City Wendy

Avoid Dr. Moktan, Endocrinologist in Brooklyn, At All Costs

In case anyone Googles Dr. Moktan, an endocrinologist in Brooklyn, wondering if he or she should schedule an appointment with her, or with one of her partners, Dr. Kahn or Dr. Sirvastaza, I hope THIS review, which I've posted on Yelp and every site I can find that accepts reviews for Dr. Moktan, answers that question effectively:

Dealing with Dr. Moktan and her office at Methodist in Park Slope was an absolute nightmare. I waited almost TWO HOURS after my scheduled appointment time to finally see her, and then I had to wait an additional half hour to get my blood drawn because the nurse on duty decided to take an unscheduled McDonalds break. The very worst part, though, was that Dr. Moktan would not return my phone calls and repeated inquiries for my test results.

Dr. Moktan told me to call the Monday following my appointment to get my results, which I thought was a little odd, since it's always been my experience in the past that doctors are the ones to call patients when the results come in. I wouldn't have minded tracking her down if she actually called me back, but she didn't. I called about six or seven times over the course of four days, waiting an average of 15 minutes each time just to be put to her VOICE MAIL, and she didn't have the common decency to pick up the phone, give me a diagnosis and write me a prescription. This is especially bad because I'm five months pregnant and time is of the essence. If I need a specific medication (which it turns out I DID), I shouldn't be going without it for weeks on end while a doctor I paid good money to to treat me does God knows what while I try in vain to get a measly five-minute phone call out of her.

And don't even get me started on the receptionists who work the front desk of her office. Hands down, they are the laziest, most unprofessional "customer service" people I've ever come across in a medical office. Dr. Moktan works in an office with two other endocrinologists: Dr. Kahn and Dr. Sirvastaza, and while I cannot speak to their response time or skills as doctors, I would advise anyone against visiting their shared office. The other people I spoke with in the waiting room — the room I waited in for over two hours — confirmed that the long waits and unprofessional attitude and behavior in the office is par for the course across the board.

I WAS finally able to track down my test results, thankfully, but it took being hung up on numerous times by the receptionists, being told that I "should find a new doctor" (which, you better believe I will!), and having two midwives at my OBGYN clinic make numerous calls on my behalf to Dr. Moktan's office and to her office manager before I got a response. I was diagnosed with something I needed immediate medication for, so I'm grateful Dr. Moktan finally got around to returning one of the 30 or 40 calls placed to her office, but I am beyond appalled by the measures it took to receive that 2-minute call in the first place.

Please save yourself a lot of time and grief and avoid this doctor and her horrific office at all costs. I have never experienced such a lack of professionalism, human decency and compassion in a medical office in my whole life.

Favorite Brooklyn Recommendations

A couple weeks ago, I posted my favorite Manhattan recommendations (so far) and promised a followup Brooklyn post, which I'm sure you've all been eagerly anticipating. Well, wait no longer! I've created a short list of ten things I've grown to love about Brooklyn. If you're a Brooklynite, maybe some of these will be new to you. If you're a Manhattanite and are thinking about venturing to the BK, maybe this will give you some ideas of places to hit. And if you're from out of town and planning a visit to New York, maybe now you'll be enticed to step onto the city's more funky frontier.

Since I'm still new to the borough and plan to do lots more exploring in the many years to come, this list is nowhere near exhaustive or complete, and I definitely welcome recommendations from anyone familiar with Brooklyn. Anyway, here are my faves (so far):

Sunny's

I've written about Sunny's before, and I'm not lying when I say that this authentic dive bar at the tip of Red Hook was one of the reasons we moved to Brooklyn. It wasn't a main reason, but being closer to one of our favorite New York haunts was definitely in the "Pro" column. This is what I wrote about Sunny's after my first visit there: "Sunny's is a worn-in joint near the river with slanted floors, cracked red leather booths, and nautical-themed artwork and family photos on the walls. It's not a shiny place, but it glows." In addition: the drinks are cheap, the people are friendly, and there's always good music playing (usually from one of the bartender's iPods). If you're lucky you may even meet the owner, Sunny, whose presence, like his bar, glows. Be advised: Sunny's is only open Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights.

