interview: allison robicelli of robicellis

with a background as a pastry chef, allison robicelli and her husband launched an online cupcake business this fall called .  their shop offers treats in many flavors (they have nearly 50 options right now) available for order or for a catered party (you can contact them at allison at robicellis.com).  robicellis has also just started to place their treats in local shops around brooklyn including blue apron and ozzies in park slope,  in boerum hill and at hom in bay ridge.  prior the launch of this venture in the fall, she and her husband ran a high end food market out in bay ridge with lots of cheeses and prepared foods.   

i had been hearing about the robicelli cupcakes for a while, and alison was kind enough to bring some by this past weekend, and they were delicious.  my favorite robicelli was the sticky toffee cupcake with brown sugar topping.   they’re also working on a gluten-free line which should be rolling out in a few weeks.  i was excited when allison agreed to provide a huge list of ideas for shopping and food, especially because she grew up and hangs out mostly in bay ridge, which is an area that i have clearly not even begun to explore.  i am also very excited to try out her old-time italian bakery source on staten island.  thanks so much allison!

food:

top clothing spots?

lol – being a chef isn’t a very sexy profession, so most of the time i’m in jeans and t-shirts. but when i do want to get something that makes me feel like a girl, i hit up lola’s boutique in bay ridge (85th and 3rd).  mariana, the owner, is a former celebrity stylist, and she knows what i like and what looks good on me. an afternoon with her is just like playing dress up when i was a kid.  also, i hit century 21a lot (86th street between 4th and 5th). i live around the corner and remember when it was a single storefront that sold shampoo and toilet seat covers. it’s massive and affordable, and always my go to if i need something i’m not sure a mom and pop would carry.  i get most of my shoes there..  as for a third place, can i say the salvation army? i really don’t live a glamorous life. sigh.

house warming gift?

i am a big believer of giving food gifts, since they don’t need to be dusted (let’s be honest, we all have too much crap in our house). i also don’t like giving wine, since matt and i don’t drink and have received countless bottles as gifts ourselves which are useless to us.  my favorite gift to give is a beautiful bottle of honey, since it’s the only food that never goes bad, and it’s as aesthetically pleasing as a bottle of wine.  look for shops that carry either bee raw or savannah bee company honey, which are my two favorites.  pair the honey with a nice tea and you’ll look like the most thoughtful guest at the party.

favorite place for stationery?

creations with inspiration on 3rd avenue between 83rd and 84th. they make the most amazing invitations, and their selection of journals, paper and photo albums is wonderful. it’s owned by two local moms who are the most wonderful and accommodating people on earth. i was there a few weeks ago, and my 2-year old had an epic, defcon-level meltdown.   they didn’t bat an eye, helped me get him in the stroller, and still helped me with my purchase. unbelievable.

kids’ gifts?

as a mom, i have plenty of toys, but am a firm believer that we can’t have enough books. the children’s section of the bookmark shoppe (85th and 3rd avenue) has such a great selection, and a nice selection of puzzles and toys as well. they’re also happy to order me any book i’m looking for that isn’t in stock, and usually get it for me in a few days.

favorite spot for your mum? 

my mom is the hardest working person in the world, and now that i’m a mom myself i appreciate every bit of that even more. i get her the same thing for just about every occasion- a gift certificate for a massage at the green spa (88th and 3rd avenue).  walking into that place, you forget that you’re in brooklyn – it’s an instant vacation.

what about the males in your life?

my husband is a big mets fan, and i’m a diehard yankee fan, so nothing shows that i love him more than sucking up my pride and buying him something blue and orange. the best gift i ever got him was an authentic replica of gary carter’s 1986 jersey, which i found at  on 84th and 5th avenue. they also have a huge ebay shop if you’re more comfortable shopping from home.

for weddings?

i’m just going to be honest here.   the best wedding present possible is cash. it was so much fun for matt and me to go out and set up our home ourselves, and you don’t get that experience if everything comes off the registry. besides, you can’t possibly register for all the one-of-a-kind items you find in independent boutiques and antique stores.

what about for you?

i love blue apron foods.  love them.  i’ve been to every cheese shop in the city (hell, i owned one of them), and i’m just crazy about the guy behind blue apron cheese counter.  he brings the same passion for it that i do about it to the table, and gets me excited about cheese all over again every time we speak.  recently, he had a tomme crayeuse that he had aged in-store which may have been the best damn piece of cheese i have ever eaten.

all-around favorite shop?

i’m going to let you in on the biggest secret in brooklyn. i’m actually almost kicking myself for letting this information out. there is a store on avenue i and mcdonald called amazing savings, which is my absolute favorite store in the world. they have everything you need (except clothes) for cheap. i mean below wholesale cheap. and it’s not cheap stuff:  kitchen-aid, mikasa, little tykes. i don’t know how they do it.  every year i set aside a few hundred bucks to buy toys for underprivileged kids at christmas. most of the toys at this place are under 10 bucks, with lots under 5. i’m able to fill my honda civic every year for these kids like santa’s sleigh on a chef’s salary – one year i scored about 40 barbie dolls for 3 bucks each!

food:

favorite date-night restaurant? 

god there’s so many! matt and i love trying new places, but when we just feel like being somewhere romantic and comfortable we head over to  (87th and 3rd  avenue). it’s delicious, affordable food, and the staff is wonderful. i get something new every time, but matt and i always split one of their infamous grilled pizzas to start. there’s a reason it’s been one of brooklyn’s most respected restaurants for almost 20 years.

where do you like to go with friends?

