly giving up on lower class neighborhoods in favor of more up-and-coming hoods. Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan today tells the News that the city has "seen a pattern developing of heroin mills located in upscale and middle-class neighborhoods." And to prove that, one need look no further then Red Hook, which had something of a blast from the past last week when police raided a heroin mill on Van Brunt Street there and found a stash of heroin worth between $30,000-$50,000 (including 60 grams of pure uncut h). more ›

Inspired by the news of IKEA's impending $9.99 Kraftskiva blowout celebration (or Crayfish Party, as it's called in these parts), we would like to take a moment to herald the unsung delights of IKEA's edible offerings. While it may not be your first thought for destination dining, the food at IKEA is more than serviceable—it's even pleasurable. more ›

A late night boat ride on the Hudson River proved fatal for four Ulster County residents on Sunday, when a boat crashed into a concrete abutment in the river, just before dawn near the town of Red Hook, NY. Judging by the damage, police believe the boat's operator was speeding, though it wasn't yet clear who was at the controls when it hit the concrete, which may at one time have been part of a dock. Beer bottles were found on the boat, but it's unclear what role alcohol may have played in the accident. more ›

We thought we had it bad in DC, when the president's personal chauffeurs flew over us every 15 minutes, but Brooklyn pols are painting a noisier picture of their borough in a renewed push to ban all tourist helicopters. According to the Brooklyn Paper, Brooklyn Heights senator Daniel Squadron told a crowd on Sunday that "Enough is enough! We need to stop the endless parade of tourist helicopter flights over our neighborhoods." Another Heights resident called the neighborhood a "war zone," with Vietnam vet Duncan McGonagle echoing the sentiment: "I'm having flashbacks because it sounds exactly like being back in Vietnam again." more ›

The sign hanging outside a Red Hook home and demanding, "Where Is Osama Bin Laden?"—complete with a counter of how many years and days had passed since 9/11— was taken down yesterday. Cheryl Stewart told the Brooklyn Paper, "I’m elated. To me, this is a criminal justice issue. This man is a mass murderer, and I am always happy when someone flouting the law has been brought to justice." more ›

With Brooklyn Heights and DUMBO residents managing to (sort of) push the loud choppers out of their sky, the Red Hook folk are now suffering the brunt of helicopter traffic—and according to the Brooklyn Paper, they don't like loud noises either! The city has allegedly allowed the air traffic to move over to the coast of Red Hook, in an effort to avoid them flying over Governors Island (you know, which is pretty much vacant). more ›

A few months ago Red Hook beekeepers were surprised to find their bees drinking juice from the local maraschino cherry factory and producing red goo instead of local, golden honey that could sell for a pretty penny. But why let the inventory go to waste? According to Grub Street, Red Hook beekeepers will be giving away free samples of the red stuff at Brooklyn Kitchen on February 12th from noon to 1 p.m., and small batches will be available for purchase. What's the over/under on how long it takes the mixologists to add it to whiskey and sell it for $15? more ›

The 31-year old man shot and killed at Red Hook's Lotus Temple of Visions gallery on Monday was there helping with renovations, and according to reports he was a master carpenter. Born in Jamaica, Tajeme Sylvester was raised in Brooklyn; a graduate of both Brooklyn Tech H.S. and Fordham University. He was crashing at the gallery while he worked on it, and the owner (who calls himself a "space age herbalist") was out of town. According to the Daily News, neighbors heard gunshots just before 6 p.m., and police found him with one shot to the head and one to the chest. more ›

[UPDATED BELOW] An artist was shot and killed in Red Hook yesterday evening around 5:45 p.m., found with one bullet to the head and one to the chest, according to police. The NY Post reports that "he was gunned down inside the ground-floor apartment on Summit Street near Hamilton Avenue... the victim used the apartment as both a studio and living space." Neighbors say the entire block is filled with creative types, and none of them heard a gun shot. Police haven't released the name of the victim yet. more ›

Red Hook used to be one of America's busiest ports of call. But the advent of containerized shipping required greater upland space than the neighborhood could provide, and most of the longshoreman jobs moved to New Jersey (where On the Waterfront was shot). Containerships still dock at pier 11, but the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal is also welcoming a steady influx of cruise ships. It takes a lot of energy to keep these floating cities running, and some residents are fed up with the ships' constantly idling diesel engines, which are polluting the air in Red Hook. more ›

