(Photo: Dumbo General Store espresso machine)

I realize the answer to this will vary depending on your individual taste, so for me to say one place has the ‘best’ coffee is subjective. There are plenty of places for coffee in Dumbo and as one who appreciates a good properly brewed coffee, I appreciate the choices. I’ll list a few I enjoy in the area in alphabetical order:

• Almondine Bakery brews coffee from La Colombe
• Baco Cafe uses PT Coffee beans
• The Best Chocolate Cake in the World has Counter Culture coffee
• Choice Kitchens brews Stumptown Coffee
• Coffee Box @ reBar brews Dancing Goats Coffee
• Dumbo General Store brews Dallis Coffee

Several of these places use the La Marzocco espresso machine, considered the barista’s choice for a true espresso.

Both Dumbo General Store and Foragers Market brew their own blend of single origin and rainforest alliance certified coffee from Dallis Coffee, one of the oldest coffee bean roasters in NYC. (See the Edible Manhattan feature about Dallis). They use a commercial espresso machine manufactured by Danesi.

Of course there are other good places, such as the Seattle based coffee chain Starbucks on 67 Front Street and the new Archway Cafe. There’s even a rumor that there may be a coffee roaster coming to Dumbo. We haven’t confirmed, but will find out more.

If you’re looking for good coffee beans, Forager’s Market carries Counter Culture, Big Bend Coffee Roasters, Gorilla Coffee, Kicking Horse, and their own house brand called Foragers Blend.

What are your favorite coffees in Dumbo?

(Photo: Baco Cafe – La Marzocco coffee machine)

Looks like Washington Street will be a two way street again soon. (Photos taken this morning)

Previously:
{Washington Street Construction (Oct 19 Update)}

Abstract Rhythm is a sound insulated recording studio in Dumbo. A visit to the facility shows how passionate the owners are for music. They have been in Dumbo for three years, originally taking over a previous music operation. In 2009, they financed and spent 6 months for a new build-out of expensive soundproof walls so they can provide a place for clients to produce great music. There’s a control room that provides a central location for the sound engineer in an acoustically neutral space for mixing and monitoring, while the two sound rooms provide an environment for drums, instruments, or voice recordings. They can also provide the latest in digital software and hardware, microphones, drum kits, keyboards, and turntables. We caught up with Brendan James, the head Audio Engineer at Abstract Rhythm.

How did you guys get started and why Dumbo? When did the studio open?

I have been recording and producing for about 10 years now, and most of the other studios I had worked in were located in desolate warehouse districts, far away from transportation. We chose DUMBO for it’s professionalism and nice environment. DUMBO is clean and vibrant location with lots of inspiration to draw from with it’s art events, historical buildings and great views. It’s a community that really fosters the growth of all forms of expression. Not only that but it’s safe and close to Manhattan as well.

Because of the amount of effort it takes to soundproof a space for a professional recording operation (basically building a second airtight space within your space) we decided to incorporate into the process an efficient and aesthetic design that would aid in the artistic process as well. With the help of acusticians and other professionals we decided to divide our space into three rooms. Each room is isolated from the other with windows so you can see all the way through the whole suite. This basically allows us to record a full band at once while minimizing the interference (bleed) from one instrument to the next. It also gives us the choice of using the different character of each room to add to the sound of the recordings. We record live drums A LOT, and take pride in what we believe to be our own unique signature drum sound.

What sort of music/bands do you attract at the studio?

We primarily deal with Jazz, Gospel, and Hip-Hop artists reflecting the true demographic of the area. However, as of late because of the flood of so many varying musicians from either overseas or locally, we’ve delved into other styles as well such as funk, rock, and progressive stylings. Its not uncommon to find that styles actually blend at the studio as a project develops. The more abstract, the more keen we are to it; its in our name! We specialize in and do a fair amount of in-house production and putting together studio musicians to play and record for solo artists. This is a big service that sets us apart from the rest. We have a long list of professional musicians we hire that specialize in recording in various genres. Hiring the right musicians for your project can save a lot of time and money, it can also bring a lot of new energy to your music by playing it tight and playing it right. One of the main mantras of Abstract Rhythm Production is we do it live! With the right practice and preparation we encourage artists to record as much as they can live simultaneously. The majority of music out there is constructed in a very hodge-podge type of way: vocals recorded here, drums recorded there, in general different musicians (if there are any) recorded at different places at a different times. We believe in the cohesiveness that comes with great musicians playing and recording live. The result is always a recording that has more life, harmony and character and this is part of what the artist gets at Abstract Rhythm.

What’s your background?

My background is in electronic production DJing remixing and producing. I do my own solo material under the name DJ Baked Potato and have recently delved more into the soul and funk sound with my latest record “Strange Places” available at www.bakedpotatomusic.net. In 2005 I graduated from the New England Institute of Art (formerly Mass Communications College) with a degree in Recording Science and Audio Production. After interning at a few studios in the Boston area (Blink Music, Get Nice Records, Mad Oak) I moved to Brooklyn in 2006 following a comon musical vein that links the two cities. Throughout this time I was working on my own production projects and remixes in varying genres including trip-hop, lounge, Brazilian, dance, Hip-Hop, and Japanese Pop. Go figure! After getting more into the art and science of recording live musicians I had a thirst to record everybody and anything, and began to work more with acoustic sounds. With a strong love for 70s funk and soul guiding my aesthetics I began recording with many amazing artists and musicians from Boston to Brooklyn. I mainly engineer and produce music now as well as work on arrangements and remixes / electronic drum programming.