Brooklyn Flea

This popular flea market happens every weekend, year round, at two different Brooklyn locations (one outdoors and one in a beautiful converted bank). The New York Times says it's "One of the great urban experiences in New York." Time Out NY calls it "One of New York's Essential Pick-Up Spots." I say it's a great spot to find cool vintage finds, people-watch, and eat some amazing food. The market is known as much for its food vendors as anything else for sale here, so come hungry.

Madiba

One of the things that surprised me about Brooklyn when I moved here was how amazing the restaurants are. I admit, I had a little bit of Manhattan snobbery coming here and Madiba was one of the first places that made me realize the error of my thinking. One of the first — if not the first South African — restaurants in the States when it opened in 1999, Madiba is located in Fort Greene, just a few blocks from Brooklyn Flea, so if for some crazy reason you were still hungry afterward, you could head here for fantastic food, lively ambiance, and Mojitos that will knock your socks off (or just knock you on your ass). Tip: Check rsetaurant.com for a coupon.

Prospect Park

Drew and I sometimes debate which is better: Central Park or Prospect Park, and while the latter really can't compare to the former in terms of sheer magnificence, Prospect Park has its specialness. Long Meadow, which is rumored to be the largest stretch of lawn in any U.S. park, is one of the best places in the whole city to enjoy a picnic with friends or family, sunbathe, fly a kite, throw a frisbee, or sit under a tree and makeout. There's a great bike bath around the outer park, tennis courts, nature trails, and a pond where you can rent peddle boats. There's even a zoo. And during the summer, the park puts on lots of free outdoor concerts at the Bandshell. We saw Isaac Hayes there a few weeks before he died in 2008.

Weather Up

I have to credit the lovely Sarah Brown for telling me about this awesome place when I moved to the hood a few months ago. It's unmarked, so easy to miss, but if you find this hidden gem on a stretch of Vanderbilt in north Prospect Heights, you won't be disappointed. With a speakeasy feel to it, this stylish, old-fashioned cocktail bar serves up delicious drinks and has a great back patio to boot. Be forewarned: the drinks are tasty, but expensive. Save this bar for a special occasion or decide in advance not to stay for more than one or two rounds. This ain't no dive.

Green Army Plaza Farmers Market

If you live in Brooklyn, this is a great spot to stock up on your fresh produce for the week, and if you don't live in Brooklyn, this is a great place to see the natives in their natural habitat. Happening every Saturday year-round at the northwest entrance of Prospect Park, this farmers market fills with a diverse group of people from nearby neighborhoods — many of whom seem to lots of dogs and babies and canvas bags. There are always a few musicians playing for tips and a variety of free events, like bake-offs (there's a pie bake-off this weekend, if you're around). You'll find an intimate community feel here in the middle of a big city.

Coney Island

What can I say about Coney Island that hasn't been said a million times already? Go for the people-watching, for the Astroland amusement park (including the iconic Cyclone ride), for the boardwalk experience, and for a view of the Atlantic Ocean. This is a piece of Americana we're lucky to still have around, so go see it while you still can.

Court St./Smith St.

For those not familiar with Brooklyn, a good place to start exploring is the bordering blocks between the Cobble Hill and Boerum Hill neighborhoods, which is basically Court St. and Smith St., roughly between Atlantic and Degraw. These two streets are filled with indie boutiques, home decor shops, cool bars, and tons and tons of restaurants. I haven't spent enough time in this area to have a favorite spot yet but if you like pizza, I can't imagine you'd have trouble finding something good along Court St., where basically every other building seems to house a pizza joint.

Tom's

We lived in our neighborhood three months before we finally ventured into one of its best longtime treasures. Tom's is this old-timey, family restaurant that opened in 1936 and is still decorated with lots of nods to that bygone era. The menu, too, reflects a different time where you could readily order egg creams and soda fountain drinks. Expect a long line to get in for weekend brunch, but the staff keeps waiting patrons satiated with mugs of coffee, cookies, and fresh fruit. The food is fine — not anything to really write home about, but this is a place people go to for the atmosphere not the grub.

The Brooklyn Bridge

Technically, this isn't in Brooklyn — or at least, not all of it. But walking or biking across it (there are bike paths each way), from Manhattan into Brooklyn is just one of those experiences everyone who visits or lives in the city should have at least once. Not only is it an iconic bridge with breathtaking views of the city's skyline as well as the Statue of Liberty, it's such a grand way to enter into either borough. There's lovely Brooklyn Bridge Park over on the Brooklyn side where my friends Rachel and Bill were married over the summer. But you don't have to be attending a wedding to enjoy the expanse of lawn with great views.

