A scenic Gowanus-side barbecue joint is one step closer to existing, having won approval from Community Board 6 on Wednesday.
If all goes as planned, The Swan Dive will open adjacent to the Green Building on Union and Bond streets, serving up barbecue alongside Brooklyn's most treasured superfund sludge puddle for the duration of summer.
The approval came with some caveats, as usual. The Brooklyn Paper reports that concerned residents balked at the original plan presented last month, which included space for 157 people to nosh until 2 a.m., six days a week.
Akiva Reich, who would oversee Swan Dive in addition to the Green Building, amended his proposal accordingly, agreeing to close by midnight, ban amplified music and hire an exterminator to stave off rodents from what is surely the otherwise totally pristine, contaminant-free canal-side setting.
“We remain skeptical as to whether an outdoor space that accommodates 157 people can be successfully integrated into the community but our concerns are tempered by an understanding that this is a seasonal license that will remain in effect for a single season,” the board wrote.
If the plan fails, who cares—Dinosaur BBQ is just a few blocks up the street, and Fletcher's is nearby as well. Grab your ribs to go and bring them to the vacant lot. Hover by the water's edge and feast, tossing the bones into the murk. Go ahead, use a broken slab of cement as a napkin. "Who needs the community board," you'll whisper into your biscuit. "Who needs anyone."