On a (now legal!) rooftop apiary in Red Hook, beekeeper Cerise Mayo got confused when her bees started producing some red goo instead of natural, healthy honey. And after some lab testing, it was found that the goo was full of red dye #40, the same stuff used at nearby Dell's maraschino cherry factory. Mayo asked, "Why would they go to the cherry factory, when there’s a lot for them to forage right there on the farm?" On the other hand, why settle for natural nectar when modern technology makes corn syrups sweeter than you could ever imagine? "Slow food" is for the birds! more ›

Coming on the heels of the man who took to his blog to announce that he is so over Park Slope, photographer Andy Vernon-Jones of Red Hook told the Observer why he will no longer be of Red Hook. "Another love affair is taking priority in my life, and it's with someone who doesn't want to walk close to a mile to and from the subway station." He'll continue posting one new photo a day until October 31st, after which he will be a resident of a different Brooklyn neighborhood closer to the subway. (Though it's not like that'll do anything.) more ›

The Perry Avenue Building got them. The Port Authority wants them in New York Harbor. Now, the city is planning to build a wind turbine atop a water tower on Van Dyke Street in Red Hook. However, the small turbine would generate enough energy a year to power just one home. Is it worth it? more ›

An 18-year-old man who had just finished playing a soccer game in Red Hook Park was shot twice in the buttocks yesterday by gunmen who allegedly "had a beef" with him. The shots rang out around 4 p.m. in the middle of the park, sending people running for cover. Guillermo Garcia, who was playing soccer in the park at the time, told the Daily News, "First there was a sound—bam, bam, bam! Then everyone was screaming and everyone started shouting." The victim is currently stable at Lutheran Medical Center, and no arrests have been made yet; the gunmen allegedly fled in a minivan. more ›

After responding to the situation yesterday, the Coast Guard has finally released details on the oil spill off Valentino Pier in Red Hook, which was allegedly killing starfish along the shore. About 15 gallons of oil leaked into the water, spreading out 150 feet and tinging the water red. Residents could smell the oil all through the neighborhood, and one told the Daily News, "For this to happen, it's devastating." more ›

Whatever you do, don't call Tony Hayward. A tipster directed us to these photos, taken by redhookd, of a supposed oil spill off Valentino Pier in Red Hook. She writes, "The spill is in the water and at least 2 miles long. You can't even go there, the smell is terrible and you get headaches from it. People in Red Hook are extremely upset. There are dead starfish and other creatures washing up on the shore." It's believe the spill occurred some time last night; our tipster and others want "to get the word out so people and their dogs and kids stay away." more ›

Remember when IKEA was trying to woo Red Hook with all those promises about being such a great neighbor? Well, the honeymoon's over. At a Community Board 6 meeting last Thursday night, the Swedish retailer came down hard on a DOT plan to install a bike lane that would run four measly blocks on Columbia Street from Bay Street, onto Halleck and Beard Streets. "It seems dangerous to officially encourage bikes to the front of IKEA," intoned IKEA Manager Mike Baker, whom one member of the transportation committee described as "confrontational." more ›

According to a suit filed by New York and six other states against the bankrupt company Chemtura Corp., fields in Red Hook Park have levels of PCBs over 110 times what environmental agencies consider safe. Polychlorinated biphenyl production was banned by Congress in 1979 because exposure was linked to things like low birth rate for pregnant women, liver cancer and a loss of motor skills, but apparently leaked into the park from Chemtura's Red Hook plant, which closed in 1999. Chemtura, the nation's largest producer of plastic additives, has repeatedly refused to clean a leak at its plant. more ›

Ah, the mermaids of Weeki Wachi, that curious Florida roadside attraction so exhaustively documented on YouTube. Jessica Brater, Artistic Director of the Brooklyn-based experimental theater company Polybe + Seats, found inspiration in the attraction's struggle to stay open for her newest production, A Thousand Thousand Slimy Things. Described as an “aquatic spectacular of conservation and change," Slimy Things blends the dread of global plasticization with a nautical mermaid-fantasy and works of marine-themed classic literature. more ›

Click on the photos for delicious news about the Red Hook Food Vendors' plans for a new food and arts center, Aurora Williamsburg's new spring menu, and the inaugural meeting of the Slow Food NYC book club. more ›