The following picture was taken Friday, November 6, 2009 at about 10:30 a.m., before cars even had a chance to rush into some of the spots. It’s quite apparent that no street cleaning truck came by during the designated hours, because the leaves from the day before are still there.

It is quite a common occurrence to see the streets remain unswept. Meanwhile, residents who need a parking spot are forced to go scrambling or risk a swift ticket slapped on their cars at 8:31 a.m.

Over at The Alternate Side Parking Reader, blogger MJN is busy tracking his/her parking adventures around an even more remote part of New York City — the Rockaways. With the city’s many annoying and nightmarish parking regulations, we could probably turn Sheepshead Bites into a similar site documenting residents’ complaints about how car owners are being penalized for simply owning a vehicle. Fortunately or unfortunately, we have many other things to complain and brag about.

Let’s hear from you, readers: Should the NYC Department of Transportation turn over a new leaf and abolish Alternate Side of the Street Parking rules or would you prefer for them to continue cleaning up (your wallets, that is)?

A new Russian/English day care center in Sheepshead Bay is opening its doors today. Blue’s Clues Academy (2109 Avenue V) promises to educate children in basic reading, writing, and arithmetic; the Three R’s every growing kid needs. Blue’s Clues will also offer instruction in music, arts and crafts, and speech, and will host birthday parties. The manager, Yelena Konnov, said she and owner Michael Levitz are very excited to open today, and are offering rates of around $600 per month for each child.

Blue’s Clues Academy
2109 Avenue V
(718) 676-0420

My friend is an ass. We met freshman year of college. I always thought it was our shared loathing of things, behaviors, fads, sayings, hype, pop culture – whatever – that brought us together. We’d talk in a sort of circling negativity, and when the topic would at last lose momentum and collapse on itself, it – or we – exploded in a supernova of sarcastic wit that would put us in riotous laughter for days.

I know, as I’ve always known, my negativity – my causticness – had nothing to do with my outlook on life. I’m a happy guy, and I’m an optimist. But I’ve always been drawn to that grumpy humor. Nothing tickles me more than someone who’s dead set on a bleak world. My favorite Sesame Street character was Oscar the Grouch. I grew up with Married With Children – Ed O’Neil is a prophet of pessimism. In high school I quoted Professor Farnsworth’s lines from Futurama. To me, the unsettling darkness of a despondent mind is the stuff of comedic gold.

I don’t know what drove my friend to think similarly to me back then. I don’t know why he now criticizes for it, though he’s still doing the “Have you ever noticed…” routine and shitting on people’s achievements. And, after writing all of this, I’m not even sure what my point is.

I guess, if there’s anything to be learned, it’s that I have a damn good sense of humor. And my friend is a hypocritical douche.

Due to the New York State budget cuts Senator Golden’s office at 3610 Quentin Road was forced to close after six years of providing services to the community. In order to contact the office or make an appointment, you can call (718) 238-6044 or e-mail Senator Golden at golden@senate.state.ny.us

KBCC is hosting their first annual “Strive To Provide” Walkathon; with 100 percent of the proceeds funding much-needed student scholarships. The 2.5 mile walk will take place along KBCC’s sea wall during club hours, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Southern Brooklyn’s self-proclaimed Harvard by the Bay, KBCC has asked for a paltry donation of $10 per walker. Over 500 students, staff, and faculty have already signed up to participate, shattering the initial goal of raising $4000. To participate, please call 718-368-5666.

During a time of recession combined with the increased rate of dropouts, the financial need is there – Kingsborough is striving – let’s see if the community provides.

Tallarines verdes con bistec apanado - Just one of the traditional Peruvian dishes at C.I. Taste

For those who don’t know me, I spent the better part of the past year living in Peru. For those who have never seen me, I gained a lot of weight living in Peru. There’s a simple reason for that: Peruvian food is among the best in the world. And my increasingly chunky behind became very discerning about what qualifies as good Peruvian food. Coney Island Taste (2580 Coney Island Avenue) is good Peruvian food.

