Business & Tech

Looking For Fresh French Bread? 'BaguetteAboudit'

Bakery and cafe opens for business on Vanderbilt Avenue in Fort Greene.

It's a name that Borough President Marty Markowitz, if he were in the bread-baking business, might have come up with himself.

That's right: is now open and ready for business at 270 Vanderbilt Ave. in Fort Greene.

Billed as the place where "Paris-meets-Brooklyn," the cafe and bakery is owned by Bed-Stuy resident Keith Goldberg, who this week enthusiastically welcomed new customers drawn to BaguetteAboudit's old-timey charm and the establishment's catchy—if not overly 'schticky'—moniker.

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"We're baking fresh bread on the premises, night and day, at affordable prices," Goldberg said. "It's something that this neighborhood just doesn't offer."

Stopping by the cafe on a late Tuesday morning, we tried BaguetteAboudit's $7.99 Croque Monsieur—a decently sized amalgam of ham and melted Swiss cheese on freshly baked whole wheat bread, with a pickle and Cole slaw on the side. 

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In addition to sandwiches, the cafe also offers soup and salads ranging in price from $6 to $9, as well as muffins and freshly made quiche in the morning.

Inhabiting a space once occupied by French food mart L'Epicerie, BaguetteAboudit seems to be looking to mix Brooklyn casualness with a Gallic obsession with fresh, quality ingredients.

As for the name, Goldberg said his inspiration was two-fold, consisting of comments on a blog he set up two years ago combined with a familiar highway sign on the bridges and tunnels connecting Brooklyn with Manhattan and Queens.

"The said they wanted the baguettes that they used to get here," he said. "So I combined that with the signs you see saying, 'Leaving Brooklyn: Fuhgeddaboudit.'"

As for borough's biggest booster and the inspiration behind the latest entry to Fort Greene's booming cafe scene, Goldberg said he's always welcome to take in the old-school Brooklyn charm that's literally written on the walls of this place.

"Marty was definitely somebody that's come up in many conversations during the process of this," he said. "If this doesn't fit Marty's bill with the Brooklynisms and what Brooklyn is all about, I don't know what does."

BaguetteAboudit is located at 270 Vanderbilt Ave. between Dekalb and Lafayette avenues in Fort Greene. Hours are Mon.-Thurs., 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri., 7 a.m. to midnight; Sat., 8 a.m. to midnight; and Sun., 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Full menu is available at baguetteaboudit.com.


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