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Q&A with Tanya Rynd, co-owner of Superfine in DUMBO

Tanya Rynd, owner of Superfine, at 126 Front Street in DUMBO ob Friday, June 6, 2014.
Tanya Rynd, owner of Superfine, at 126 Front Street in DUMBO ob Friday, June 6, 2014.

What brought you to DUMBO?
 
I had been living and making my art in Santa Fe when I came to New York in 1994 to work on an independent film. I was sent to DUMBO to pick up a prop and immediately fell in love with the neighborhood’s industrial feel, the sense of big sky, the grandiose architecture and the river.  When [co-owners Cara Lee Sparry and Laura Taylor] and I decided to open a restaurant about 14 years ago, we had no money, no investors, just a lot of chutzpah. We wanted a place for artists, the kind of place where we would want to hang out which is what we have now.
 
What do you like about being here?
 
Since I first got here, the neighborhood has been a huge inspiration for my art and my writing. It feels big, much the way the desert feels big. I also love the dynamism of the neighborhood. I used to know everyone but now I sometimes think, “who are all these people?” At Superfine we try to help promote the feeling of community by welcoming people of all ages — techies, artists, families, everyone — to our space.
 
What’s in store for the area?
 
DUMBO is beginning to feel like a small city. I think it’s a shame that so many of the artists who live here and others who would like to live and/or work here are being priced out.  There may be a few little rabbit holes left but not many. DUMBO is exploding and will probably keep on exploding.