Don’t let the name fool you. Or the appearance. Coney Island Taste’s humble establishment plasters its windows with photos of greasy sandwiches, burgers, and breakfasts, harking back to its beginnings two years ago when it started slinging such simple fare. And when they began selling true Peruvian cuisine a year ago, the small line on the awning advertising Peruvian-American dishes got lost in the mix.

That’s a shame, because owners Fabiola and Jesus Roa are serving up the best Latin food this side of South Slope. Originally from Piura, a Peruvian city along the northern coast known for its seafood dishes, the Roas have been living in the Sheepshead Bay/Brighton Beach area for more than 12 years and saw a niche that needed to be filled.

“I saw this was an area that doesn’t have many Spanish restaurants, but this is a mixed area,” said Fabiola Roa. And so far the Peruvian dishes have been a hit with clients from all walks. “I have Russian customers, Indian, American, Latino.”

“Russians love the seafood dishes” like arroz con mariscos (a Peruvian seafood paella) and parihuela (seafood soup), she added.

C.I. Taste sells Inca Kola - another source of national pride. They also have many homemade desserts and beverages.

Because of its three regions – the coast, mountains, and rainforest- Peruvian cuisine already enjoyed tremendous diversity before the conquistadores arrived. As it became the center of South American colonization, Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, French, and Italian influences began to bleed into the food. The country is noted in the Guinness Book of World Records for its astounding number and variety of dishes.

One particular favorite of mine that Coney Island Taste serves is aji de gallina, a French-inspired dish of shredded chicken breast in a rich, creamy cheese-based sauce made with the Peruvian aji pepper. Bursting with flavor, the sauce is smothered over rice and potatoes and – like many dishes – topped with a hard-boiled egg.

To get a taste of Peru’s signature dish, order ceviche. A source of national pride and international quarreling, most countries in South America have a version of this dish of seafood “cold-cooked” in a lime-juice marinade, with all claiming the origins. But wherever it comes from, food and travel writers point to Peruvian ceviche as the best. Coney Island Taste’s ceviche is cut into chunks of just the right size, and the acidic bite of lime juice is tempered by a perfect blend of peppers and oil to bring out the flavors and texture of the fish. It’s best saved for a sweaty summer lunch, but don’t let that stop you if the craving hits.

While perusing the menu for the first time, my eyes bulged when I saw papa rellena and causa rellena on the appetizers. The former is seasoned Peruvian mashed potatoes stuffed with chopped meat, olives, raisins, and a boiled egg, and fried to a delicious crisp. The meat was savory and balanced by the sweetness of the raisins. Causa rellena is a cold appetizer. It again features seasoned Peruvian mashed potatoes, this time layered with tuna or chicken salad.

Other things to try include papa a la huancaina, tallarines verdes, tallarin saltado, jalea, and pescado a lo macho.

Peruvian joints around the city are establishing themselves by featuring their uniquely flavored rotisserie chicken (pollo a la brasa). Coney Island Taste serves this up, but it’s not the main attraction. Their typical plates best many of the Peruvian restaurants I’ve gone to in New York and New Jersey, so I’d recommend diving right into the platos tipicos at this unpretentious gem in Sheepshead Bay. Most of the platters range from $12.00 to $17.00 – but worry not: in true Peruvian style, each serving is a massive heap of deliciousness that is suitable for two people.

Coney Island Taste is a slam dunk in our ‘hood. It was just September that we complained our area needed a good Latin joint - and even dared to say we needed a cevicheria. Coney Island Taste delivers on both.

Coney Island Taste
2580 Coney Island Avenue, off of Avenue W
718-339-8371
No credit cards accepted

See what other people said about Coney Island Taste on

Just one month shy of the first-year anniversary of construction at the Avenue U and Gravesend Neck Road train stations, the sites reek of the failures soon to ail the rest of the line.

Artist's rendering of completed station rehabilitation at Neck Road. The station will have wider platforms, larger stairwells, more exits, and vision panels.

