Bed-Stuy Restaurant News: Longtime Tavern's New Spot, Vegan Eats Move

BED-STUY, BROOKLYN — Two new restaurants on their way to Bed-Stuy might have some familiar faces behind the counter.

The new eateries — which won the support of Community Board 3 last week — include a Bed-Stuy version of the Fort Greene staple Brooklyn Public House and an expanded location for Greedi Vegan, which once ran on Ralph Avenue for several years.

The public house, likely to be named "Bedford Avenue Tavern," will be the fourth outpost for owner Ivan Spence, who has worked 25 years in the industry, representatives told the board.

It will serve up a similar gastropub menu to its flagship Brooklyn Public House, which has run on DeKalb Avenue for more than a decade.

"[Public House] has kind of become an institution in Fort Greene," attorney Benjamin Korngut told the community board. "He’s hoping to replicate that for the Bed-Stuy community."

The Bedford Avenue tavern will include 56 seats with both tables and a bar and will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Sunday through Wednesday and 10 a.m. to 4 a.m. Thursday through Saturday, owners said.

A full sample menu can be found here.

Korngut told the board they are still working on finalizing a lease for the 1040 Bedford Ave. space and did not give details about a potential opening date. The liquor license application, which was supported nearly unanimously by the board, will ultimately be decided by the State Liquor Authority.

At Greedi Vegan, the popular restaurant will open its new, bigger location at 326 Tompkins Ave. between Gates Avenue and Monroe Street by the end of the summer, owner Latisha Daring said.

The eatery had previously run on Ralph Avenue since 2018.

The new Tompkins Avenue location offers more space and, coincidentally, turned out to be a hotspot for Greedi Vegan fans, Daring said.

"We’ve recognized a lot of our existing clientele actually live in that community and have been walking to Ralph Avenue to get our food," Daring told the community board. "We ... needed more space to accommodate our customers."

Greedi Vegan offers a dine-in, takeout and catering menu with the mission of bringing healthy options to the neighborhood. The restaurant is 100 percent vegan and largely sourced from local farms, Daring said.

"We realize and recognize that a lot of what plagues our community are illnesses that are directly related to food and unless we are having dialogue about accessilbity and options and then following that up with action…those illnesses will continue to plague our community," Daring said.

The Tompkins Avenue spot will include 36 seats inside and a 14-seat backyard.

It will be open from 8 a.m. to 12 a.m. seven days a week, hours that Daring said will make room for new brunch options, as well as lunch and dinner service.

The liquor license will also ultimately be decided by the State Liquor Authority.