I must confess: as a New Yorker, I often times overlook parts of the city because of the constant frequency of events, shows, art displays and the like in “fancy” parts of Manhattan, downtown Brooklyn and Williamsburg.

This is the case with Industry City in Sunset Park, where my last time in the area was 2 years ago for a breakfast event and an African Food Festival and I enjoy the ambience so much that I list it as one of the 30 unique things to do in New York City in summer.

This Press Trip is a great opportunity to experience new updates in the area with fresh things to do in Industry City regarding food, events and art.

This tour was made possible via Like A Local Tours. Visit them at https://www.likealocaltours.com/ and get 15% off this and other fabulous NYC & Brooklyn tours using code INDUSTRY15.

 

Getting There

Within the five boroughs, take the D, N or R to 36th Street in Brooklyn, exit and walk towards Gowanus Expressway on 3rd Avenue. You cannot miss Industry City; it is a row of heavy buildings spanning a couple of blocks stretching towards the bay.

A group of us head over to Industry City to meet the Makers: entrepreneurial solo and small businesses covering my favourite areas: food, drink and art. We are accompanied by the lovely Lauren and Megan of Live Like A Local Tours and off we head to our first Maker.

 

Industry City Makers

Wanna Date

Wanna Date is a natural dairy & nut-free date spread perfect in smoothies and spreadable on everything else. Coincidentally, I had a Wanna Date shake at Williamsburg Smorgasborg last year and it was delicious. Fancy meeting the Maker a year later at Industry City!

Melissa is such a boss lady! She starts Wanna Date in college because she isn’t keen on working for anyone and is a one-woman show lifting pallets, carrying boxes, marketing and what-not. Wanna Date comes in chocolate, pumpkin spice, cinnamon and vanilla spreads for delicious goodness.

Melissa is planning on bringing Wanna Date to your fave neighbourhood stores and I cannot wait for it. Until then, I will fully enjoy the complimentary jar of Pumpkin Spice date spread and experiment with smoothie bowls.

Find & Follow: IG: @eatwannadate for where to get Wanna Date spread and inspo on what to pair it with.

 

Micol Ceramics

Micol Hernandez is from Spain and is a skilled potter working with ceramics. Seeing her mould clay reminds me of Demi Moore in Ghost and although it looks easy, clay moulding is very hard as centering clay takes strength to pull and flatten.

It’s easy to work with small clay batches and add clay as you go – to make centering easier – than starting off with a heavy clay batch and expending energy centering it. These are very interesting tips for complete novices and Micol makes centering look so seamlessly easy.

She is currently working on 240 pieces of personalized ceramic crockery for a Tuscan wedding but also creates pieces for event planners and interior designers.

If you’re keen on getting your Demi Moore on, Micol offers pottery classes at her studio and this is definitely a unique thing to do at Industry City this summer.

This is the new gig economy and everyone needs a side hustle for extra coin. Pottery might just pay!

Find & Follow: IG: micol.ceramics; Etsy: micolceramics

Ends Meat

This is a whole animal salumeria and if you are a bona fide carnivore, your heart sings but if you are any kind of vegetarian or vegan for the animals, skip this part and move on to ice cream below.

Whole pigs come in, are butchered on the block wood table and hung from sliding hooks above the counter. Meat is from organic and responsible sources within New York City and every part of the animal is used in some way with nothing going to waste.

I sample four slices of prosciutto and they are way less salty than other cured meats I’ve had in the past but hey, this is a once-in-a-blue-moon meat tasting and not enough to send me back onto the meat-eating wagon.

Find & Follow: IG: @eatsmeatnyc_

 

Blue Marble Ice Cream

Now you’re speaking my love language: ice cream! I do know Blue Marble ice cream but this is actually my first time trying it and I think we have a winning flavour: Vegan Bread & Roses. This is dairy-free but more surprisingly, the rose water in its flavour profile is so delicious that I suddenly crave a whole tub!

Blue Marble is New York City’s ONLY Certified organic ice cream and even though it is a bit on the pricier side, it is worth every penny.

There are other yummy flavours like single-origin chocolate, marcona almond & organic midnight mint cake and I cannot wait to return to try some of these flavours on a full day at Industry City.

Find & Follow: IG: @bluemarblebk where they have random pop-ups of ice cream.

 

One Girl Cookies

So far, we meet two female entrepreneurial Makers on our tour and One Girl Cookies is another female Maker. As the name implies, it starts with a solo female artisanal baker who employs the man that later becomes her husband. See how cakes and pies spark love? Sweet. *pun intended*

An interesting part is having first-hand view of cake-making via a clear window that looks into the back room. Very transparent, literally.

Overall, this is pretty much how most businesses resemble at Industry City: front house covers product and sales while the back room is visible for buyers to see the making of products on site.

We gorge on complimentary whoopie pies, Earl Grey tea cookies & fudge and I am loving the tour thus far with all the treats we sample. Not a bad day’s work, I tell ya!

