Summerhill Bar on Gothamist

I think the owners made some missteps but I think it's all too much. I think the apologies were enough and they don't need to be scapegoated and driven away.

I find it strange that so many people are defending the bar owner, or trying to bring up worse examples of similar situations to make this one appear less significant. The owner has about a zillion ways to fix this herself. First off, she should have showed up to the protest and not just hired a PR firm to issue a statement. Instead of just apologizing, why not open up some sort of dialog on how to remedy the issue? Change the menu? Figure out some cocktails that incorporate Trinidadian or other Caribbean drinks/ingredients/flavors?

jfinks said:

Figure out some cocktails that incorporate Trinidadian or other Caribbean drinks/ingredients/flavors?

I think you're missing the point here.

If she did that she'd be guilty of cultural appropriation, right?

Tracy Reid was a positive protester in my mind addressing the image of violence the clueless owner was utilizing to sell drinks, something not really supporting the local mom and pop businesses like Tracy's. although bringing more people out to Nostrand Summertime does so but not for shopping.

Retail struggles to survive

It's awful that Tracy Reid's landlord does not provide heat or hot water.

Commercial spaces have far fewer protections/guarantees than residential ones.

tracy's Landlord I see in the photo is sitting in the front booth at Summertime during the protest. He is an investor

Flatfix said:

tracy's Landlord I see in the photo is sitting in the front booth at Summertime during the protest. He is an investor

investor in what?

suppleknuckles said:

it's a bummer to watch literally one clueless lady become the scapegoat for everyone's pain over gentrification; made all the more easy to hate because we live in a patriarchal society that vilifies women ten fold for the same transgressions as men (bye becky anyone? where were these catchy phrases at the Crow Bar protest...). let's not even discuss how many times i've seen her be called a C*** all over the internet. i can't support that shit either. meanwhile, the predominately male landlords, real estate agents, and developers with actual intent and means to cause displacement and gentrification continue to do what they do best with zero consequences (and lots of profit!) and these protesters can't/won't aim their outrage towards real systems of oppression. no, it's easier to just blame the white lady with the small business.

So, the people behind MTOPP (setting aside Alicia Boyd) never protested against developments?

Elcaminoman said:

Agree with supplenuckles. I watched the speeches and found them unnecessarily personal and aiming a lot at this person. By the way, they serve that brand of 40 oz rose at other places in the city.

Where

dac545 said:

jfinks said:

Figure out some cocktails that incorporate Trinidadian or other Caribbean drinks/ingredients/flavors?

I think you're missing the point here.

Sorry, I should have been more clear. I meant that comment in connection to my comment about opening up a dialog with locals. So not necessarily a decision to hijack even more from the community, but more so as a way of paying homage to the positive side of the already well established culture on Nostrand with the help of the people in the community.

Mugofmead - just google 40 ounce wines

This link was in about the middle of my results: http://www.delish.com/food-news/a52409/rose-forty-ounce-wines/

Elcaminoman said:

Mugofmead - just google 40 ounce wines

I did. I received this error message on the company's page: (http://fortyouncewines.com/retail/):

The requested URL /retail/ was not found on this server.

If you google 40 oz wines - not in quotes, another page will come up with a picture. I imagine they sell directly to restaurants (by the case)...like most wine co. do. I don't like rose very much. More of a beer guy.

There seems to be a bar in LA that sells 40s, including my high school favorite: classic Colt 45. https://www.google.com/search?site=&source=hp&ei=tm56Wc3rFIvx-QGfp7WIDQ&q=40oz+beer+bar&oq=40oz+beer+bar&gs_l=mobile-gws-hp.3..33i160k1l2.4508.14362.0.15627.14.14.0.8.8.0.248.2309.0j12j2.14.0....0...1.1.64.mobile-gws-hp..0.14.1288.3..0j41j0i131k1j0i10k1j0i22i30k1.3cr64XZwqWg&dlnr=1&sei=x256Waq7EoS7-AHOn7jADg

It's all a little nuts and out of touch. Too ironic for its own good I think.

But definitely not a new thing.

popped into summerhill on Friday night. The bar is bright, by bar standards and the soundtrack can be described as happy, surfy music. The crowd was interracial and bosterous. It was pretty fascinating to look around for any signs of the previous drama. From the chatty bartenders and interracial staff, to the bullet hole wall still on display (!!!) it seems to be they quietly kept their cool weathered the storm and will run their business just as the dreamt to. This makes me happy because to me, lost in all the debate, was that freedom of expression was at stake here too. Censorship is a slippery slope

I don't know how many people check the internet before visiting their local bar. ...or let people they have never met define things for them. We might be seeing a combination of oblivion and independence.

I saw a similar thing happen last summer to "Calavera" in downtown, Oakland. A new restaurant at the time, they had some labor issue with an immigrant that resulted in a few days of picketing, terrible PR, destroyed Yelp page, etc. while the hullabaloo kinda died down, their Yelp page was never fully restored to its 4.5 star, tons of reviews status it enjoyed pre-controversy. Also, protestors damaged their windows in an anti-trump protest but who knows if it was targeted. They do that in Oakland.

Its not a bulletholed wall, its a masonry wall with screw holes. but the patina from old paint and the distressed nature of the wall is beautiful. Much like the walls of the Harvey theatre at BAM.

The wall in Barboncino , facing the bar , has lots of these holes. Unless a mafia shootout happened, its construction related. Mafia story would be better

Instead of telling her customers HOW they were being young, cool and edgy, she should have let them make it up. They may have come up with similar stories.

It would all go away if she would plaster the wall or expose the brick....but she hasn't so she's banking on the protest going away.

I often walk by at around 6:30 PM. While this is not a hugely popular time for a bar, it seems to be pretty full.

The bullet hole narrative was an adolescent/hipster mistake, rife with racist insensitivity. The adult thing to do would be to get rid of it, allowing for more meaningful discussions of the pro's and con's of gentrification. The longer it stays, despite apologies about intent, reinforces unwillingness to admit wrong when being called out called on racist overtones. It's nice that there a people of color working there and I like to vibe at Summerhill. But, it will be difficult to continue to patronize the place with the symbolism of racism.

Somewhere in the country, there is likely a formerly poor white backward area that was quickly transformed into an area for affluent, educated, young people. I wonder if any of the businesses now serving the area have decided to make making fun of the former inhabitants part of their business model. Pictures of children with fetal alcohol syndrome on the walls? Chewing tobacco? Pictures of junked cars. Deer heads. Coal miners hats. It is out there somewhere. It may serve Keystone beer in a literal bucket for $16.