Locavores have some new required reading!
Two Brooklyn food-lovers have cooked up a comprehensive guide to the borough’s best culinary creators, and will launch the book with a tasting party in Dumbo on Oct. 29. “Made in Brooklyn: An Essential Guide to the Borough’s Artisanal Food and Drink Makers,” catalogs 110 butchers, bakers, and candy or drink makers, all of them locally-sourced and fully-ripened, says one of the book’s co-authors.
“We had two criteria: the products had to be physically made in Brooklyn and we wanted to feature makers who were already a step further than the Smorgasburg model — so they had to have a brand name, a storefront, or have some wholesale business going,” said Susanne König.
Those criteria keeps out fakers who have tried to cash in on the borough’s artisanal reputation by slapping a “Brooklyn” label on products made far from our fair metropolis. Real Brooklyn businesses benefit from something that the imposters do not, said König — a culture of support for independent businesses.
“Most of the products these makers sell are more expensive than what you’d get at a supermarket, so why is there such a boom here for it?” she asked. “Because there’s this culture and support here, people want to support these makers. This is what this book is about.”
The book, which König wrote with Melissa Vaughan, includes the story behind each business and lavish photos of the creators and their products. It also features a list of where to buy the featured products, and it details an informal walking tour of open classes, facility tours, and tastings available in Red Hook, an area König called a “concentrated neighborhood of makers.”
At the launch party, the authors will chat with three local sweet-makers featured in the book: bakeries Baked, Butter & Scotch, and People’s Pop, makers of shave ice and popsicles. Attendees will get to sample fare from 15 featured makers, including pickles from Brooklyn Brine’s pickles, doughnuts from Dough, and taffy from Salty Road, along with beer from the Brooklyn Brewery and Sixpoint Brewery.
“Made In Brooklyn: An Essential Guide To the Borough’s Artisanal Food & Drink Makers” launch party at PowerHouse Arena [37 Main St. between Front and Water streets in Dumbo, (718) 666-3049, www.power
