6 of the best hot dog places in Brooklyn
Despite the recent craze for burgers topped with everything from pineapple to fried eggs to parmesan crisps, New York is really a hot dog town, and Brooklyn is no exception to that rule. Though you’ll find fewer carts selling classic dirty water dogs here than in Manhattan, rest assured, there are plenty of classic wieners to be found in the borough, alongside some upstarts.
Bark (Park Slope)
Bark serves beef and pork franks (all-beef available on request) that are made to order in upstate New York. They’re spicy, snappy, and you can order them with all manner of toppings from sauerkraut to chili cheese. Make sure to get an order, or two, of cheddar fries on the side.
Famous Brooklyn movie locations: from Saturday Night Fever to The Warriors
Brooklyn’s image has evolved drastically over the years, and nowhere is this more apparent than in its portrayal on celluloid. Manhattan can have its Breakfast at Tiffany’s glamour—Kings County is the site of gritty urban classics, many shot right here on the mean streets (that aren’t so mean anymore). Here are some classic local filming locations you can pay a visit to yourself.
Saturday Night Fever (1977)
Who can forget a young John Travolta’s strut down the sidewalk to the groovy beat of the Bee Gees’ “Stayin’ Alive?” That iconic opening shot was filmed on 86th Street in Bensonhurst, a South Brooklyn neighborhood that has retained much of its Italian-American character. You can even grab a slice at the same spot Tony Manero did, Lenny’s Pizza. Just be careful not to drop any tomato sauce on your disco boots.
Where to go: Lenny’s Pizza, 86th St. at 20th Ave. (more…)
7 untraditional places to stay in Brooklyn
Sure, there are tons of hotels located in just about every neighborhood of Brooklyn, but why limit yourself? Brooklyn’s also home to a number of hostels, bed and breakfast spots, and a whole lot of Airbnb apartment rentals. If you’re looking to stay in the borough and you’re on a budget, or you’d rather try something a little off the beaten path, consider these seven untraditional places to stay in the County of Kings.
Airbnb New York
In Brooklyn alone, the short-term rental site Airbnb offers more than 1,000 places to stay at any given time. You can either rent an entire apartment, a private room in an apartment, or a shared room to get the experience of staying in a “real” place in Brooklyn. Prices range anywhere from $22 a night for a room in a Bed Stuy apartment to $750 a night for a massive loft rental in Clinton Hill. (more…)
A perfect day in Sheepshead Bay: fishing, Italian food, and more
North of Manhattan Beach and south of everything else in Brooklyn, this waterfront district is brimming with old-school Brooklyn character. Sheepshead Bay is named for a striped fish species that was once catchable in the adjacent bay, but these days is found in more southerly waters. The neighborhood once boasted a race track—originally for horses and later for automobiles—that shuttered in the early 20th century. (more…)
Brooklyn’s signature drink, The Egg Cream, and where to find one
First off, let’s get one thing clear — there are no eggs in an egg cream. And it’s not like steak tartare or Caesar dressing, which are supposed to incorporate raw eggs, but often don’t because of health concerns. There was never egg of any kind in egg creams.
So what IS in an egg cream? Three things: milk, seltzer and chocolate syrup – Fox’s U-bet chocolate syrup specifically, if you’re a purist. That’s it.
The result is a classic case of something being more than the sum of its parts. What sounds as if it might taste like fizzy Yoo-hoo, or worse, watered down chocolate milk, somehow manages to be rich, creamy, chocolatey and refreshing all at once. And while living in Brooklyn doesn’t necessitate knocking one back on a nightly basis, there are a few great spots to get your hands on an authentic egg cream.
Photo by Barnaby Dorfman via Flickr
The best views in Brooklyn: DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Williamsburg and Greenpoint
There’s so much to see, eat, and do in Brooklyn these days that the borough has moved out of Manhattan’s shadow to become a destination in its own right. That doesn’t mean, however, that Brooklynites don’t like looking at Manhattan. In fact, the Brooklyn waterfront offers some of the best views of the city around. The towering city skyline is inspiring to both natives and visitors alike — and here are the best places in Brooklyn to see it.
Photo of Williamsburg waterfront by Heather Harvey via Flickr
5 famous and historic Brooklyn stoops – Truman Capote, Spike Lee and more
7 Arlington Place | via PropertyShark
No image of Brooklyn is more iconic than that of a family or a group of friends hanging out on their front stoop on a sunny day. (We don’t have garage sales here. We have stoop sales.) In a borough full of front stoops, here are five of the most historic.
7 Arlington Place, Bedford-Stuyvesant (GMAP)
7 Arlington Place is the famed Bed-Stuy townhouse where Spike Lee shot Crooklyn in 1994. The film takes place during the summer of 1974 and centers around a family interacting within the neighborhood. The theatrical release poster features the family all gathered on the brownstone stoop — Bed Stuy is actually well known for gorgeous homes and stately stoops like this. But the neighborhood has dramatically changed since Spike Lee lived here: this Bed-Stuy brownstone last sold for $1.7 million. (more…)
Enter for a chance to win $200 worth of TKTS gift certificates!
