Last Fourth of July my friend The Swarthy Menace (look at that chest ladies!) was in town and he invited me to a barbecue in Ditmas Park. When The Swarthy Menace invites you somewhere, you just go, but I was already “Ditmas curious” and the idea of grilling out in a yard, with grass, was heavenly to a homesick Southerner. I didn’t want to show up empty handed, so I grabbed a jar of McClure’s Hot and Spicy spears and hit the door. When I got there The Menace introduced me to the host, Tim, and a yard full of lovely people and while they helped themselves to the pickles I brought, I helped myself to the first of many Budweiser Tallboys…Happy Birthday America…
…I slept on the couch that night. Wait, no I didn’t, I slept on the cushions from the couch on the floor. But who cares. Playing croquet for 4 hours (that was just ONE game) and drinking all night with The Menace was worth it. The next day, Tim, our ever patient host, asked me more about the pickles I brought and where they came from, and where the hell I came from, and then eventually kindly called a car to shuttle my pounding head home. I bid farewell to The Swarthy Menace and left Ditmas Park determined to come again. Well, I moved here a few months ago but I’ve yet to make my way back to Tim’s croquet course (I have seen The Swarthy Menace again-this time in swarthy New Orleans)but I did, just last week, receive an email from him. I was expecting an invoice to have those couch cushions cleaned, but instead, Tim wrote to let me know how excited he was to find McClure’s Pickles in our neighborhood. What a pleasant surprise!
That’s right McClure’s Pickles are now available right here in Ditmas Park. Coincidence? Of course. But I’ll still take credit for it anyway. Mimi’s Hummus , on Cortelyou Road has recently expanded to have a small shop next door called Market. I stopped in last week to have a peek at the pickle selection. Not only do they carry McClure’s but also a couple of varieties from Brooklyn Brine (check out their hot new blog). I also spotted some clear quart containers with a handwritten label saying “Mimi’s Pickles” – house-made pickles for just 3 bucks!
So, Tim, I guess this means you don’t have to invite me over again just to get more pickles…but you can if you want to! I might be better behaved without a swarthy influence, but I can’t make any promises.
** And now the New York Times is, once again, finally caught up with Pickle Freak.