For those who don’t take the train often, above is a photo of the Avenue U train station taken from the platform. They began putting up new frames that will hold the walls here and at the Neck Road train station earlier this week. Work began on the two stations in December 2008, and the MTA said that they finish the Coney Island-bound sides by the end of 2009. Then they’d switch to the Manhattan-bound side, polishing off the project in 2010.

Well, that was the original plan. The MTA changed the Brighton Line Rehabilitation website to reflect the fact that these sites ain’t gettin’ done on time. The tentative date for completion for the Coney Island-bound side is now “Early 2010″, and the full project will be done in “Early 2011.”

If you haven’t noticed, this is the same “Two year plan” that has been extended to the rest of the local stops between Newkirk Avenue and Kings Highway. One year work on the Coney Island side, then one year on the Manhattan side. Gee, you think they’ll honor those schedules?

By the by, for anyone keeping track, the MTA has not yet responded to our leaders’ requests for more information. Politicians and organizers for the area met with MTA officials a month ago to ask for alternatives to the work and guarantees of the timetable. MTA told them they would be in touch in a few days after they had gathered relevant data. Apparently there are delays on that, too.

(Photo courtesy of Pamela Amri)

At the far corner of Sheephead Bay, where it joins Manhattan Beach and Brighton Beach, is a sign that causes a whole mess of confusion, traffic backups, and horn honking. One might think it’s pretty clear: “After Stop Right Turn Permitted On Red Except 8am – 4pm School Days”. You might ask yourself what’s so confusing about this sign on Neptune Avenue and Cass Place that’s written out in pretty clear English. But many in the area can’t seem to agree on what qualifies as a school day. The corner is constantly backed up on days school is not in session due to drivers not knowing what qualifies as a school day. Summer was particularly precarious because nobody knew if summer school counts. What about snow days, Jewish holidays, and a plethora of other days? Doesn’t “school day” mean Monday through Friday or “Any Day School is in Session.” After some poking around on the DOT’s website, the only mention of school days I could find is a note that parking in a school zone is permissible when school is not in recess.

So which is it? Shouldn’t the sign just read Monday – Friday, September – June? It’s not as if there isn’t enough space, the No Parking signs in Manhattan Beach are seasonal. One must also call into question why school days even matter. The nearest school is three blocks away on Brighton 14th. Have you been caught in traffic behind this sign? What do you think?

It’s goodbye to swimwear and hello to drugs at 1622 Voorhies Avenue.

It seems like yesterday when the summer was here and everyone was headed to the beach. On the way to the beach, many would stop at Seahorse to peruse the racks for the latest in strings and thongs to cover up with.

The Seahorse swimwear store was the place to go even during off-season to buy beach coverings for those winter vacations in sunny spots. Instead, the changing seasons in Sheepshead Bay have brought us sunshine in the form of the Sunshine Pharmacy.

Located just off Sheepshead Bay Road — just storefronts away from a Maimonides Medical Center satellite clinic and within walking distance of quite a few medical and dental complexes,   — and with an illuminated sign advertising 50% off all in-stock drugs, the pharmacy is probably expecting to get customers looking to fill their prescriptions, before they spot the many other pharmacies nearby.

Did anyone notice when Seahorse raced out of here?

When the writer over at Sheepshead Bites first photographed me this past June, I was hopeful that I could be rescued real soon. But here it is, October, already and I’m just making my debut on the site! Oh, well. I guess shopping carts behind bars and windows can’t expect to be showcased on their own timeline.

Life in the back area at the Momoyama restaurant at 1901 Emmons Avenue is kinda dreary. I mean, it’s supposed to be so great working at a landmarked building. Thing is, I got stuck in the storage area and this Lundy’s building can be kind of dreary in the unrenovated side. And, yeah, there’s a waterfront out there, but  even taking a smoking break over by the window gets me a view of nothing but garbage. But, I guess that ain’t too far from the real thing.

I guess in this economy, I gotta be glad I still have a job.