TKTS Discount Booths offer discount tickets to Broadway and Off Broadway at up to 50% off.
Created By BlankSlate
—CONTEST HAS ENDED—
Broke and looking for a fun date night? It’s your lucky day. Theatre Development Fund (TDF) wants to help you take a friend to that Broadway or Off Broadway show you’ve been itching to see. Enter here on Brokelyn for your chance to win $200 worth of TKTS gift certificates. (Forever alone? Take your mom!)
Whether or not you end up winning, you should know that you don’t have to fight your way through a zombie horde of people in Times Square to get discounted tickets. TKTS has a Downtown Brooklyn booth right by the Jay St-Metro Tech Station. As with other locations, TKTS Downtown Brooklyn sells discount tickets of up to 50% off full price to evening performances on the day of the show, but unlike TKTS Times Square, matinee tickets are sold only the day before the performance. The Downtown Brooklyn booth also sells tickets to performances at Brooklyn venues. For Brooklyn venues charging $30 or less, TKTS sells at full price to help those companies thrive.
For iPhone, Android, and Windows users, TKTS created a FREE app that shows you what’s available at the booth. Or, if you prefer, TKTS also lists all of that day’s deals live on their website. If you don’t think all of this is enough (really?!), they also offer an online ticketing service through TDF Membership. This membership gives eligible individuals access to even deeper discounts of up to 70% off full price. (There are specific eligibility requirements, though, so be sure to read through the full details.)
Have you entered to win yet? Did you download the app yet? Are you a TDF member yet? Is it that you hate live theater, or you just love paying full price?
Introducing Explore Brooklyn
The hottest borough in NYC finally has the website it deserves. Welcome to Explore Brooklyn!
On May 9, 2014, at the BKLYN Designs fair, the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Brooklyn technology firm BlankSlate, officially launched Explore Brooklyn, Brooklyn’s first dedicated site for New Yorkers and visitors alike. ExploreBK.com brings together a dynamic, front-page directory of every business and attraction in Brooklyn, an events calendar, and a blog about don’t-miss destinations written by the area’s best local writers — all designed to serve as an invaluable resource for visitors and residents alike.
Now that you’re here, check out the post “What to do after you walk across the Brooklyn Bridge,” a question many of you may have answered for visiting friends, or tourists wandering around Brooklyn Heights and Dumbo. There’s lots more where that came from: keep looking to read about where to find great coffee, outstanding museums, and souvenirs that are actually cool.
“We don’t want all those tourists walking across the bridge to turn around and go back to Manhattan,” explained Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, Carlo Scissura. “We want them to stay a while and get to know the Brooklyn that we know and love.”
What to see and do at BKLYN DESIGNS, May 9-11
What is BKLYN DESIGNS?
BKLYN DESIGNS is an internationally renowned, juried exhibition featuring a dynamic collection of designs from 60 of the most innovative Brooklyn-based furnishing designers and manufacturers. Each year, BKLYN DESIGNS raises the bar for avant-garde, iconic Brooklyn designs, exceeding the expectations of both participants and viewers alike.
BKLYN DESIGNS is one of the biggest design shows in the country. Thousands of visitors are expected to descend on DUMBO over the three-day show to take in this year’s collection of designs, including the latest contemporary furniture, lighting, carpet and flooring, wall coverings, tabletop/outdoor furniture, and accessories crafted in Brooklyn.
Where is it?
In various locations around Dumbo. The main exhibition spaces are:
St. Ann’s Warehouse
(29 Jay St., between John and Plymouth)
Mark Jupiter Showroom
(191 Plymouth St., between Jay and Bridge).
In addition, there will be other design venues throughout Dumbo:
Baxter & Liebchen (
33 Jay St., at Plymouth St.)
Betsey Lee
(26 Jay St., at Plymouth)
Brooklyn Roasting Company
(25 Jay St., at John St.)
Made in NY Media Center by IFP (
30 John St., between Jay and Pearl)
What is there to see?
— JAPAN @ Brooklyn Roasting Company: featuring Brooklyn-inspired designers from Japan
— Pratt Institute @ The Mark Jupiter Showroom, featuring the designs of Pratt students and alumni
— “On the Horizon: What’s Emerging in Design & Tech Beyond 3D Printing and Wearable Devices?”: a conversation with WIRED senior editor Cliff Kuang
— “New Models for the Business of Design”: a conversation moderated by New York magazine design editor Wendy Goodman
What is there to do?
— Behind-the-scenes tour of the John Street section of Brooklyn Bridge Park, now under construction
— Walking tour with Architect’s Newspaper editor Alan Brake
— Opportunity to win a custom piece of furniture by Mark Jupiter
— Kidville Brooklyn’s Outdoor Play Lounge on Jay Street
— Recreate the DUMBO landscape with Creatively Wild‘s object art
— Learn to Double Dutch the Brooklyn way with University Settlement
— Assorted Brooklyn food trucks: BKLYN BITES ON JAY ST
For more information, check out the BKLYN DESIGNS website. We’ll see you there!
