Yes, even the physical form of the handbook leaked online.

News emerged this week that upscale retailer J. Crew is among the tenants likely for a new building on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg next to a planned Whole Foods. Construction is not finished, but the store’s employee handbook leaked online today:

To All Employees:

Congratulations on your employment at the J. Crew crew at our brand new location on Bedford Ave. — in the middle of Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood! J Crew has been bringing upscale fashion to under-dressed malls and outlet centers since 1983, and we’re proud to bring our special brand of khakitocracy to the underserved north Brooklyn market. While our new neighborhood might currently think a polo shirt is something you wear when you actually play polo, we’ll be painting this town twill before you can say “espadrilles.”

For the Williamsburg location, we have adopted some practices that, while a bit unconventional, will reflect our new community and its values. Please refer to this employee manual whenever in doubt: (more…)

A few of us were walking around Williamsburg two summers ago when we came across a Bedford Avenue completely covered with pockets of grass, games, children playing, music, dogs and pop-up cafes. Dave looked at it, scoffed and said “Guilliani would never stand for this shit.” Be that as it may, we are in a particularly key moment in the War to Reclaim Our Streets from Jerk Cars, and this weekend is one of the chances to celebrate that. This summer’s installment of Williamsburg Walks kicks on off Saturday, where cars will be banned from Bedford from Metropolitan to North 12th street from noon-9pm. (more…)

This is the thirteenth in our series on the venues featured in the second Brooklyn Beer Book. This week we turn our attentions to The Gibson, an amusement-filled beer parlor to save you from the Williamsburg main drag craziness.

THE GIBSON
108 Bedford Ave. at N. 11th St., Williamsburg

What is it: An occasionally low-key respite on the edge of Bedford Avenue with a love of craft beers.

Why we love it: It’s less scene-y than most everything else on that street: just a place to grab a brew and kill some time on the foosball table. (more…)

Cyn Lounge happy hour, in the center of it all. Photos by Timothy Krause.

Whether you love the scene or you’re totes over it, it’s hard to argue any place is more the epicenter of the Brooklyn drinking scene than Bedford Avenue right now. The street is lined with a veritable Marrakech (hat tip, Brian Williams) of dining, shopping and drinking options. But how to sample it all? Save this happy guide to plan your next boozy hike through the burg’s main vein. (more…)

Photo by Ultraclay!

This is the latest in our series on the venues featured in the Brokelyn Beer Book. The Charleston in Williamsburg is a Brokester’s dream: a pizza comes with every beer.

THE CHARLESTON
174 Bedford Ave. between N. 7th and N. 8th Sts., Williamsburg, 718-782-8717

What it is: About as rough and tumble as a bar with gorgeous handmade tables and black-shuttered windows overlooking Bedford Avenue can be.
Why we love it: It’s the cheap-o haven that doesn’t feel like a cheap-o haven. Drinks come with a whole personal pizza.
Who to bring: People watchers, those friends who love to try to eat until they puke, a friendly partner to facilitate sharing a table with strangers on a weekend night.
What to order: Beer and pizza. Period. Make sure there’s parmesan and red pepper at hand.
Charleston fun fact: It’s one of the longest-standing bars in Williamsburg.

Safak Aydemir's hand-beaded necklaces.

Stroll down Bedford Avenue on a nice day and the life of a street-vendor can look pretty appealing. So free, so independent, seem those hawkers of books and sellers of handmade mobiles you pass on the sidewalk. You start to wonder what it takes to make a living like this—whether street-vending just might be a viable career path. We’ve certainly wondered all this, and now, after badgering a few street vendors and hard-working public servants, the idea doesn’t seem so far-fetched. For all the enterprising New Yorkers out there with a folding table and dream, the many strings attached and city regulations are no barrier to engaging in this barely tolerated form of commerce. (more…)