Caffé Bene Coming to 5th Ave (off 86th)

 (Pictured: Caffé Bene cafe/bakery in Ditmars-Astoria)

This vacant storefront [8614 5th Ave] didn't sit long on the market before being snatched.

CeX 8614 5th Ave

With the shuttering of CeX (electronics retail chain) this past winter, we know now that slated for opening 2H'15 in its place will be the rapidly expanding franchise upstart, Caffé Bene. No timeline has been specified but we expect this may take a few months since the former store was an electronics retailer, and Caffé Bene is a cafe/bakery.

Too Cool Shutters

Too-Cool Clothing Store

Too-Cool [457 86th St], the fashion/clothing store nestled among chain stores, Aerosoles, Radio Shack (shuttered in March) which began in 2006, closed its door at the end of April when their lease ran its course. Nearby retailers Century Twenty One, Flavour, Nothing Fits, and Pretty Girl may have proved worthy competition in this cutthroat clothing retail gambit. This location was once home to Sterling Optical in the years prior.

This storefront joins the three other spaces vacated within the last two months along the coveted 86th St. BID, two of which were once mom-and-pop stores (the other was a temporary Sprint store). Only a handful of independents remain amid the proliferation of chain retailers. Too-Cool's other store along 5th Ave in Sunset Park remains.

Update: Apparently, Too-Cool is open once again. Further inquiries into this matter were returned without a response.

Briefs: New York Congressional District 11 May 5th Special Election

Chances are you may have heard there's a Congressional special election tomorrow to fill the seat vacated by former Senator Michael Grimm. We'll cut to the chase since we don't cover politics.

Three candidates are running for this seat:
Democratic Councilman Vincent Gentile, Republican S.I. District Attorney Dan Donovan, and Green Party candidate James Lane.

Brooklyn Daily ran the story on Friday to walk you through the highlights, but if you're in any way dissatisfied (or satisfied) with the way things have been going in your district (yes, this includes Bay Ridge and Staten Island), vote now or forever hold your peace. Ballotpedia runs through a summarization of the issues, and NYC Campaign Finance Board looks to be the most comprehensive. If you don't care about all that and you're set to cast your vote, make your way to a polling site 6am-9pm (need help locating one?)

Gourmet Fit Opening to Make 3rd Ave Healthier

Gourmet Fit Kitchen [6819 3rd Ave] is set to open within a week according to the owners.  This brings a made-to-order health-conscious option to 3rd Ave, geared not only to athletes or active person(s) in mind but folks interested in partaking in a healthier lifestyle, starting with their diets.  This is still quite a rarity in Bay Ridge, and a welcome one at that.

Former Third Ave Mobil Lot Set For New Construction

The Mobil gas station [8101 3rd Ave] operated for years.  When their lease ran out in 2011, the 11,000ft² lot was empty for years until Brooklyn Market had it paved over and turned it into a parking lot.  Little did we know that this was not meant to be for long.

Exit Realty In, Cold Stone Out

EXIT Realty Today [8403 3rd Avenue] a full-service franchisor, specializing in residential and commercial real estate, takes over for the former Cold Stone Creamery earlier this month.  EXIT franchisee Michael Afanasyev, whose other Bay Ridge office is 547 92nd St, like many, saw the former ice cream shop idle on the market for months and decided to commit to opening another office to service the community.

(More About Cold Stone follows...)

Shangri-La Vegetarian Coming to Restaurant Row

Former Carvel on 3rd and 74th

Besides the Nature's Grill, Brooklyn Beet Co, Mediterranean (ie. Tanoreen), Indian restaurants and even Kathy's dumplings, your choices for vegetarian options is still severely limited, in once heavily Irish/Italian/Norwegian populated Bay Ridge. Of course, that's changing with the times.

Here's what we know. Last week, CB10 granted wine/beer approval for a new vegetarian restaurant, Shangri-La Vegetarian [7400 3rd Ave], which we mentioned last week, located at the former Carvel corner location (The new Carvel is over at 75/76th). We'll have more for you as they start breaking ground and announce an opening.