More than a few people have asked me about Butternut Market, a grocery store that was scheduled to open in the fall of 2008 on Lewis Avenue. It was supposed to be one of those grocery stores that some of us long for in Bed-Stuy–you know, one that sells nice prepared foods and does not sell Doritos and Old E. I was looking forward to seeing this place open. Anybody know what’s up with the Butternut?
And while we’re at it, what’s the delay with Saraghina, that new brick oven pizza joint that was supposed to open on Lewis Avenue?
Coming Soon – Butternut Market in Bed-Stuy Brooklyn [PistachiOats]
StreetLevel: New Market for Bed-Stuy [Brownstoner]
The Inside Scoop on the New Deep Dish [Bed-Stuy Blog]
Bad Behavior has blocked 351 access attempts in the last 7 days.
16 January 2009, 11:42 am
Butternut Market. I was told that butternut was on hold and that regardless of when it opened it would not be at the Lewis Avenue location previously mentioned. It sounds like there were issues with the landlord and the expense of the improvements required to the space to make it usable.
Saraghina. I do know they were waiting for approval from the Department of Buildings – which was granted on January 14th. I’m not sure if there are additionaly permit requirements. I hope they open soon – including the planned market selling imported meats and cheeses.
16 January 2009, 11:53 am
In the blogforum connected to this site there is a thread on Saraghina. Apparently, according to Maconman, they passed their inspection which makes it likely that they’ll open soon. Looking forward to it.
As for Butternut I saw workers going in and out yesterday and permits posted outside so at least we know they are working on it. Hopefully they will open. Even with this economy I think there is a market for them here.
16 January 2009, 12:23 pm
Maconstreetman, any leads on where Butternut would end up? I gather that there all sort of aspestos issues with the location.
16 January 2009, 12:30 pm
There was talk of Stuyvesant and Macon. I don’t pretend to have any inside knowledge. My guess is it’s not happening any time soon, but I don’t know. Perhaps they changed their minds and are going to be at the Lewis Avenue location, but my guess is that the work going on there is related to the building as a whole and is not limited to the retail space. That being said, any work being done to prepare the retail space for use is good news. They do seem to be making progress on the plant/flower store on that block – though I’d much rather have a market than a flower place. Anyone know anything about the wine bar that was also planned for the block. My guess is that the economy is delaying all sorts of activity, but who knows. It does seem clear that Saraghina will open eventually – which is better than nothing.
16 January 2009, 2:05 pm
Butternut Market was supposed to be on the same block that Stizzy was going to be on, right? Did they run into the same problems that prevented Stizzy from opening? (As far as I heard, those problems were that the space needed a lot more work than they initially thought, and the money wasn’t there for them to proceed with it. If something else is the case, let me know).
I live a couple of blocks north of here, and have been happy with the opening of Peaches and the general transformation of the neighborhood, but I’d really love for these places to open faster (especially since I”m currently housebound with a long term illness).
I also heard that Focaccino had opened up again, but I haven’t ordered from them yet.
16 January 2009, 3:56 pm
Thanks for the info Maconstreetman! That block could use some transformation so let’s hope that something is going into where Butternut was supposed to go and that the people behind Butternut will eventually find a space. That market is needed around here.
16 January 2009, 6:40 pm
Just a general comment – I have a restaurant in Brooklyn and the process with permits and the city is an extremely long and drawn out one. Rules change, contractors screw up, permit processing might just be slow or you end up with a pain in the butt inspector. Anytime a person opens a business the goal is to open up as quickly as possible. Many times you have a few “free” months in your lease but at a certain point rent kicks in regardless if the place has opened or if permits have gone through or not. NOBODY wants to take their time opening.
I too have seen a dumpster and activity in front of the Butternut building or the one next door that is supposed to become a play gym for children. To me, it looked like work was being done on the building and not the businesses themselves.
19 January 2009, 9:20 am
I heard they lost money when all this stock market stuff crashed…funds ran out
19 January 2009, 11:59 am
That’s why I don’t think people should announce the opening of their business until they have all of the permits signed, work done and they are 99% sure that the opening is happening the next day. I know that business owners announce their plans with the best of intentions, but it ultimately leaves people who are looking forward to the opening feeling miserable when they find out that the plans have been scrapped.
20 January 2009, 10:59 am
Hi all. I was going to be the primary financial backer for Butternut. There are a number of issues but the answer is that its on an indefinite hold. tripp is largely correct. Both me and another financial backer had to put on the brakes because of the turmoil in the markets. The amount of money necessary to open it and guarantee working capital for 2-3 years before it reaches profitability would have been too much of a drain on us after the bottom fell out of the stock market. At the same time it began to look like the ability to turn a profit would take much longer as well. There were also more problems with the space on Lewis each time we learned more and more from the architect. A lot of these had to do with health department requirements for a restaurant that were going to be too costly for that particular building.
I certainly apologize to all of you for getting your hopes up on this. No one wanted this more than I did.
That said, there is a slight possibility that Ardenia can work with the owner of the building at the corner of Macon & Stuyvesant on this but that is also proving to be quite difficult.
For now, she is back at Solomon’s Porch where they’ve expanded the kitchen, hired new staff and have a new menu. I had a great steak frites there the other night.
I’m glad to hear the news on Saraghina. Chicco (sp?) opened up one night about 2 months ago and gave away free pizza. They were some of the best pizzas I’ve ever had!!!!
20 January 2009, 11:53 am
It sounds like it was a really challenging process. Thanks so much for this update, DIBS.
21 January 2009, 3:47 pm
DIBS,
I know first hand what it takes to open up a restaurant – I did just that Nov 05′. It was a very tough and pocket draining process even when the economy was great.
It’s good to make a decision on whether to open up or not before you sink ALL of your money into a project. It’s a tough decision to put a hold on things especially when you’ve already put in your time and money. The situation is even tougher if you would’ve put in for more permits, equipment etc. and then would’ve had to close down 6mos later. You did the right thing for you. Hopefully things will turn out and you will be able to open your business. When that happens, I will be one of your first customers!
08 February 2009, 10:15 am
i want open but i still waiting for the gas
i try open jast whith the brik owen
but the dpt of health dont let me open
i hope in 2 weeks i have the sign off
and then we gonna open
i m sorry for the waiting
trust me
i try my best
chiccopiadina
08 February 2009, 12:35 pm
Hang in there, Chicco! We’ll be waiting with hungry stomachs on opening day. Looking forward to meeting you!
08 February 2009, 12:51 pm
Glad to hear that Chicco.. Looking forward to it.