The Park Sloper
Issue #6 · July 2, 2026
Park Slope this week: a 119th Independence Day parade, four new liquor-license filings, and the Fourth in Prospect Park
The neighborhood's quietest news week is also its loudest weekend. The 119th Brooklyn Independence Day Parade already marched on Sunday, Revolutionary War reenactors included, and the Fourth lands Saturday with Prospect Park in full holiday mode.
Meanwhile the paperwork tells the future: four liquor-license applications crossed the state's desk this week, including one for something called urban golf on 10th Street. Here's the week.
Victor, founding editor
01 · This week
Brooklyn's longest-running Independence Day parade marches its 119th year
Marchers, color guards, and Revolutionary War reenactors took to the streets Sunday for the 119th annual Brooklyn Independence Day Parade, stepping off from Holy Name of Jesus Church at 245 Prospect Park West. A 119-year streak is its own kind of neighborhood institution.
Brooklyn Paper · marched Jun 28
Four liquor-license filings hint at what's next on the avenues
New state liquor-license applications on file this week: Peppas Park Slope at 383 5th Avenue and Kalhar Capital at 341 5th Avenue, both restaurants, O'Rita's Roasters at 175 Prospect Avenue, and, most intriguingly, Best Urban Golf at 180 10th Street. Filings are not openings, but they are the earliest public signal of what's coming.
NYS Liquor Authority filings · Jun 24-26
Free summer meals are running in Prospect Park
The city's Free Summer Meals program is on at the park's Parkside and Ocean Avenue entrance through September 4: free meals for anyone 18 and under, weekdays 10am to 4pm and weekends to 3pm. One holiday note: no service Friday July 3 or Saturday July 4.
Prospect Park Alliance + NYC DOE · through Sep 4
02 · Worth a visit
659 Vanderbilt Ave, Prospect Heights · opened Jun 26
Grimm Tavern, in Olmsted's old space on Vanderbilt
Joe and Lauren Grimm of Grimm Artisanal Ales, five-time New York State Brewery of the Year, opened Grimm Tavern on June 26 at 659 Vanderbilt Avenue, the space that was Olmsted. Dry-aged steaks and burgers, tallow fries, roast chicken, and the beer, obviously; Grimm Goods next door does coffee and biscuits by day. It's Prospect Heights, not the Slope, but it's worth the walk.
03 · One vetted pick
Best all-around neighborhood GP · NYS license verified · from our veterinarians guide
The everyday-vet default: a family-owned, full-service general practice on 5th Avenue that has been the neighborhood's GP since 2001, run by owner and medical director Dr. Eric Maddon. If the week's booms have you finally booking that overdue checkup, this is the safe first call. Dr. Maddon's state license (#007240) is registered through August 2027; we checked. Skip them if you need a 24/7 emergency room, exotic-pet medicine, or a house call; this is a daytime practice for cats and dogs.
Fireworks week is the year's hardest on the neighborhood's dogs, so this week's pick is from our veterinarians guide. Every vet on it holds a New York State license we confirmed in the state registry, checked against the disciplinary record, and nobody paid to be there.
See the pick →04 · The calendar
Sat Jul 4 · from 12pm ET · Prospect Park · Free
The Fourth of July in Prospect Park
The park runs holiday programming for the Fourth across Lefferts Historic House, the Carousel, and the Audubon Center. Start at noon and wander.
Sat Jul 4 · 10am ET · Green-Wood Cemetery, 500 25th St
The Revolution Continues: Brooklyn's Black Trailblazers
Green-Wood's America250 tour spotlights the Black Brooklynites of the revolutionary era and after, on holiday morning among the monuments.
Thu Jul 2 · 8pm ET · littlefield, 635 Sackett St, Gowanus · Ticketed
UCBLK: Black America 250 with Zach Cherry and Chris Redd
UCBLK marks the semiquincentennial its own way: a comedy night featuring Zach Cherry and Chris Redd.
Sat Jul 4 · 10pm ET · Union Hall, 702 Union St · Ticketed
Young Adult Friction turns ten
The long-running indie and alt dance party throws a ten-year anniversary edition, on a holiday Saturday with nowhere to be Sunday morning.
Fri Jul 3 · 7:30pm ET · Green-Wood Cemetery, 500 25th St
The cemetery's evening-hours program: golden light, quiet paths, and the skyline from Battle Hill.