New York City (Fodor's, 2012) - Fodor's [272]
For more international adventures, head to Brighton Beach for smoked fish at elaborate Russian palaces beneath the train tracks—Primorski (282 Brighton Beach Ave. | 718/891–3111) is a classic—or browse the Central Asian eateries on Brighton Beach Avenue. Local fave Café Kashkar (1141 Brighton Beach Ave. | 718/743–3832) serves Uyghur food. In Sunset Park, wallet-friendly fare from Latin America (clustered on 5th Avenue) and East Asia (on 8th Avenue) compete for your taste buds’ time. Ba Xuyen (4222 8th Ave. | 718/633–6601) vies for the title of New York’s best Banh Mi (Vietnamese hero sandwiches), and Tacos Matamoros (4508 5th Ave. | 718/871–7627) packs in locals for its authentic tacos and tortas.
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Exploring | Where to Eat | Where to Stay | Performing Arts
Brooklyn’s toniest neighborhood offers residents something wealthy Manhattanites will never have: a stunning view of the Manhattan skyline from the Brooklyn Heights Promenade. First developed in the mid-1800s as the business center of the then-independent city of Brooklyn, it showcases historic cobblestone streets of pristine brownstones.
In the early to mid-20th century the Heights was a bohemian haven, home to writers like Arthur Miller, Truman Capote, Alfred Kazin, Marianne Moore, Norman Mailer, and W. E. B. DuBois. In the ’80s a new generation of gentrifiers moved in, and—even with a softening real estate market—homes here are still as pricey as their Manhattan counterparts.
Much of its early architecture has been preserved, thanks to its designation in the 1960s as New York’s first historic district. Some 600 buildings built in the 19th century represent a wide range of American building styles. Many of the best line Columbia Heights, a residential street that runs parallel to the promenade, but any of its adjoining streets are also worth strolling.
On Willow Street be sure to note No. 22, Henry Ward Beecher’s prim Greek Revival brownstone, and Nos. 155–159. These three brick Federal row houses are said to have been stops on the Underground Railroad. The skylight in the pavement by the gate to No. 157 provided the light for an underground tunnel leading to an 1880 carriage house.
Don’t miss a stroll around the leafy Pier 1, the newly expanded section of the Brooklyn Bridge Park, accessible from Old Fulton Street. And if you didn’t walk it coming from Lower Manhattan, take a stroll across the majestic Brooklyn Bridge.
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EXPLORING BROOKLYN HEIGHTS
Brooklyn Borough Hall.
Built in 1848 as Brooklyn’s City Hall, this Greek Revival landmark is one of Brooklyn’s handsomest buildings. Adorned with Tuckahoe marble, it features a hammered square rotunda and a two-story Beaux-Arts courtroom.
Today the building serves as the office of Brooklyn’s borough president and the home of the Brooklyn Tourism & Visitors Center (718/802–3846 | www.visitbrooklyn.org), which has historical exhibits, a gift shop, and helpful information. It’s open weekdays 10–6. Each Tuesday and Saturday as well as Thursday from April through December a greenmarket sets up on the flagstone plaza in front. | 209 Joralemon St., between Court and Adams Sts., Brooklyn Heights | 11201 | 718/802–3700 | Free | Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5 to Borough Hall; M, R to Court St; A, C, F to Jay St.
Fodor’s Choice | Brooklyn Bridge.
“A drive-through cathedral” is how the critic James Wolcott described one of New York’s noblest and most recognized landmarks. “The best, most effective medicine my soul has yet partaken,” said Walt Whitman upon seeing the nearly completed bridge. It spans the East River, connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn. A walk across its promenade—a boardwalk elevated above a roadway, shared by pedestrians, in-line skaters, and cyclists—takes about 40 minutes from the heart of Brooklyn Heights to Manhattan’s civic center. It’s worth traversing for the astounding views. Lower Manhattan | Subway: 4, 5, 6 to Brooklyn Bridge/City