Wonder where Justin has been lately? He’s been spearheading the opening of our first cafe location at BRIC House in downtown Brooklyn. The facility officially opened it’s doors today so drop by and say hi!
Hungry Ghost Fort Greene is Open Too!
OUR NEW FORT GREENE LOCATION IS OPEN! READ ALL ABOUT IT IN THE PRESS RELEASE BELOW!!
BROOKLYN, NY – November 21, 2013 – For Fort Greene residents, the long wait is finally over. Popular Brooklyn coffee shop HUNGRY GHOST has announced that their third location will open this Wednesday, November 27th at 7 am. The new café is one of this fall’s most anticipated new arrivals for the burgeoning Fulton St. corridor.
HUNGRY GHOST partner Justin Boshell knows that the neighborhood is more than ready for the new café. “Ever since we put our ‘Coming Soon’ sign up in the window we’ve had a lot of interest from neighborhood residents”, explained Boshell. “We’ve also had a lot of customers from our Flatbush Ave. location tell us that they live in Fort Greene and they’re excited about not having to walk so far to get their HG fix!” Boshell (a former Fort Greene resident himself) noted that he and his partners have had their eyes on a location in the area for quite some time. “We’re all long time Brooklyn residents and we’ve all been excited about the re-emergence of Fort Greene. With the range of cultural options and shopping that have come to the neighborhood, people need a space to relax and interact with their neighbors. When we were looking to add a new location, the area just seemed like a natural choice.”
The new Fulton St. café is the third location for HUNGRY GHOST, joining the original coffee shop on Flatbush Ave. in Prospect Heights/Park Slope and the café at BRIC House in Downtown Brooklyn. But don’t expect to see HG competing with STARBUCKS for real estate.
“We’ve planned our expansion very carefully,” explained HG Owner/Founder Murat Uyaroglu. “We want each Ghost location to have it’s own personality and reflect the clientele and neighborhood it serves. And that simply doesn’t work with a chain or franchise model. The key to our success is creating an environment that people can think of as their own space. That’s why we try and provide a relaxed atmosphere that promotes conversation and interaction. We want people to know the people that are serving them and even the people sitting next to them. It’s not about high turnover or simply providing a place for people to camp out with their laptops all day. It’s about creating a community within the community.”
Another key ingredient in creating that atmosphere is the delicious coffee and food that has become the HG trademark. Like its sister locations HUNGRY GHOST – FORT GREENE will be serving Stumptown Coffee. And like the other locations, it will be featuring the delicious culinary creations of Chef/Partner Pete Solomita. “I think Fort Greene residents will be happy to see that we’ve got a range of light fare throughout the day,” said Solomita. “The neighborhood has some terrific dining options but I think it’s been missing that sort of casual café option that fits so well with residents busy schedules. That being said, I expect we’ll be selling a lot of breakfast cookies as well!”
The mix of high quality food and coffee combined with a relaxed atmosphere that encourage people to unwind is something that Boshell believes is unique in the Fort Greene dining scene. “There’s really nothing quite like this in the neighborhood right now,” he explained. “I think people are going to be genuinely surprised when they see what kind of space we’ve created.”
Hungry Ghost-Fort Greene is located at 781 Fulton Street (Fulton and South Oxford) and opens at 7 am on Wednesday, November 27th. To find out more visit hungryghostbrooklyn.com or follow them on Facebook (hungryghostbrooklyn) or Twitter (@hungryghostbk).
Meet the Head Ghost Murat Uyaroglu
Do you remember the first time you smelled a cup of coffee?
Hungry Ghost owner (aka head Ghost) Murat Uyaroglu grew up in Istanbul, Turkey and he can’t recall a time when the aroma of strong Turkish coffee wasn’t wafting through the air. “Cafe culture is an important part of Turkish life,” he told us. “Istanbul is a very cosmopolitan city and people often take the time visit coffee houses, read newspapers, exchange ideas, or simply meet up with friends. I always enjoyed being in a social environment so I naturally gravitated towards getting in to the business.”