Thanks Brendan! Special thanks to Vladimir Edmond, who works with Abstract Rhythm for helping to connect Dumbo’s musicians with the studio.

Abstract Rhythm (abstractrhythm.net)
10 Jay Street, Suite 608
Brooklyn, NY 11201

myspace.com/abstractrhythm
facebook.com/abstractrhythm
twitter.com/abstractrhythm

(Abstract Rhythm info sheet – 1.4mb PDF)

Wednesday, November 10, 2010 at 8pm
Teams of up to 6 people
Prize: $50 bar tab

Dumbo General Store (dumbogeneralstore.com)
111 Front Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Rapid Realty has leased space on 1 Anchorage Place in Dumbo. The retail space was formerly occupied by Jan Larsen Art’s outpost retailer The Workshop. Rapid Realty is a residental and commercial real estate brokerage business focused on rentals. At the time of this posting, there are 98 results for Dumbo on their website ranging from $630 for a commercial space to a $5,500 1 bedroom (1447 sqft) condo to a $15,000 ground floor (5,000 sqft) commercial space (“Great for a restaurant or bar; dine by moonlight”). Welcome to Dumbo!

Rapid Realty Inc. (rapidnyc.com)
One Anchorage Place (at Plymouth Street)
Brooklyn, NY 11201

There is filming in Dumbo today for Blue Bloods, a drama about a “multigenerational family dedicated to the NYC law enforcement.” Blue Bloods stars Tom Selleck (of Magnum P.I. and Jesse Stone), Donnie Wahlberg (Righteous Kill and Band of Brothers), and Bridget Moynahan (Six Degrees and Ramona and Beezus).

(Photo by epc)

Previously:
{Filming: Blue Bloods, 20Sept2010}

As of today, the Dumbo location of Mikey’s Hook Up closed. They are moving equipment and repairs to their Williamsburg location. Mikey’s opened their first store in Williamsburg 7 years ago and opened the Dumbo location a little over two years ago (September 11, 2008). According to the notice on the storefront, Mikey decided to go back their roots and focus on what’s right for them – keeping the Williamsburg location and building and maintaining their customer base there. They turned down an acquisition offer from a “major corporate chain”, which prompted them to re-evaluate the purpose of their business.

Many businesses in Dumbo (New York Digital District) frequented the store and no doubt will miss their services and support. Best wishes to Mikey and the business.

Copy of the letter posted on the storefront:

MIKEY’S HOOK-UP BACK TO WILLIAMSBURG!
Why the Sudden Move?

I opened a Mikey’s Hook-up in DUMBO because after 7 years of running my store in Williamsburg, I wanted to build on what I had created there. The opportunity to design a new store, in a raw space, for a neighborhood that would benefit from what the Hook-Up offers was too good to pass up. The store was a great idea, and the DUMBO customers have been very supportive.

Recently I turned down an acquisition offer from a major corporate chain. That decision sparked a desire for me to reevaluate the reasons why I started selling cables on a blanket on Bedford Ave back in the day.

I realized that I would rather have one unique store than try to clone the original vibe of the Hook-Up. There is an underlying pressure as a business to constantly expand when things are going well but the question arises to what end? What is the measure of business success? For me, it is loving what I do for a living.

Mikey’s Hook-Up is moving back to Williamsburg because I decided sticking to my roots is better for my soul. If you miss us, we are only 15 minutes away Thanks again for a great couple of years!

Mikey

P.S. It’s not you. It’s me. I hope we can still be friends.

{Parking in Front of Mikey’s, 29June2009}
{Mikey’s Hookup Dumbo Now Open, 12Sep2008}
{Mikey’s Hookup Coming to Front Street in Dumbo, 14Jul2008}
{Apple Store in Dumbo – Good or Bad?, 14Sep2007}

(Photo by ajare)

The following are selected links from this past week on blogs and websites with discussion about Dumbo (and its neighboring areas):

• Housing in Brooklyn is About Location, 02Nov10, BK Ink
• Best places to watch the marathon in Brooklyn, 05Nov10, a child grows
• Almondine Bakery in Dumbo, 02Nov10, Plate of the Day
• Building of the Day: 1 Water Street, 02Nov10, Brownstoner
• More Brooklyn News Citywide Publications, 02Nov10, BK Eagle
• Dry Cleaner in DUMBO Uses Sustainable Methods, 01Nov10, BK Eagle
• Salman Rushdie To Visit DUMBO’s powerHouse Books, 01Nov10, BK Eagle
• Grimaldi’s owner suing Dumbo landlord for Eviction, 03Nov10, TRD
• 109 Gold Listings Trickle In, 04Nov10, Brownstoner
• Pub One Owner Matt Shendell Interview, 03Nov10, Black Book

What: Comedy Under the Bridge
When: Saturday, November 6, 2010, 8pm
Where: 1 Front Street, Brooklyn, NY

For more info, go to no1front.com

This 57 Front Street penthouse loft, completely redesigned is new on the market in Dumbo. This is a one bedroom, one bath condo with 1,100 square feet of living space plus a 830 sq.ft landscaped private terrace. It is asking $1,400,000 ($1,272/sq.ft), and is a modern, fully redesigned space with outdoor space and a separate storage space.

If this listing looks familiar to you, it was featured almost three years ago. The asking price then was a hefty $1,795,000 and according to StreetEasy, the listing was removed in August 2008 (It’s not clear whether or not sold, but the furniture looks the same). Monthly maintenance is $688 and $199 monthly real estate tax. We hear from realtors that prices in Dumbo haven’t gone down in the past year for premium buildings, and inventory is still small. Will this one go for asking or close to it?

{Elliman listing}