NewsFeed May 8, 2008
What Might You Eat at a Brooklyn Nets* Game?
This logo will soon rise over Atlantic Yards.
When the basketball arena opens on the Atlantic Yards site in 2010(ish), Nets fans can expect a mythic Brooklyn foodscape. "There will be counters and stands with knishes, pizza, hot dogs, egg creams, cheesecake — the goal is really to provide a distinct Brooklyn flavor," promises arena spokesman Barry Baum. Never mind that Levy Restaurants, a Chicago-based subsidiary of a British company that plies the USTA Center in Queens, is running the concessions. (Tennis fans now enjoy such traditional Flushing dishes as "Blistered Corn Soup" and "Pan-Seared Amish Chicken.") An on-site kitchen (and separate kosher kitchen) will maintain local flavor, promises Baum. But this being a new arena in contemporary Brooklyn, you'll also find 130 catered luxury suites and six restaurants on the concourse. Restaurant tenants won't be named till next year, but Baum says to expect "local Brooklyn purveyors." While we wouldn't object to resurrecting Vera Cruz, a source close to the arena suggests the no-brainers Nathan's and Junior's as possible contenders. Junior's claims ignorance about the deal. "While Junior's would love to be in the new Nets arena, it's too early to talk about it, because they haven't said anything to us," says Junior's spokesman Bruce Bobbins. "We'd like to be considered, but that's up to them." Cake Man Raven, start lobbying! —Alec Appelbaum
*Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly referred to the team as the New York Nets. They will be known as the Brooklyn Nets.