If you thought the main populations of Williamsburg were Polish-American and hipster, you're wrong. New Western Europeans have invaded the neighborhood — that's right, it's been "Europeanized" — and some businesses cater to the distinctive nationalities now maintaining a presence there. "The French stake out the terrace of Fabian’s Cafe, the Brits convene at the Spike Hill Bar & Grill to watch Manchester United soccer matches, and the Swedish parents meet at one another’s apartments for a coffee-and-buns break called 'fika,'" writes the NY Times. The weak dollar surely helped encourage the demographic shift, but if in some parts of the city Europeans were purchasing second homes, in Williamsburg they're actually settling in for the long haul. "Other neighborhoods that have been reshaped by the condo boom of recent years have also seen influxes of foreign buyers investing their yen, pounds and euros in real estate. But the trend has been most visible in Williamsburg, where the newcomers are establishing deeper roots and are not simply looking for weekend pieds-à-terre or investment properties." Why Bburg? Cheaper, and more like home — easy to find European specialties like HobNobs or find a spot to watch Football... the European kind. "They say they like its cafes, its more muted displays of wealth (well, more muted than Manhattan’s) and an artistic vibe that reminds some of the Marais neighborhood in Paris, or Brighton, England."
Old Europe and New Brooklyn in Williamsburg [NY Times]
Photo by galvarez51.
