Author Archives: Mayara

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Steve’s Bagel Shop: For the People, By Steve. by Mayara Guimaraes

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by Maya Guimaraes

In a place where you can eat pizza, Chinese, Sushi, Indian, Thai, Italian, and other foods from all around the globe, how about going for a bagel? Escaping an overwhelming range of options might be what gets Steve’s Bagel shop packed everyday.

Open for over 17 years the bagel store is part of the story of the Brooklyn neighborhood, Bay Ridge. The place has survived economic downs, growing competition, and neighborhood diversity. How? “This is a family business, but more importantly It’s my business. If I am doing well, the store does well, but if I am not, then it is in trouble,” said owner Steve Natale

Natale’s belief that the quality of his business depends on himself comes from his personal experience while running the bagel shop alone for all this years. Soon after being invited by the owners of another bagel shop to be a partner, Steve was able to buy his own store and be in charge. “I need to invest all my time here. I need to make sure people feel welcomed, that people will find what they are looking for, and that people will come back. If I don’t do my job, I lose my customers. It is as simple as that,” said Natale

Steve’s Bagels are baked daily by himself. When he was only 17 year-old, he started baking goods with his family and he hasn’t stop since. “We have multigrain egg bagel, fresh baked muffins, double-sided seed bagel, croissants and cold salads. We make everything here,” explained Natale

Natale’s recipe? Undisclosed. “We make everything here. I stated baking when I was 11 year-old. In the morning we do everything fresh for the day. My bagels are the best, and my recipe is a secret.”

The bagel shop stays open seven days a week, from five a.m. to eight p.m. and throughout the day it serves many different people that come in and out of the Bay Ridge subway station, which is right next to the Bagel shop.

While the location has helped the small business survive, it also means that he has to face bigger competition because businesses around the subway area are targeting the same customers as him. “These days everybody serves coffee. Even McDonalds serves breakfast. When I first opened my only competition was the Diners. Now almost everyone on this block is fair competition,” said Natale

The secret of the success, or the endurance, of Steve’s Bagel Shop might be the delicious food. Damon Moses, from New Heaven, Connecticut said he only eats at Steve’s Bagels. “The food is fresh and they cook it the way you want it, when you want it. Most of the guys I work with come here. It’s the best food place in the area,” he said.

The struggles to keep the bagel shop open have been hard, but Natale seems to be able to keep things going. “This is my only source of income. It’s my only job and I am here every day, so I work hard to keep things all right. The cost of the food is high. But I rarely raise my prices. I give more than two eggs on a sandwich, and I give a cup of coffee for free. I am not saying I have cheap products. Nothing here is cheap. My coffee is great, and my cold cuts are the best quality. But unfortunately the only thing some people care is the price of things. So it gets hard.”

Although he says money is not the priority, “I make people’s day because I am in it for the people. I love the people.” Natale things that there is much more he can do to make his store better. “I need to get everybody in this neighborhood inside this store. I do get most people, but not everybody. I should be printing menus, doing catering and more deliveries. I also need to be more diligent about what goes on here.”

The “mama and papa” shop, like Natale calls it, is one of the favorite spots of many seniors in the neighborhood. The little chairs outside the doors invite people to sit down and socialize. The fast-speed service and easy access location also help. “ My dad is crazy, but people love this place,” adds Daryl Natale’s daughter.

“This business starts and ends with me. Everything about this business is me, like any leadership policy. It’s all about the leader, and I know I need to work harder to grow, but right now I am fine with the size of things. Like I said, I’m in it for the people.”

The “Joe Gould’s Secret” Reveals More Than Its Title Says

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by Mayara Guimaraes
The introduction to Joseph Mitchell’s “Joe Gould’s Secret” tells the readers that the book contains two different perspectives of the same person. Therefore, it should have been no surprise for me that I had two different opinions of the same person. However, I was more than surprised by it. I was shocked.
The first part of the book makes you love Joe Gould. You see him as a piece of art, as part of New York’s Village and as a citizen of the world. You learn to appreciate his strange personality, and even to admire his choices in life. Joe wanted to live free. He wanted to escape his memories, and at the same time, that was all he wanted to talk about (and write about). You keep wishing you could go talk to him.
The second part gives you more to think about. Is Joe lazy? Is he a parasite? Does he have the most annoying personality in the world? Does he deserve the life he has? Is he a big liar?
But as Mitchell, the reader goes deep into the secret of Joe Gould, and a better understanding takes place the introduction makes more sense.
Joe Gould is definitely an interesting figure, and as the book ended I still felt that I would love to chat with him and give a contribution to the Joe Gould club. But the real character of the book to me is Joseph Mitchell. While writing about Gould, the journalist revels so much about himself that it becomes impossible not to fall for him. He reveals himself as such a beautiful human being and great journalist that for a student like me, he becomes the real hero.
Joseph Mitchell’s “Joe Gould’s Secret” is one of the best books I ever read because it speaks about human nature, and the monsters we face, revealing on top of it all, that we are our own worst enemy.

