Eating In Translation

The Pirika Chocolate Co.

Designed by the prolific Williamsburg-born architect Theobald Engelhardt, 1895; chocolate-free since 1925.

The Pirika Chocolate Co.
Surviving signage at 972 Dean St. (Franklin-Classon Aves.), Crown Heights, Brooklyn

Culpepper's

Cou-cou is a Caribbean porridge of cornmeal and okra, just firm enough not to slump into mush. In the photo, one end of the semicircular mass is visible at far left. Also largely concealed by sauteed onions are three tender fingers of mahi-mahi (all in, $14); kingfish and red snapper were also on offer. In Barbados, flying fish is traditional, but the counterman (as well as the proprietor of another Bajan eatery nearby) observed that recently these have been hard to come by.

Culpepper's
1082 Nostrand Ave. (at Lincoln Rd.), Prospect Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn
718-940-4122

Back Home Bakery

Some say pudding, some say pone.

Red Brick Cafe

The souse was made with meat, but the black pudding was a purely vegetarian affair.

St. Lucia Jounen Kweyol

Kingfish, yellow yams, dasheen, and lentils from the very leisurely celebration of this eastern Caribbean island's Creole Day.

St. Lucia Jounen Kweyol
Held at St. Teresa of Avila Parish Auditorium, 563 Sterling Pl. (Franklin-Classon Aves.), Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Last Sunday of October (the 2011 ceremony was held October 30)

Normandie Bake Shop

Also shown: a nearby sign for another business of long standing that's still a going concern. I especially like the cracks in the sunbaked silhouette. Sugar glaze, anyone?

Normandie Bake Shop
Surviving signage at 860 Nostrand Ave. (Union-President Sts.), Crown Heights, Brooklyn

The Holy City of On, 25,000 B.C., Congo

I've encountered just one Congolese-owned restaurant in New York; it doesn't seem to be a going concern, and in any event the menu was pan-African, with a little American for good measure.

Heinz

Today the blocky red structure is named for Monti Moving & Storage, its last building-wide occupant.

Syd's Serious Sandwich Shop

Chips, soda, a roast beef sandwich. Lunch at this "North Philly" shop might easily have fueled my North Stamford bicycle expeditions, many summers ago, except that here the sandwich is called a hoagie — in Connecticut, and New York, other names are more common. My 6-incher ($4.99; also 12-inch, $7.99) included the Syd's toppings trinity of lettuce, tomato, and onion, plus sweet peppers (two bits extra).

Familiar tunes on the radio, too, though the new releases of yesterday have somehow become the classics, or oldies, of today.

Syd's Serious Sandwich Shop
759 Nostrand Ave. (Lincoln Pl.-St. Johns Pl.), Crown Heights, Brooklyn
347-305-3086
www.SydsSeriousSandwichShop.com

Joy & Snook Restaurant and Bakery

Green vegetables of the day, GT style.

New Apache Bakery

Despite the name, West Indian.

David's Brisket House

The counterman slid a bowl of beef gravy my way, as if the brisket might be too dry. Fat chance.

Trini-Gul

William Bligh sailed halfway around the world to transport breadfruit plants to the West Indies.

West Indian American Day Parade

When I first saw this sign, I was too weary even to ask what it was.

Patria Restaurant

I didn't expect the banana to upstage the codfish.

Peaches

In the outer boroughs, some branches are already thick with fruit.

Peach blossoms

I had no idea they could be found this far north, except on a farm.

"Obama fish cake" sign

I was seriously overstimulated at this year's West Indian Day Parade, and Obama fish cake was one of many delicacies that didn't pass my lips, or (except for the sign) even my field of vision. Was it made, perhaps, from fresh, new fish rather than old, pickled fish? Let's hope, in any event, that the same vendor will be proud to offer it next year, too.

See also: Barack & Soul

"Obama fish cake" sign
Spotted in passing at the West Indian Day Parade, 2008

Panamanian Pre-Independence Day Parade

The parade was a long time coming, and due to a scheduling conflict, I saw little of the procession itself and no sign of the street fair that reportedly would follow. I did snag a few bites courtesy of Kelso, perhaps the city's only Panamanian restaurant, which sits midway along the parade route; I also looked in on the Imperial Bikers Motorcycle Club, two doors down, which made its premises available to a catering operation called Celia's Kitchen (click on the photo for a better look). Worth a visit next year for the mellow vibe up and down Franklin Ave., and for the promise of a street fair that just might materialize by midafternoon.

Update: The compact, crowded, but congenial street fair is a block west, on Classon Ave. near President St. Not a huge variety of food, but good if you like frituras, skewers, and souse.

Panamanian Pre-Independence Day Parade
Franklin Ave. and vicinity, Crown Heights, Brooklyn
Early October

Meytex Cafe

A return visit confirmed it: This Ghanaian restaurant is less rough-and-ready than it looks.