The new bar at 151 Union Street is built from the old kitchen. When Sal Lamboglia turned Ferdinando's Focacceria into Bar Ferdinando, he needed a bar where there had never been one. According to Observer's opening-week review, he built it from the marble and granite slabs of Frank Buffa's kitchen prep tables. He kept the mismatched tile floor. The brick and yellow walls still carry the Buffa family photos, and Lamboglia has hung a few of his own beside them.
About two weeks after that bar opened on April 15, a different Carroll Gardens institution closed for good. Caputo's Bake Shop at 329 Court Street shut in late April after 124 years and five generations of one family.
Both businesses had lasted more than a century, and both owners decided to stop. One room carried on and the other went dark. The difference was a handoff. Most of what changed on Court and Smith in 2026 follows from that difference.
How a 121-year-old focacceria picked its next owner
Eater NY reported that owner Francesco "Frank" Buffa chose Lamboglia to take over the address after deciding to close the restaurant in February 2025. Lamboglia already ran three places in the area: Cafe Spaghetti, Swoony's and Sal Tang's. Bar Ferdinando is his fourth. In the press release Eater quoted, he said his "goal is to preserve what makes Ferdinando's so special while giving it the care it needs to keep going for years to come."
Lamboglia kept the old dishes on the menu the way he kept the floor and the photos. The pane e panelle stayed, using the chickpea fritter recipe from Ferdinando's itself. So did the Sicilian arancini and the octopus salad. The new additions are an all-day program and a cocktail list, which the old focacceria never had. The day starts with coffee and bomboloni from pastry chef Jackie De La Barrera, who came from Radio Bakery and Agi's Counter. After that come spritzes, a 50/50 martini and a take on the Manhattan Special, the Brooklyn espresso soda.
Observer's review described the crowd on the first Friday night. It mixed neighborhood regulars with newcomers adding their names to a growing waitlist, because Bar Ferdinando doesn't take reservations. If you're planning around it, there is no booking. You arrive and put your name down.
The bakery that closed with no successor
Caputo's ended with a sign in the window. Brooklyn Paper reported that owner James Caputo posted the news on the storefront. His note read in part:
"It is with immense sadness that I am writing to tell you that the flame in our oven has been lit for the last time, and Caputo Bakery has come to the end of its 124-year life."
The farewell gave no reason. Accounts of the exact last day differ. Eater NY gives Monday, April 27, and Brooklyn Paper says Tuesday, so late April is as precise as the record allows. No reporting so far says what will go into 329 Court Street next.
Caputo's note thanked customers for "the stories you shared, and the generations who have walked through our doors." Unlike Ferdinando's, no next operator was named.
Buttermilk Channel's room waited a year and a half
The third legacy address shows a slower handoff. Doug Crowell closed Buttermilk Channel at 524 Court Street on December 31, 2024. Grub Street reported that he wanted time for other projects, including French Louie, and quoted him: "I can't put it on cruise control or give it to other people. I have my eyes and hands on every detail." He also told the outlet that his customers' children had grown up eating there.
The space reopened in early July 2026 as Trudie's Tavern, from the team behind Gertie. Brooklyn Bridge Parents describes it as a nostalgic New York tavern serving rotisserie chicken, raw-bar plates, house-baked pretzels and classic cocktails.
Put the three side by side. Ferdinando's moved to a hand-picked successor and reopened about 14 months after Buffa announced the closing. Buttermilk Channel's owner said plainly that he wouldn't hand it over, and the room sat for roughly 18 months before an experienced restaurant group moved in. Caputo's has no successor on record.
Who filled Court and Smith this year
Around those three addresses, 2026 brought a steady run of openings. Several come from operators who already had a following elsewhere, including the Gertie team, Lamboglia and Smør.
| Business | Address | Opened | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malvan | 550 Court Street | March 18 | Coastal Indian restaurant and cocktail bar |
| Ramblin' Chick | 512 Court Street | March 19 | Chicken smashburgers |
| Bar Ferdinando | 151 Union Street | April 15 | All-day Italian bar and cafe |
| Prince Street Pizza | 271 Smith Street | April 23 | Pizza |
| Grabstein's Bagels | 142 Smith Street | 2026, date not reported | Bagels |
| Trudie's Tavern | 524 Court Street | Early July | American tavern |
| Smør | 361 Court Street | October 1 | Danish bakery and cafe |
Eater NY's March openings roundup logged Malvan and Ramblin' Chick a day apart, at 550 and 512 Court Street. Trudie's arrived in July at 524 Court, between the two.
The newest one opened on Court Street eleven days ago, at number 361. Caputo's storefront is at number 329. The Gowanaut reported that Smør opened its Carroll Gardens location on Thursday, October 1, at the corner of Court and President. It has full cafe seating and a to-go window. The Nordic bakery built its following in the East Village and Williamsburg on cardamom buns, sourdough and a breakfast burrito. So a Danish bakery with two other locations is now baking on the same stretch of Court Street where a family bakery ran for 124 years.
What's on the calendar for late October
The new businesses have changed Court and Smith. October's events are still run by local groups.
- Saturday, October 17, 3–4:30 p.m. MOSS and Pupstarz Rescue hold the Howl-O-Ween dog parade on Smith Street at Union Street, as part of the Neighbors & Makers Street Fair. Dogs are registered through MOSS. Prince Street Pizza at 271 Smith is on the same street.
- Saturday, October 24, 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m. Friends of Carroll Park hosts its Children's Halloween Celebration in Carroll Park, with music, dancing, treats, a scavenger hunt and spooky storytime.
- Saturday, October 31, 2–5 p.m. Just outside the neighborhood, the Atlantic Avenue BID runs a Halloween open street listed by NYC DOT on Hoyt Street from State Street to Atlantic Avenue.
- Saturday, October 31, 4 p.m. The Cobble Hill Halloween Parade starts at Cobble Hill Park, according to Brooklyn Bridge Parents' 2026 Halloween guide.
No separate Halloween parade for people has been announced in Carroll Gardens this year. The 2026 listings include only the dog parade and the Carroll Park event.
Two older traditions are on record from last year, but nobody has confirmed them for 2026. A 2025 roundup of decorated houses photographed five decorated homes on President Street between Hoyt and Smith. The 2025 trick-or-treat guide listed Scotto Funeral Home at 106 First Place as a recurring Halloween display and candy stop from 3:30 to 7 p.m. It also listed Court Street and Smith Street businesses as trick-or-treat stops. No 2026 merchant trick-or-treat schedule has been published yet.
If you own on one of these blocks and the past year has you wondering how a changing Court Street affects what your home is worth, the MINSKY | ABRISHAMI Team can walk you through it using recent Carroll Gardens sales. Request a Free Home Valuation, and we'll keep the conversation discreet.