Profile Story (Maya) by Mayara Guimaraes

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Joseph Khaled, A Man of Ridge

by Mayara Guimaraes

Joseph, profile story

Walking out of his apartment building wearing sandals, jeans and a nice bottom shirt Joseph Khaled looked very Americanized, but more than that, he looked comfortable. “From JFK I came to Bay Ridge. I love this neighborhood, I knew back then I didn’t want to live anywhere else in this country,” explained Joseph.

But why Bay Ridge? The neighborhood is known for having a large Muslim, Indian and Bangladesh population. In the days people arrived in Manhattan by ship, they could see Bay Ridge while still aboard, and many immigrants made the decision to make the neighborhood their home at that very moment. Nowadays people arrived by plane, but the neighborhood still appelas to new immigrantes.

Khaled’s brother was connected to older immigrants who set up their own business in Bay Ridge. “Many people from my country had opened their own stores here. My brother had a Deli on 96Th Street for over 10 years,” said Khaled.

Josepg 2

Khaled arrived when he was only 25 years old. Back then, as a recent graduate student from Bangladesh, Khaled came with the intention of getting a PhD at Kent state University in Ohio. He had just gotten his graduate degree in computer science so he decided to get a student visa to come to America and live with his brother.

Two semesters latter Khaled decided that while studying full time he was not going to have enough money to get by comfortably. His office job wasn’t providing him with a decent life, so Joseph embarked on what would become his career in this country: the restaurant business.

His first job in the industry was in a seafood restaurant that used to be on fourth Avenue in-between 85th and 86th Street (today the restaurant has become five different stores) and he felt like his horizon had expended. “I was working all day in the office to make the same money I could make in four hours inside that huge restaurant. That is when I realized I needed to become a server,” he recalled.

“Joseph picked up the business skills very fast, the only problem was his strong accent and his student status,” said Andrea Nanni, the manager of the restaurant where Joseph used to work. Since language was a barrier the alternative was to become a busboy, which to Joseph was a better option than being a server in a Bangladesh restaurant. “I learned in Bay Ridge that this country is full of people from all over the world, but the ones that really succeed here are the ones who learn the language. So I made the decision to stay in an English speaking restaurant for the sake of knowledge.”

Being financially stable made Khaled, who is a Muslim, decide he was ready for the biggest step yet, marriage. “My wife and I met after our families had already decided we should get married. I had gotten my American citizenship through my brother and was ready to start a family. I told my future wife everything about Bay Ridge and we decided that we were ready to start a family together,” explained Khaled.

“I love it here. My daughter loves it here. I am so free in this country, and feel so safe in my neighborhood. Everything I need is here. Joseph chose the right place for us,” sais his wife, Umm, agreeing with him.

The restaurant business has enabled Khaled and his family to a better life and to be able to save enough money to buy property back in his country. “I have about 10 people working in my house in Bangladesh. When I go back I am going to have a very secure life. I also want to open a school for poor people,” he said. But after reflecting on this he seemed to come to another conclusion, “I am still staying in this country for the next 10 years or so. My daughter still needs to finish school and I need to save more money.”

Not wanting to leave America even after establishing a good life in their country also represents the feeling of other immigrants, “I have enough money to go home, but I am not ready yet. Maybe this country makes you greedy,” explained Habib Rahman, another Asian immigrant who has been in Bay Ridge for over 10 years.

But Joseph seems to have a clear idea why he is here. He says his daughter education is the top priority in his life, and his family safety also plays a big role. “There are many political problems in my country that makes me worry. This country makes me feel free, and that is why I am still here,” he said.

Neighborhood Backgrounder by Mayara Guimaraes

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Mayara Guimaraes

Backgrounder on Bay Ridge:

Bay Ridge was known as Yellow Hook because of the Yellow soil that was natural of the land when discovered in (or sometime before) 1524. Named was then changed because of bad memories of a bad yellow fever plague that took place by 1853.  The name Bay Ridge was given its and because the ridge that ran around Second Ave.

The Battle of Brooklyn, 1776, which involved the war for independence and which Americans lost, took place in many areas of bay ridge and a military reservation called Fort Hamilton was build there in 182. Today there is a Harbor Defense Museum located there.

The construction of the Verrazano Bridge is the most important event that happened in modern history: the R and N trains link Bay Ridge to Manhattan; the Verrazano Bridge links Bay Ridge to New Jersey and Staten Island.

