It's that time of year again! Brooklyn's favorite open-air eating extravaganza is almost back, as Smorgasburg opens its Williamsburg and Prospect Park locations next week.
The weekend food festival will return to Martha P. Johnson State Park in Williamsburg on Saturday, April 6, and Breeze Hill in Prospect Park on Sunday, April 7. The events, open from 11am - 6 pm, will run through October.
There are always new bites to try and this year in Prospect Park, you'll find Renee Davis, a Flatbush native, churning out upscale Trinidadian doubles through her business Double(s) or Nothin'.
Davis, who graduated from Midwood High School, said she's been perfecting her traditional doubles recipe, which is bara, or fluffy dough, with channa, or curried chic peas, for the Brooklyn crowd. Additions include shrimp, goat, chicken and a variety of hot sauces, mango chutney and other toppings.
"I've been coming to Smorgasburg for years with my family but I always thought there was a gap with the Caribbean food offerings, and that Trinidadians should be represented more," she said.
Davis said she learned how to make classic Trinidadian dishes through her mom after many years of "passing this and that" in her kitchen. After moving to Long Island more than a decade ago, Davis has been offering Long Islanders a taste of home through her food truck, pop-up events, and catering business Trini Bites for the past several years.
Now, her attention is on Brooklyn.
"I'm bringing all my focus and energy back to Smorgasburg," she said. "It's exciting."
Other new Brooklyn-based food vendors this year include Bagel Joint NYC, which offers fresh bagels with innovative flavors like duck egg and miso, as well as rosewater and wasabi cream cheese.
The company, which started selling their wares in Greenpoint's Monsignor McGolrick Park farmer's market, will have an open-faced mini bagel flight, which incudes a gochujang bagel with doenjang schmear and chive kimichi, only available at the Williamsbrug Smorgasburg, according to a news release.
In addition, Je T’aime Patisserie, a bakery in Bedford-Stuyvesant, will be offering a heart-shaped croissant with strawberry short cake cream, garnished with strawberry streusel and fresh strawberries in Prospect Park.
Smorgasburg will also operate in the plaza adjacent to Manhattan's Word Trade Center and the Oculus.
