A Bakeri Grows in Greenpoint

I’ve spent some of the best years of my life living in the northern end of Greenpoint. Though I’m by no means a native, I feel like this small area just south of the bridge to Queens is my home. While it seems like a new space opens up every week in the neighborhood’s mid-way point (on Greenpoint Avenue), there hasn’t been quite the same rush to turn empty storefronts into retail shops and restaurants a few blocks north.

Freeman Street between Manhattan Avenue and Franklin Street is a quiet block just a short walk away from the last subway stop in Greenpoint. The first week I adopted Hope, I walked her around this block countless times (sometimes at 2 in the morning) and never imagined that it would become the home of something so special and beautiful. But it has, thanks to Nina Brondmo of the beloved bakery, Bakeri.

Originally from Norway, Nina Brondmo opened her delicious, bread-filled hotspot in an old home in Williamsburg in 2009. Its sweet treats, sandwiches, salads and desserts developed a devoted following almost instantaneously and fans now come from far and wide to not only sample the delicious food, but to admire the decor – a look that is uniquely Nina’s. A bit of old-world charm mixed with handmade touches (Nina’s good friend painted beautiful scenery and signage on the shop’s windows and doors), Bakeri is quite simply my favorite spot to grab something special and sweet.

You can imagine my delight when I saw, on Instagram, that Bakeri had opened a new location in Greenpoint. A few quick emails later, Max, Amy and I are walking up the block to photograph Nina’s latest location – and what I’m convinced is the most beautiful wall in Greenpoint.

Photographs by Maxwell Tielman

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