Anchors Aweigh! The ‘Anchor Building’ at 76 Montague St. lands a new tenant

December 1, 2014 By Lore Croghan Brooklyn Daily Eagle

Sharpen your knives and forks! A restaurant and bakery from Gramercy Park called Friend of a Farmer will make its Brooklyn debut at 76 Montague St. Eagle photos by Lore Croghan

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Ahoy Matey!

A new tenant is sailing into 76 Montague St. — the 1850s-vintage brick building with an anchor out on the front sidewalk, which upscale furniture retailer Design Within Reach vacated 10 months ago.

The new arrival on the landmarked Brooklyn Heights retail corridor will be a bakery and restaurant based in Gramercy Park called Friend of a Farmer.

This will be the Brooklyn debut of the down-home-style eatery, whose existing location at 77 Irving Place dishes up retro favorites like chicken pot pie and blueberry pancakes.

“They recognized the great potential of this location, and will benefit immensely from its proximity to the Brooklyn Promenade and Brooklyn Bridge Park,” Ryan Condren, managing director of the CPEX New York Retail Leasing Team said in announcing the lease deal Monday.

“Mixed in among Montague Street’s already attractive variety of retail options, Friend of a Farmer will add to the strength of Brooklyn Heights as a retail and residential destination.”

Condren and CPEX associate directors Kristina Triglia and George Danut represented the landlord in the lease deal.

Prudential Douglas Elliman repped Friend of a Farmer in the transaction.

The asking rent for the 2,300-square-foot ground floor had been $125 per square foot per year, with basement space included, as the Brooklyn Daily Eagle previously reported.

The building, which has 3,820 square feet of commercial space, is co-owned by Jim Daniels and Cobble Hill Cinemas owner Harvey Elgart. Initially, they had planned to convert the second floor of the two-story building to residential use. There was no word Monday about what made them change their plans.

For many years the building was known as Sirius House, when it belonged to Wolf Spille, who housed his shipping brokerage there.

The owner of Sirius Brokers Inc. left the historic anchor behind when he moved out — and also left electric coiling under the sidewalk, which keeps the walkway clear of snow in the winter.

At tip of the hat to the Brooklyn Heights Blog, which first reported on Friend of a Farmer’s choice of 76 Montague as an expansion site.