After attending university, Murat opened up his first cafe in Kutahya, a small city on the Aegean Sea, famous for its colored tiles and ceramics. This literal Young Turk learned his trade quickly but found he missed the pace of city life. “It was a big adjustment going from a major city like Istanbul to a small town of 150,000 people like Kutahya. I knew I loved running a cafe but I wanted to be a part of a bigger and more diverse community than I could find there. It wasn’t long before I began looking at other opportunities.”
One of those opportunities was a chance to study in the United States,something the young entrepreneur couldn’t resist. It proved to be a fortuitous decision as Murat met his wife, Nora while studying English in the States. The couple lived in Washington, DC and Boston and Murat planned to open a cafe in New Orleans. Unfortunately, Hurricane Katrina derailed those plans and Murat and his wife decided to move to Park Slope, Brooklyn instead. Shortly after moving, he was finally able to realize his dream and return to the business he loved.
Murat purchased Prospect Perk Cafe, a small, existing coffee shop that he transformed in to an intimate cafe with a gathering space for the local community. Knitting nights and other similarly quirky gatherings have given the Perk a special place in the heart of the Prospect Heights/Park Slope community and Murat knew he was one step closer to replicating the cafe culture he grew up with. Along the way, he also became a father (his son Teoman is now 3) and moved with his young family to Ditmas Park, Brooklyn.
As he continued to learn about coffee culture and became a prominent member of the local business community, Murat began to make plans for a larger space. A location where people could linger, events could be hosted, and the smell of coffee could waft through the air just as it had in his childhood.
That dream has now been realized with the opening of Hungry Ghost.
Murat invites you to come in and enjoy good food, great drinks, and friendly service. But most of all he wants you to enjoy the sense of community and make your own memories.
You may not remember where you were when you smelled your first cup of coffee but he promises you’ll always rember the first time you were at Hungry Ghost!
Hungry Ghost on F*cked in Park Slope
Our friends at F*cked in Park Slope wrote a nice preview of our plans for HUNGRY GHOST
As a college student visiting friends in Portsmouth, NH in the late nineties, on more than one occasion we’d end an evening of debauchery with a trip to THE FRIENDLY TOAST, a crunchy hippie diner with locales in Portsmouth & Cambridge, MA. The waitresses smelled like patchouli, the atmosphere was laminated collage kitsch & the food was badass breakfast.
…so when I got an email about a new place opening in the Park Slope area called “Hungry Ghost,” I started having word-association flashbacks to The Friendly Toast. As it turned out, my flashbacks were right on target.
Hungry Ghost is a new coffee shop opening in the next few weeks on the east side of Flatbush & 6th, in the same triangle of food & drink that includes FLATBUSH FARM, PURBIRD & CUBANA CAFÉ. It’s the latest venture from Murat Uyaroglu, the owner of PROSPECT PERK, the tiny coffee shop just a few blocks down at Flatbush & Sterling.
As it is, the Park Slope area has its fair share of coffee shops…& for good reason. Coffee wakes our asses up. Coffee shops dispense said uppers AND provide a hangout for breeders & freelancers alike. It’s NOT “socially acceptable” to chill at a bar at 9am. You need to balance out the alcohol with coffee if you want to be an effective lush, people. Coffee shops are KEY.
Murat believes that you can never have enough coffee shops. When I asked him “You have Prospect Perk right down the road…why another coffee shop?” he noted that 70% of the population drinks coffee. We here at FIPS don’t have the time or energy to do extensive research & we fully embrace wild speculation, so I’m going to see his 70% and raise him 15%. That’s 85%! When it comes to the coffee abstention population, it’s pretty much just breedlings & Mormons & people with heart problems.
But yeah…why another coffee shop?
