![\"Santa](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/PTPZDUBXVRDY3JC42XQPJ6PRAY.jpg\"\/)
The Kettle Black traditionally offers hot chocolate with whipped cream for strollers, anticipated this year on Thursday, Dec. 4. –<\/p>\nSTATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 The Forest Avenue Business Improvement District will mark two decades of its annual Holiday Stroll on Thursday, Dec. 4, from 5 to 7 p.m. along Forest Avenue.<\/p>\n
Santa will ride along the Forest Avenue corridor from Broadway to Hart Boulevard during the celebration. Rain or snow, local merchants plan to open their doors to visitors, offering treat samples, hot cocoa and special holiday offers.<\/p>\n
The Kettle Black traditionally offers hot chocolate with whipped cream for strollers, anticipated this year on Thursday, Dec. 4. –<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re proud to mark two decades of bringing holiday joy and togetherness to our Forest Avenue community,\u201d said Nina Flores, executive director of the Forest Avenue BID. \u201cThis event truly captures the spirit of the season and showcases the heart of our local businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n
The event typically features seasonal decorations along Forest Avenue, with businesses competing in a holiday window display contest. Santa arrives in a horse-drawn carriage. Restaurants offer special menu items and tastings to encourage residents to explore the neighborhood\u2019s culinary offerings.<\/p>\n
The Forest Avenue Stroll evolved from holiday-themed events that the Forest Avenue BID began organizing two decades ago to promote local businesses in West Brighton. In 2017, the event featured 22 strands of LED lights strung across Forest Avenue and drew participation from businesses such as Caf\u00e9 Milano, Beans \u2018n\u2019 Leaves, Panini Grill, The Staaten, Moretti\u2019s Bakery, and Pastosa Ravioli. Today, support for the festivities continues with contributions from Sally\u2019s Southern, The Kettle Black, Ho\u2019Brah, Better Health Gourmet, Jody\u2019s Club Forest, Crumbl Cookie and Italo Fine Foods. <\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/WY3WJZJEN5FSHNIOGMHO65JRQQ.jpeg\"\/)
A Forest Avenue tradition: LiGreci’s The Staaten is known for its fried fresh zucchini sticks. (Advance\/SILive.com | Pamela Silvestri)<\/p>\n
This year will see some newcomers in the food realm, including Randall Manor Tavern<\/a> at 382 Forest Ave., Shah\u2019s Halal Food (opening this November)<\/a> and perhaps Insomnia Cookies<\/a>, also in the works. Jean\u2019s Fine Wines is now a craft store called Muse at 642 Forest Ave. <\/a><\/p>\n The Forest Avenue event has grown over the years to include live entertainment, family-friendly activities<\/a> and community beautification efforts.<\/a> The BID works to promote the area\u2019s businesses and foster community engagement.<\/a> It is funded in large part by an annual assessment of $165,000 paid by commercial property owners (or their tenants) located within its boundaries, covering Forest Avenue from Hart Boulevard to Broadway.<\/a> The BID is managed by a nonprofit board that includes local stakeholders and elected officials. The board ensures funds are used effectively to support the district\u2019s 149 ground-floor retail businesses.<\/p>\n If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement<\/a> and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and\/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 The Forest Avenue Business Improvement District will mark two decades of its annual Holiday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":32263,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-32262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32262"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32262\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Jean's](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IYEMHHOEWVFCBGAN3D5QRWPUBU.jpg\"\/)
Jean Daggan, left, and her daughter-in-law Kristin Daggan own two businesses in the area, including Muse \u2014 a craft store where visitors can create holiday ornaments and other decorative pieces using beads, glass, and torches.Silvestri<\/p>\n