A Hotel for Grand Prospect Hall?

The owners of the glitzy Grand Prospect Hall, on the far southern end of the Slope, have applied for zoning approval to construct an 11-story, 150-room hotel on the site of the next door parking lot, according to the Post. 

Michael and Alice Halkias, who purchased the run-down building and fixed it up about 25 years ago, have apparently been frustrated by the success of the nearby Brooklyn Marriott, and feel that they can do a better job. 

They'll be pleading their case at the CB7 meeting tomorrow night; they'll need approval because of the 2005 rezoning that prohibits buildings from growing to over six stories. If given the go-ahead, they'll also be building a much-needed 400-spot parking garage.

Open For Business: Da Nonna Rosa, 140 Seventh Avenue

Da Nonna Rosa, the new pizzeria on Seventh between Garfield and Carroll, had its official opening night yesterday. While the space is large and attractive, it's a fairly straight-ahead pizzeria, similar to La Villa but unlike any others on Seventh. As previously reported, it's owned by the same family that also runs the much-loved Gino's in Bayside.

The front take-out section features a very long counter showcasing some truly crazy pies (think ravioli and chicken Caesar salad). At the end is an impressive gelato stand, and then it opens up into the large back dining room, with some comfortable-looking booths. 

There are a couple nicely-appointed private rooms upstairs. The one in the front is more of a tap room, and the larger banquet room in the back can easily seat 75. 

The upstairs private tap room

The pizza is as good as any New York-style pie that you're going to find. It passes the "fold with one hand" test, the crust is crisp and the sauce isn't too sweet.The countermen are friendly and certainly eager to show off their selection if you feel like going for something a little unusual.

Sicilian

Ravioli(!)

Chicken Caesar salad

The rest of the menu is similar to those of other sit-down pizzerias in the area, with some surprises. Salads include one with fennel, oranges, pecans, and white balsamic, and the usual assortment of pasta dishes is joined by some tasty-sounding ones like farfalle with chicken, sausage, spinach, and fresh Mozzarella as well as fettucine with rosemary chicken, broccoli and mushrooms in a brown sauce.

Even though all this may sound more or less familiar, a pizzeria of this size and caliber is actually unique for Seventh Avenue. It's well-designed and doesn't overreach like the space's more recent tenants, Mack's 140 and Elementi. They should be delivering by the end of the month. 

Da Nonna Rosa, 140 Seventh Avenue Brooklyn NY 11215. 718-788-6225.

Business of the Week: Under The Pig Collectibles

With word emerging that the vintage kitch shop Under the Pig, on Fifth Avenue between 4th and 5th, would be closing at the end of the month, I had to drop by and pay my respects. Here's its story.

About 20 years ago North Carolina native Troy Files was employed as a flight attendant, and on the weekends he'd indulge his passion for vintage items by traveling to auctions, flea markets, and estate sales and stocking up. He soon quit his day job and started selling his wares at flea markets, and in 1993 he found the perfect brick and mortar location, at 76 East First St, right by First Avenue. For unknown reasons, a giant painting of a pig was on the wall firectly above the shop, so he rationally named it Under the Pig (the cop who lived in the building was only slightly offended).

The first store, with titular pig

The following year a fire ravaged the building, so he packed up and moved to a location on Ludlow Street. After a couple years he moved the store to the neighborhood where he lived, Park Slope. The first location here was on 7th Street near 7th Avenue, but he was forced to move when Purity Diner snatched it up to expand their kitchen. His next stop was on Seventh between 13th and 14th, but after 3 years the rent doubled so he moved the shop to his current location.

For the past eight years Files and his partner have traveled almost every week to some of the best flea markets on the eastern seaboard, and he's kept his shop stocked with a regularly rotating inventory of just about every kind of tchotchke you can imagine, from framed portraits to glassware to old signs and records. You could drop by on Monday and find something that wasn't there the previous Friday. 

