South of Delancey

As full of great restaurants as the Lower East Side is they tend to cluster, Allen street south of Delancey has staid steadfastly old neighborhood until recently, in November I wrote about the new coffee/cafe Berkli Parc.  The first trail blazer on Allen south of Delancey was Sorella a warm, woody Piedmontese wine bar/restaurant that does some seriously tasty takes on Italian classics (with an emphasis on seasonal and local foods).  Have opened up right next store: Stellina a bright, modern Gelato and espresso cafe. Sometime tells me that all the Chinese sign making places and kitchen supply stores are going to be slowly replaced with trendy cafes and art galleries it seems to be the trend these days down here on the Lower East Side.  You might want to call or email the folks at Sorella before you stop by as they don't have a website yet and it still looks to me like they are not yet open.

Berkli Parc: Upscale Coffee on Allen And Delancey

On my way home yesterday I noticed that construction was nearly completed on the very handsome Berkli Parc - directly kitty corner from Starbucks (Allen and Delancey). 

I'm sure they plan on giving them a run for the money.  It's hard to say for sure, but Berkli Parc looks like a well funded start up that plans on serving good coffee in a neighborhood that prizes all things local and thinks, by the very fact of it not being a mega chain, it could garner it a fair amount of business.

It's amazing how even in this grim economy that the food scene on the Lower East Side just keeps growing and growing.   Hell, soon I won't need to go to Brooklyn! (kidding of course)

Which makes me want to make one of those stupid comments that everyone is making these days... something along the lines of:  The Lower East Side is the Brooklyn of Manhattan!   

I'd say that I've heard Brooklyn used as as an adjective more in recent months then even before:
Portland (OR) is the Brooklyn of America.

Or my friends in Asheville described their neighborhood as the Brooklyn of Asheville and, as it just so happens, I am currently reading Colm Toibin's book Brooklyn.  What I want to know is when did Brooklyn come to represent all things alternative, fun, funky and interesting?