The transition from a Village to a 20th Century Community began as the population growth exploded in 1894. After Brooklyn was annexed to New York in 1898 another growth explosion began.

Now part of the largest city of the United States, Bay Ridge met many of the challenges of the country, which are immigration and urbanization. Bay Ridge has remained one of the few places in which the preservation of its own identity has been an important topic for the residents and the government.

Changing the zoning of Bay Ridge is under way, however the planners want to make sure that the charm and affordable housing, which are key characteristics of the place are preserved. They do not want to allow any over the top constructions to happen because Bay ridge still functions as a village in many aspects. Its residents have difficult access to Manhattan; therefore they can find most of what they need in town. Also, the 2 or 3 family house, annex or semi-annex to each other are a key characterization of the area and should be preserved. Too high up building or types of construction will not happen in the area.

After more than 3 centuries of much physical change, Bay Ridge still retains the spirit of its early Dutch days and it remains a community of people that maintain the past, pride and insures its preservation.

Bay Ridge Census Bureau and the District 10 website (ww.nycgov.com)  shows the following:

  • 8 Elementary Schools, 2 High Schools (all of it public)
  • 11 elementary schools, 3 High Schools (all private)
  • 4 Public libraries
  • 37 parklands
  • 3 police stations, 3 fire houses
  • 12 Health Care Institutions
  • 1 Hospice
  • 6 Mental Health clinics
  • Over 30 location to provide for those with disabilities
  • 24 types of Day care Centers
  • 4 Senior Center (which is weird because a big population of Bay Ridge is old, maybe they still live home)
  • 4 Food programs that help the community.
  • 60% of the 18 and over population is at work
  • Unemployed rate is of 5% for Bay Ridge
  • 56% of the work force commutes to work
  • 25% drives
  • 54% depend on Public Transportation
  • 94% of the housing units are occupied
  • 45% of bay ridge is Married with family
  • 39% of the housing is of non-family households
  • 48%male, 51% female
  • 5.7 are under 5 years old

Useful links:

http://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/26/realestate/if-you-re-thinking-of-living-in-bay-ridge.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

http://www.bayridge.com/

http://nymag.com/realestate/articles/neighborhoods/bay-ridge.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bay_Ridge,_Brooklyn

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/bay_ridge/index.shtml

PS: I have printed all of my NYC Census Data when I did the research, if you would to see it, please let me know.

Amanda Burden’s Profile Comments by Mayara Guimaraes

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Extremely well written and full of details and different points of views, the profile by Julie Satow about Amanda M. Burden’s fails, in my opinion, to answer some personal question about Ms. Burden that come across as the reader gets to know her story. Is she a mother? Is she a single lady after 2 divorces? Does she live in New York City? And if so, where does she live? Some of these questions could have helped create a more personable version of Amanda M Burden. On the other hand, the author uses writing techniques that grab the reader and hold on for the entire story. By starting with the present story of Ms. Amanda and gradually moving towards her past, the author goes from a story about the City Planner to the impressive woman who went from a pretty face to a powerful decision maker in New York City. The profile grabs the attention of all kinds of readers because it is about a person, a woman, a detailed oriented worker and a powerful behind the scene member.

Bay Ridge – Neighborhood of Choice by Mayara Guimaraes

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Special Neighborhood Report, Fall 2012:

Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

 

Too Far, But Close Enough.

 

By Mayara Guimaraes

The residents of Bay Ridge, a Brooklyn neighborhood, live in one of the best areas that surround the City. Or at least that is what an article published by This Old House magazine in April 2012, said when the editors chose Bay Ridge as the best neighborhoods to buy a house.

Comprised of Italians, Irish, Greeks, Chinese and Arabic, the neighborhood is a predominately middle class, family oriented area, in which a great part of the population, 20 per cent, according with the latest census, is over 60 years old.

The many bars and restaurants in Bay Ridge illustrate the diversity of the area, offering to its residents a variety of different foods, settings and attractions, all conglomerated on 3rd and 4th Avenues.

Most commuters seem to think that Bay Ridge is too far from Manhattan, therefore choosing other areas of Brooklyn to live. For that reason rents in the area are still affordable, and commerce has grow to support its resident’s need so that they don’t have to commute excessively.

This combination has contributed to create a safe neighborhood, with a population that seems to be happy to be far, but close enough from Manhattan.

However, as any other neighborhood, Bay Ridge has a lot of room for improvement. Recent problems regarding drugs, traffic tickets, and business owners being killed in their store have made residents alert and worried.

An investigation of Bay Ridge success as a neighborhood, as well as the emerging problems in the area will be our focus this Fall on the Special Neighborhoods Report.