Over the past several months family obligations have made it nearly impossible to maintain that schedule, and recently he made the decision to pack it up for good. The decision was entirely his; Files says that the landlord has been nothing but great, even though there's a chance that the rent would have gone up when his lease expires in April.

So if you have a chance before the end of January, head on over to Under the Pig and let Troy show you around. You might even find something that you want to buy; most of the inventory is currently 1/3 or 1/2 off.

Under The Pig Collectibles, 355A Fifth Avenue Brooklyn NY 11215. 718-788-2135. Closed.

What to Expect: PS bklyn, 833 Union Street

Tom Graziano and Steve Sohmer, the friendly co-owners of the soon-to open gastropub PS bklyn, are convinced that you'll find something to love about their restaurant.

They met at Tom's previous restaurant, a high-end Italian spot called Palio in Jericho, Long Island. Steve, who lived nearby, had just finished a stint as GM at Aquavit after graduating from the French Culinary Institute with a degree in restaurant management. They discovered that they both had backgrounds in Wall Street (both traded at the NYSE; Steve ran his own firm until he decided to get out of the game after 9/11), and even though there's 30 years' difference in age between them, they hit it off. Tom, who lives in Bay Ridge, was more than happy to run a restaurant closer to home, and they soon settled on Park Slope, setting up shop in the former Bussacco space on Union between Sixth and Seventh. 

The first thing they agreed upon was that the restaurant would be family-friendly. Eclectic comfort food will be served in a fun and casual environment, with plenty of things to entertain (and distract) the kiddies. Two of the booths will be equipped with DVD players, and a supervised game room in the basement, which will be stocked with skeeball, pinball machines, and arcade games, will also host birthday parties. There'll be an extensive kids' menu, as well as a brunch that I'm sure will be popular (Chocolate chip pancakes shaped like Yoda, anyone?). Magicians might also be spotted going from table to table on occasion, and something called a Monkey Sundae sounds intriguing.

For the adults, a mixologist will serve quality cocktails as well as five tap beers and an extensive wine list at the long bar up front. Executive Chef Adam Goldgell (formerly of Sugo Cafe in Long Beach and a runner-up on Food Network's Chopped), has crafted a menu of sophisticated pub items with a spin, like pizza from an 800-year old goats' milk dough recipe, killer chicken pot pie, and a 150 year old pierogi recipe from his great grandmother with ham hock sauerkraut. Goldgell and his highly skilled staff will be making all the menu items from scratch in the huge downstairs kitchen. The team is particularly excited about their burger, which, although they couldn't divulge any secrets, they confidently tell me will be "the best in Brooklyn." 

Now, it's hard to overlook a familiar dichotomy here. If you spent any time at Mack's 140, the short-lived restaurant on Seventh, you'd have noticed that it's very difficult to run a restaurant with a bar that also happens to be family-friendly. I asked Tom and Steve about this, and they assured me that the large space's careful layout should satisfy everyone's needs. "It won't be an issue from either a physical or a moral standpoint," Graziano reassured me. "This is a restaurant with added entertainment, not a pub or a bar. The crowd at 6 PM will also be very different from the crowd at 10."

"Nobody will ever walk out of here unhappy," added Sohmer. "And that's a guarantee."

The 86-seat restaurant (76 on the floor, ten at the bar), will be mostly booths, and the average bill will come to $25-30/ head. They're still waiting on the liquor license, but are hoping to open on February 4th.

Closed for Business: Extraordinary

One more independent Fifth Avenue business bites the dust. Extraordinary, the home decor store at 195 Fifth, between Berkeley and Union, quietly shuttered just after Christmas.

The merchandise sold at Extraordinary, largely made exclusively for the shop, mostly consisted of items like hand-carved wooden vases and bowls, picture frames, lamps, candle holders, etc. Owner J.R. Sanders, a former museum curator, kept the inventory constantly changing and made sure that the craftsmanship was always up to par.

It still looks like the business is still in operation online, thankfully.

Photo via Google Maps.