apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I did, last week actually, in the gangway between my building and the neighboring building. I got some strange looks form neighbors....and quite a few people taking pictures form the iron gate after the cubs game (a few blocks away) let out. Most were impressed that I had a large set of matching Bertoia chairs squirreled away in my miniscule flat! http://www.strangeclosets.com/?p=9478

Oh! I love this idea so much. The only similar event I have ever been to was a cookout on the public sidewalk. Being the city, none of my friends have any balconies or patios so we took the grill out the street, grilled up a ton of food and ate on the stoop. It was so much fun and I wish we would have done it more often.

I'd never do it -- too much labor involved. But one of my favorite movie scenes is from that ancient one, "The Goodbye Girl", when Richard Dreyfus creates a surprise dinner party for Marsha Mason on the roof of their building. (Then it rains, which is one of the many reasons I think it's too much work!!)

Dining out of doors is simply too much fun. I try to do it often. Unfortunately as the Times article suggests, Americans are really uptight. And minnesotan's or maybe midwesterners are even more so.

I don't know, it seems a bit pretentious to me. It's a little "show-off-y". It feels a little like you are claiming the public space as your own, and that doesn't sit right with me. And what if a bum walked by and asked you for some food? That would probably make everyone at the party feel crappy.
My verdict - grilling on the stoop with some friends sounds great, setting up a whole dining table, etc. in a public place is not cool.

We're in the process of buying a corner store in New Orleans and the first thing the architect said to me when he got out of his car was "imagine the crawfish boils you're going to have on this sidewalk under that canopy!" Ever since then, I can't get the thought out of my mind (even though there is a very lovely private garden space).

"Bums" and such are part of life. Whether we are confronted with them or not makes little difference. I believe we hide too much from the grit of life. What we need, in my opinion, is the breaking down of walls we use to segregate ourselves ipods, personal dvd players, etc., and what is better than communal meals. Eating with friends is great and personally, I welcome the opportunity to meet those who do not travel in the same circles I do.

That being said, one should not set-up a table when/where its not appropriate. That is what judgement is all about.

On a side note, there's a local park that my GF and I walk through once a week. She's white and I'm black. I always point out to her the complete lack of white people in the park. Instead we see many vietnamese and other southeast asian families - groups of all sizes - having dinner, playing games, walking, etc. You will see the white people running or rollerblading individually, but you simply won't see groups of white people hanging out. (I can't say anything about black people here only because in terms fo numbers, we are statistically insignificant in MN.) I bring this up because I think that americans, especially here in the midwest, have hang-ups about communal utilization of public spaces.

Cheers!

Way, way too precious. Private rooftop, yes; Brooklyn Bridge sidewalk, no.

PhoebeArt: "And what if a bum walked by and asked you for some food? That would probably make everyone at the party feel crappy."

um, then i'd give him/her some food?

sharing with others who need it doesn't make me feel "crappy."

Public parks, yes. Here in Montreal it's legal to barbecue and have wine (as long as you don't get drunk) in all the city parks. We have a couple of big barbecue parties every summer with friends -- it's so easy and kid-friendly.

We have private parties in the parks all the time in Denver. Adult parties, little kid parties, and family parties. We also take over the alleys and shut them down for block parties. When I lived in Germany, there was a dance group that would meet on a pedestrian bridge for ballroom, byob, and byoc (bring your own candles). Sometimes they had a boombox and sometimes they had professional musicians. I loved walking past the ballroom dancing at night.

Where's the bathroom?

j i : you wouldn't feel kinda crappy for having a nice dinner party in front of someone who is far less privileged than you are? How much extra food would you make for them? Would you invite them to sit with you and your friends?
I mean, I know we shouldn't all get horribly depressed every time we sit down to a nice meal because other people in the world are going hungry, but being confronted by need while putting your own privilege on display should at least make you stop and think. I think it's a good thing to think about, too, but maybe not the thought to put people in the mood at a party.

As long as you aren't blocking right of way for others, then OK. So dinner in your driveway or rooftop -- good. Sitting on your stoop -- good. Dinner party on the pedestrian walkway of the Brooklyn bridge? If you are blocking access or preventing public use, you deserve a ticket or to be told to pack it up and move it along. Dinner parties on the pier -- if the pier is similar to a public park, and there is room for everyone to do the same, or they made proper lease/permit/reservation arrangements or whatever, then fine. Otherwise, go to a park, ppl! That is what they are there for!

We used to do relaxed, casual meals all the time in our neighbourhood park in Vancouver, carting over a BBQ, glasses, plates, and food. I hosted a friend's baby shower there, and we decorated with balloons and streamers. Kids would regularly have birthday parties there too. We'd almost always end up feeding at least two or three neighbourhood kids and/or homeless folks, and there was a lady who would happily cart away our empties (and leftovers) at the end of every session.

By all means, embrace public space, but don't make it a private experience - turn it into a way of connecting with your community.

Lisa in Montreal made an interesting point about serving/drinking alcohol on the street or in a public park. I can say that here in Hungary, too, it's completely legal to have any type of alcohol almost anywhere - but what about in America? Or is it every state different?

I'm a Midwesterner, and I admit that I'm too uptight for this. I need more privacy, or I don't feel comfortable. Back-yard yes, front sidewalk, no. I don't really know why I feel that way though.

Alcohol in the US - laws vary from state to state, and even between cities/municipalities. Lots of places have open container laws where consuming alcohol in public is prohibited. Some places allow might allow alcohol in some parks, but not others, or only during certain hours, etc.

Love, love, love the idea. Might bring back the community spirit. I come from an European country (read: crowded) where people are more connected to each other; yes, I miss that now. Let's give it a try and get over our fears!
One thing, though ... I wouldn't have it on a crowded sidewalk or on a bridge thinking that being in people's way might not be all that comfortable :-)

Avoiding strange looks from the neihgbours is easy. Just invite them over.
No alcohool? Well ... I'll be just fine without it as long as there's good conversation around the table.

doua mii Exactly!

When I spent a summer in Siena Italy I was impressed by the street parties (for the Palio). It made me wonder why we don't have more street parties in America!