Artisanal Ice Cream Shop, Malai, to Team with Floral Design Company, Fleur Elise Bkln, at Scenic Waterfront Community Through Mid-October
Greenpoint Landing, a 22-acre project that stretches for half a mile along Brooklyn’s waterfront, is now home to a joint pop-up venture with Malai, a small-batch artisanal ice cream company and Fleur Elise Bkln, a flower design company. The first day of business will be this Friday, August 24th – opening at noon.
Located at 7 Bell Slip, the pop-up will run for two months, through mid-October, Friday through Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. At nearly 1,000 square-feet, the space features high ceilings and industrial warehouse aesthetics. The opening coincides with the commencement of leasing at One Blue Slip, the adjacent 359 unit tower developed by a joint venture of Park Tower Group and Brookfield.
Figuratively meaning “cream of the crop,” in a Northern Indian language, Malai combines globally-sourced whole ingredients and aromatic spices to create unexpected twists on old classics. The super-premium ice cream is eggless and churned with very little air, resulting in purer and more robust flavors with the lightest and creamiest texture. Founded by Pooja Bavishi, who has had an interest in flavor development and fragrances of unique spices since her childhood, all flavors are hand crafted nearby at Pilotworks Brooklyn.
Fleur Elise Bkln, originated by owner Elise Bernhardt creates original and completely individualized floral arrangements. To create a completely “in situ” arrangement, Bernhardt starts with the container and then moves onto the shape, weight, textures and colors of the flora, as well as the environment in which the design will be seen. Bernhardt’s floral inspiration comes from her decades-long background in dance and the performing arts. She studied floral arrangement at the Flower School, Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and at the Sogetsu Ikebana School in Tokyo.
“We were so impressed with the creative flair Pooja and Elise both bring to their businesses, and loved the concept of them creating one pop-up together. The space they’ve fashioned is really special, and we couldn’t be happier to welcome them to Greenpoint Landing.” said Matthew Mayer, Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Greenpoint Landing.
To create a cohesive aesthetic, special bouquets will be created in Malai containers that incorporate blossoms used in the ice creams. Both Brooklyn based creative businesses, the partnership was a natural fit.
Nearby retail currently includes Achilles Heel, Glasserie, Eagle Trading Co., Oak, Greenpoint Bikes, Beacon’s Closet and Paulie Gee’s. In addition, there is a Pure Barre fitness unit and such dining and bakery options as Lobster Joint, Bakeri and Ovenly. Peter Schubert and Abbie Cheng of Terra CRG represented Malai and Fleur Elise Bkln on the joint endeavor. Additional retail spaces at Greenpoint Landing are being exclusively marketed by Schubert and Cheng.
About Greenpoint Landing:
Greenpoint Landing is situated along a half-mile of East River waterfront and is being developed by Park Tower Group. In its entirety, Greenpoint Landing will include an estimated 5,500 residential units – 1,400 of which are affordable housing – as well as local shops and a pre-k through 8th grade public school. 300 units of affordable housing have already opened at Greenpoint Landing in a joint venture between Park Tower Group and L&M Development Partners.
When fully completed, the waterfront park, designed by James Corner Field Operations, will encompass four acres of resilient public green space along the waterfront with panoramic views of the Manhattan skyline, providing innovative flood protection while also creating an accessible and dynamic public realm. In fall 2017, the Waterfront Alliance announced it certified this first phase of Greenpoint Landing into its award-winning Waterfront Edge Design Guidelines (WEDG) program for excellence in waterfront design and resiliency.
Now leasing, One Blue Slip is the first of four development sites Brookfield is developing in a joint venture with Park Tower Group at Greenpoint Landing. The second building is expected to open next year. An additional 1,240 units of housing – 30% of which will be affordable – will also begin construction next year.