Prospect Perk seats maybe ten people. Hungry Ghost will seat somewhere in the neighborhood of three times that, meaning that it should be more of a community hangout.
When you walk in the front door, there’s a stage area in the window to the left, seating in the window to your right, some seating between the front & the counter and a row of bar seating against the right wall.
There’s really no coffee shop like it in the immediate area. It also won’t hurt that it’ll be the closest locale to the Bergen stop on the 2 train.
Then there’s the fact that they’ll be serving STUMPTOWN COFFEE. Over the last dozen plus years, the Portland, OR-based coffee roasters have made a name for themselves with their high-quality coffee. They’ve opened a limited amount of physical locales & have been very discerning about where their coffee is served. They make sure that the folks working in said coffee dispensers are properly trained on the best ways to serve Stumptown. Murat & a few of the workers have already been down to their Red Hook locale to get the 411 on how to get the best out of Stumptown’s coffee. When it comes to iced coffee, Hungry Ghost will be serving a cold drip brew that’s been brewed for 24 hours by putting coffee into the machine, putting ice on top & letting it drip overnight. Personally, I’ve tried Stumptown’s bottled cold brew & that shizz is tasty even sans milk & sugar.
They’ll also have 15-20 teas from SERENDIPITEA & some baked goods from LITTLE BUDDY BISCUIT COMPANY, who had a physical locale at 5th & 18th for about a year & a half before closing. Little Buddy will add cookies & brownies & the like to the menu and Murat is quite convinced that people will realize that Pete of Little Buddy is some sort of baking genius. While there’s not an open-flame kitchen, you’ll also be able to grab stuff like paninis, smoothies & salads.
That’s what we’re looking at to start with. As time goes on, Murat has even more plans. He’ll be using the stage to host comedy & music nights. Knitting night? Want to hang your art? Sell your book? Sure. Just ask him. Basically, he wants the place to be an artistic community space. Eventually, beer & wine should find their way into the equation as well.
…but back to that name. As the story goes, a few years back Murat was up visiting Portsmouth with some friends. One morning, they awoke & were discussing where to go for breakfast. The Friendly Toast kept coming up as the obvious choice. When one friend, unfamiliar with the crunchy restaurant, asked “So are we going to Hungry Ghost?” Murat had a perfect name for a yet-to-be envisioned coffee shop.
To boot, in Buddhism the concept of the “hungry ghost” refers to people who are driven in an intense, animalistic way. If that concept doesn’t suit you F’D Park Slopers to a T, I don’t know what does.
Read way more from Shawn at EATDRINKSNACK.COM.
And read the original article here.
Hungry Ghost Serves Stumptown Coffee
Hungry Ghost serves Stumptown Coffee, widely recognized as as having “revolutionized the coffee business” and helped “refine coffee drinkers’ palates” . Founder Duane Sorenson and Stumptown Coffee Roasters have been credited as being part of the so-called “Third Wave” of the coffee movement.
Sorenson, and his employees, in pursuit of the best quality coffee spends considerable time visiting farms in person and is willing to pay high prices for coffee he deems worthy—occasionally three or four times the fair trade price. Stumptown once set the record for highest price ever paid for coffee beans.
Although Stumptown’s headquarters are in Portland, oregon all of our coffee is supplied by their local roastery based right here in Red Hook, Brooklyn. All of Hungry Ghost’s master baristas have received personal training from Stumptown instructors to help ensure that you receive the finest possible cup of coffee.
Hungry Ghost is proud to call Stumptown our partners and our friends.
Learn more about Stumptown Coffee at their website.
Follow Stumptown Coffee on Facebook.
Follow Stumptown Coffee on Twitter.
Opening Day!
Great Coffee Comes From Great Coffeemakers
Our La Marzocco GB/5 is up and running. Thanks Eric!
Sneak Peek Inside the Ghost
With our opening just a few days away we thought we’d give you a special photographic sneak peek at our progress on the Ghost interiors.