new corner on 72nd and 8th avenue. what we all love about it is that it’s been there since 1932, and nothing has changed. when all my old friends get back together, we love going someplace that reminds us of the brooklyn we grew up in. this is that place.

when we’re getting together to drink and watch the game, we go to lonestar bar and grill on 87th and 5th. they have these thick, juicy handformed burgers the size of a cat’s head, which come with a huge plate of curly fries and a beer or soda for only ten bucks. though i will usually spend an extra two bucks and upgrade my burger to either a ribeye steak, or a half rack of the best baby back ribs in brooklyn.  i consistently walk out of that place in a meat coma.  during the warmer weather we eat on the big back deck, which feels more like someone’s backyard in the country than a bar in brooklyn.  

best spot for drinks?

i don’t drink, so this has always been a difficult pick for me.  normally when i meet my friends for drinks, i’m stuck drinking syrupy coke out of a gun, or an o’douls that’s encased in a layer of dust that’s been sitting next to the boiler since 1997.  and then, i discovered fort defiance.  my god, i love fort defiance and their beautiful strawberry cream soda.  they spend just as much attention crafting their made-in-house sodas as they do their cocktails and they are absolutely amazing.  for the first time in my life, i don’t feel like a second class citizen in a bar, and i really can’t tell you how much that means to me.  

most amazing dinner dish and where?

this is a tip you need to hold onto until next summer.  there’s a little shack out in sheepshead bay on the venice marina (next to the ua parking lot) called clemente’s crab house.  you have to drive there, and it’s a bit confusing to reach, but it’s worth the trip.  first, you need to sit on the back deck overlooking the marina- the view is completely obstructed by boats and the water, so you can’t see anything in any direction that would remind you that you’re in new york city.  it’s like an instant vacation to a sleepy beach town.  then they come out with bread and oil for dipping; skip this for two reasons: a – it’s hideously cheap oil and tastes horrible, and b – you need to save room for what’s coming next.  then order the all-you-can-eat blue crab.  they only have two flavors (roasted garlic or old bay), so each party at your table should get a different one, and you can swap bowls when you get refills.  once the crab comes out, there is no talking!  my husband and i sat there for hours in complete silence making total messes of ourselves, sitting over the water watching the sun set, and eating pound after pound of the most delectable blue crabs i have ever eaten.  and hot tip: if you eat more than four bowls, your dessert is on the house.  fried oreos are just the thing to wash down garlicky crabmeat.

best place for dessert?

when i grew up, there was a shop called alba’s on 18th ave and 70th street that made the best of everything: cannolis, sfogiatelles, pasticottis, you name it. come the holidays, you’d wait hours on line just to get in the door. alas, the albas retired, and sold the storefront to their competitors, villabate (who do, not for nothing, make a damn good pastry). i’ll go to villabate when i’m driving around brooklyn, but when i want the cannoli of my childhood i’ll make the trek to staten island to luigi’s dolceria at 4060 hylan boulevard. it’s owned by the alba’s children and their baker of over 30 years. it’s worth the toll.

for brunch?

my brunch spot is hom on 88th and 3rd. it’s a home boutique, interior design shop, and in the back is the sexiest little cafe in bay ridge. they have a very tiny brunch menu that changes often, but everything i’ve tried was wonderful. food aside, it’s the perfect weekend morning atmosphere- it’s very romantic, the coffee is wonderful, and the owners are the sweetest. and as of november, they’re the only place in bay ridge that you can get our cupcakes.

favorite asian?  middle eastern?

best asian food  in brooklyn is grand sichuan house (87th and 5th).  there are just no words to describe how good it is. if you like spicy food, you need to go there. and you will order: chengdu dumplings, pickled cabbage, and cumin beef. you can thank me later.  in manhattan, my new obsession is buddha bodai on mott street.  it’s a buddhist spot, so it’s vegetarian, but the fake meat they make there is just awesome.  as an omnivore, i will assure you that you can barely tell the difference.  since the first time i went, i have craved their food like crack. 

for middle eastern, i love first oasis on 93rd and 4th. i had both my bridal shower and engagement parties there, and everyone loved the food. for the price and the quality, you really can’t go wrong. also notable – turqua grill on 97th and 3rd. and tanoreen on 76th and 3rd. and karam on 86th and 4th. this is bay ridge.  you can pretty much throw a rock in any direction and hit an amazing mideast joint.

favorite neighborhood spot?

every spot in bay ridge is a neighborhood spot. one of my favorites is  on 5th avenue off 86th. it’s an old soda shop dating back to the 20s, and has been in the same family for 50 years. the savory food is nothing to get excited about, but there are very few things that are more wonderful than sitting up at the counter and ordering an egg cream to go with your fresh belgian waffle topped with their homemade ice cream. it’s heaven.

top comfort food?

my comfort food is the sicilian-american food we ate at my grandmother’s sunday dinners in bensonhurst when i was a kid.  i’ll never find a place that can replicate that completely, but when i need my fix, no one does it like joe’s of avenue u (between lake st and mcdonald ave). i’m partial to the baccala (salt cod), stuffed calamari and fish salad, but for those who aren’t adventurous, they make one hell of a rice ball.

another great family food tradition is the potato and egg sandwich from defonte’s on columbia street. my mom used to take me down there for that sandwich when i was a kid. my grandfather ate it. my great-grandfather ate it. when each of my sons turned one and could eat eggs, i took them there so they could share that sandwich with me. that’s five generations of us sharing it over the ages. it’s that special.

also, in my mind, there is nothing better than eating a hot bag of nathan’s fries dipped in their vinegary mustard on a day where all of coney island smells of the sea.