From out of town? Some other Brooklyn options I haven't hit yet, but have heard great things about:

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Brooklyn Museum

For shame, I haven't visited either of these Brooklyn treasures yet — they're so close, too. I plan to rectify that in the next couple weeks, though, and from what I hear, I'm in for a treat. I know when we were planning our wedding last year, the Botanic Garden came up again and again as a beautiful spot to hold one.

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So, you guys, what am I missing, what else do I need to try out? What are your favorite Brooklyn recommendations?

Fall in Brooklyn

In the last week, the leaves on the tree outside our bedroom window turned brown. I was sitting on the bed yesterday, having a lazy Sunday afternoon while Drew was watching both the Yankees game and the Jets game in the livingroom courtesy of picture-in-picture, and I realized the leaves were no longer green or even green-brown. Sure as shit, they're brown-brown now. Soon, they'll join the others on the ground and pumpkins will begin to line the stairs leading up to heavy brownstone doors and kids will start losing their mittens and gloves in the park. Maybe even adults will too.

The farmers stopped selling berries at the market this weekend. They still have plenty of corn, though, and for the second Sunday evening in a row, I boiled some Jersey corn to have with farm tomato BLTs for dinner. But I have to start thinking of more season-appropriate meals to cook: stuffed peppers, carrot soup, Shepherd's Pie. What am I forgetting? What are some of your favorite fall recipes? And remember your audience here, please; I don't want to spend all day cooking. Not when there are trees to stare at.

The vendors at the flea market are bringing in vintage furs and military jackets and long-sleeve shirts and cable-knit sweaters. Yesterday, I bought an old western shirt. It's a men's shirt, so the pearly buttons are on the left side, and it's turquoise, ruby red and gray plaid and I fold the sleeves up and tie the bottom in a little knot at my waist. It cost 15 bucks and I liked it a whole lot better than the green plaid western style shirt I saw for sale at a boutique in Cobble Hill for $200. Two hundred bucks for a plaid shirt! I get so outraged when I see prices like that, and I'll say really loud — even if I'm there by mysef — "Two hundred bucks for a plaid shirt?! What the what?!" I don't know why I always feel compelled to say something like that when I'm outraged. I could just keep my mouth shut and mosey on out the store; it's not like the people who work there are gonna be all, "You know, you're right. These shirts really are grossly over-priced. How'dja like to pay twenty bucks for that one?"

Over the weekend, I started drinking a new (to me) cocktail: Stoli vanilla and 7-up. Does this cocktail have a name? I tried Googling it, but all I found were recipes for "Creme Soda" which uses ginger ale instead of 7-up and one called "Daylon's Bedtime" which adds triple sec to the vodka and 7-up mix. Nope, I just want the Stoli vanilla and 7-Up, please. Have you tried it? It's awesome. A wonderful Autumn answer to Summer's Vodka Cranberry. I urge you to order it the next time you're out and then please, report back here and let's brainstorm a name for this delicious concoction. Who's in?

Things My Neighbors Have Left On Their Stoop That I Thought About Taking Home But Decided Not To

Here in Brooklyn people like to leave stuff they no longer want on their front stoops for passersby to take. Maybe people do this in Manhattan, too, but no one ever did it in our neighborhood — or, if they did, I just didn't leave my apartment enough to notice. Anyway, in no particular order, here's a list of stuff my neighbors have left out on their stoops that I thought about taking home and then for whatever reason decided not to:

• A bird cage
• A travel guide for Costa Rica
• A book of blank construction paper
• A glass cake stand (I kinda wish I'd taken this one, actually)
• A little doorknob hanging with an inspirational message about following your dreams
• A stack of magazines (mostly InStyle, Self, and Glamour, from what I could tell)
• A wooden spice rack
• One of those hippie purses made out of straps of sari material and large sequins
• A vegetarian cookbook (maybe someone had a meat relapse?)
• A wind chime (would have taken this, but on closer inspection I noticed it was broken)

I'm waiting for someone to leave a wrought iron bistro set on their stoop, as well as a large ceramic pot and maybe a cool decanter. I'd also accept a healthy jade plant. Or any type of succulent, really — I'm not picky.