Hungry Ghost Featured on Patch
Our friends at Patch wrote a nice piece on the Hungry Ghost:
Hungry Ghost Cafe to Open Next Month
Second venture by owner of Prospect Perk at the corner of Flatbush and Sixth will have ample seating and a full lunch menu.
By Amy Sara Clark
A new café is coming to Flatbush Avenue.
The owner of Prospect Perk Café is opening a second coffee shop at the corner of Flatbush and Sixth Avenue, but the new spot, called “Hungry Ghost” will be significantly larger and have a much more extensive menu.
“At Prospect Perk, it’s intimate, we have regular customers who come in all day long,” said owner Murat Uyaroglu. But with only a few seats at the Sterling Place café, Uyaroglu wanted to offer his customers a larger space where people could hang out longer.
Uyaroglu hopes to open the new cafe the second week of April.
Hungry Ghost will soon host community events, such as comedy and trivia nights, said Uyaroglu, and eventually he hopes to serve wine and beer.
To start, the 30-seat restaurant will offer a full lunch menu of soups, sandwiches, salads, and sides using artisanal and local ingredients when possible.
There will also be a selection of vegan offerings, something Uyaroglu says is a must. “You’ve got to have a vegan option, there are so many vegans in Park Slope, Prospect Heights, anywhere you go. It would be like asking me not to have tea with the coffee,” he said.
At his new spot, Uyaroglu will serve Stumptown Coffee, a departure from Prospect Perk, which serves Equal Exchange. “With the cafes being in such close proximity, I want to do something different here,” Uyaroglu said.
As for the dessert offerings, Uyaroglu has brought in chef Pete Solomita of Little Buddy Biscuit Company, who will bake on the premises such offerings as molasses spice cookies with chunks of crystallized ginger, zucchini walnut muffins, and cheddar and black pepper biscuits.
The name of the café came about somewhat by accident. A few years ago a friend of his confused the name of a diner called “Friendly Toast,” calling it “Hungry Ghost.”
“We thought it was funny but I mentioned that it would be a great name for the new cafe. Since then it was always in my mind,” Uyaroglu said. He said he’s since found out that the name has several meanings, including “beings who are driven by intense emotional needs in an animalistic way.” But, he said, “We don’t associate with any of those meanings. It’s just a good and catchy name and whatever it might mean to people, that is it.”
Uyaroglu, who moved to the United States from Turkey when he was 22, has owned Prospect Perk since 2006.
The husband and father of a 3-year-old son says he hopes to perhaps open more cafes in the future, because it’s an industry he’s fallen for. There’s something about brewing that first pot of coffee early in the morning as the first customers are coming in that gives him a lift every day.
“It’s an instinct—you just love it,” he said. “It’s something I’m meant to do.”
Read the original article here.
Brownstoner Features Hungry Ghost
A bunch of people have been writing in to inform us of the impending opening of Hungry Ghost, the new cafe coming to the corner of Flatbush and 6th Avenue. A reader sent in the photo above yesterday, as well as an interior shot that’s on the jump. One of the construction workers told her it’s supposed to open in a couple weeks. Here’s what the biz has to say about itself on Facebook: “Hungry Ghost is a new coffee bar and café opening in mid-March at the corner of Flatbush and 6th Avenue. Conveniently located on the border of Prospect Heights and Park Slope, the new restaurant hopes to become a community space where people can meet up for coffee and food with friends or simply grab something quickly on their way to the subway. Hungry Ghost is the latest venture from local businessman, Murat Uyaroglu, longtime proprietor of neighborhood favorite, the Prospect Perk Café. Murat hopes to bring a similar mix of friendly service, great food and coffee, and socially responsible business practices to his latest project.” Stumptown will be served; beer and wine is planned for the future; and there will be an extensive menu. FIPS also has a post today with a bunch more details about what’s in the works.
Read the original article here.