Find & Follow: IG: @onegirlcookies

Li-Lac Chocolates

Another comfort eat of mine is great chocolate and it’s a pleasure to see this as our next Makers stop. The first time I taste Li-Lac chocolates is at Hudson Yards New York City opening in March and I add it to my list of chocolate faves for its dairy-free and low-sugar options.

Li-Lac chocolates is New York City’s oldest chocolate store at 96 years founded by a Greek immigrant in 1923. This is a real chocolate factory with chocolate bath equipment and the like at the back of the store & they offer corporate tours as well.

Li-Lac offers dairy-free and no-sugar chocolate products so lactose-intolerant and diabetics need not feel unseen here.

Find & Follow: IG: @lilacchocolates

Sahadi’s

This is New York City’s renowned, family-owned grocery store with a Lebanese immigrant background. The store carries Middle Eastern and other international food products like humus, cous cous, curries and ready-to-eat packages ideal for everyone.

Its famous location is on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn but there is a new location opening soon at Industry City and from what we see, it’s going to be superb. Christine Sahadi gives us the interesting background of Sahadi’s as a family-run store and the herbs and plants she grows in her garden.

Alas, a well-known publication has first rights to photos of the new location so there are no pictures to show you but Christine treats us to wines and platters of delicious products the store carries like grapes, olives, cheeses and nuts.

Update: Sahadi’s formally opened on September 6th, 2019, and I was invited as an “influencer” – I’m screaming as I type this! :)) – for its opening night. It was a rainy Friday but worth the trek in the downpour. There is an in-store bar serving unique cocktail mixes with natural ingredients from the store, like za’atar and pineapple basil. There is a whole bar of nuts of every kind you can imagine and there are plans for a mini restaurant in-store too.

Japan Village

I know what you’re thinking: you’ll be transported to Japan the second you step inside the area…and you’re not totally wrong.

The transport comes from when you enter the building and face Japan Village, taking in the view of an eating space decorated with colourful parasols and Japanese wall murals.

Within the store, you literally feel like you’re in Japan – if you’ve been – surrounded by aisles of Hello Kitty candies, matcha and chocolate biscuits, aloe juices and traditional Japanese foods. That’s just on one side…

The other side of Japan Village has eateries serving delicious Japanese desserts and food to eat before or after your shopping spree. There are less crowds than other Japanese eateries I frequent in the city and this is a definite thing to do whilst exploring Industry City this summer and beyond.

Big Alice Barrel Room

Our final Makers tour to complement our fine food tastings is at Big Alice Barrel Room. The brewery makes Kolsch-style lager in the style of the original Kolsch from Koln (Cologne) in Germany.

The beers go into barrels that previously held rum & scotch liquors whose essence are forever ensconced in the wood. The essence imbibe the liquid with their flavour thus lending a unique flavour profile to the lagers.

As a non-beer drinker, it’s a surprise to taste minimal bitterness I generally experience with beers and I happily chug this down to end an especially fun and informative day of interesting things to do at Industry City, Brooklyn.

Find & Follow: IG: @bigalicebrewing

 

Industry City: Food & Drink

There are delicious options for food in the Food Halls and they offer a communal dining experience in a campus-style atmosphere where food purchase comes from the following joints:

• Avocaderia
• Burger Joint
• Taco Mix
• Filament
• Colson Patisserie
• Blue Marble Ice Cream
• Yaso Tangbao
• Brooklyn Kura
• Gumption Coffee

Industry City is the oft overlooked Brooklyn spot for new food and drink and it will be exciting to explore more of it as a borough local this summer and beyond.

Industry City: The Collision Project

One thing I notice at Industry City are the myriad of unique and interesting wall art all over the complex.

From the beautiful murals at Japan Village to the vibrantly coloured elevator celebrating Pride, I’m seeing Industry City as one of the places to spot rotating unique wall murals in New York City.

The art at the complex are made possible via the Collision Project where creators of all skills submit creations with the hope of public exhibition at Industry City.

 

 

Industry City: Events

There is a lot going on at Industry City all seasons but this summer sees Summer Series with exercise classes on Sunday mornings, live music from June through September and Friday night events like pop-up tastings, rooftop films & happy hour.

Fall is not left out of events too as there is outdoor yoga at sunset, happy hour, vintage pop-ups, Hallowe’en parade and so much more!

 

See what events and activities float your boat and come on down to eat, drink & explore various things to do at Industry City, Brooklyn. Click To Tweet

Last Word

So what do we learn?

We learn that as New York City locals, there are large swaths of the city we tend to overlook because of distance but are just as full of cultural food, drink, entertainment and art as the other well trafficked spots in Manhattan and downtown Brooklyn.

 

Industry City offers a full day of unique and fun entertainment for all squads - family, girls' day out, fitness aficionados and foodie fiends. Click To Tweet

 

Have you experienced Industry City? Share your comments and don’t forget to share the post.

See you on the social streets! xxx

 

*Musings and Adventures is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.*

Sharing is caring! xx