love for southern brooklyn

Submitted by Easy_Potential2882 t3_y31tki in nyc

Hey r/nyc, I’m someone who moved here (Carroll Gardens specifically) from out of state, and while places like Williamsburg, Ft Greene, and Park Slope get plenty of love, I don’t see much praise for southern Brooklyn outside of Coney Island’s amusement park area or Di Fara Pizza. Personally I love strolling down Ocean Parkway on a sunny day, popping into little Italian oldtimer shops on 18th Avenue, eating patties in Flatbush, hanging out at Brighton Beach, watching the skyline in Sunset Park, or grabbing a sandwich at Roll n Roaster and sitting by the water in Sheepshead Bay. If my significant other didnt have to commute so far to the city, we’d move there yesterday. What do you love about southern Brooklyn? tell me about your favorite shops, restaurants, bars, parks, streets, or events that happen south of Linden Blvd!

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chi-93 t1_is64e2y wrote

I love the vibe in Brighton Beach, especially the Tashkent Supermarket.

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americawanted t1_is7q8ip wrote

You’re joking, right?

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chi-93 t1_is7qqux wrote

Nope!! Why, are you not a fan??

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americawanted t1_is7se9s wrote

I honestly don’t know who would be a fan of that mosh pit where people elbow you left and right, breath down your neck and some morons tasting the food off the display and putting it back.

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chi-93 t1_is7th54 wrote

Fair enough!! I’ve not been too many times, but ever time I go I enjoy the experience, and the food has always been so tasty for me.

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Malfunctioned t1_isi5b0j wrote

Welcome to the alternative civilization of southern Brooklyn.

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lampbane t1_is6y5pf wrote

  • Kings Theater
  • Marine Park Salt Marsh
  • Floyd Bennett Field
  • Plumb Beach
  • Taci's Beyti
  • Lock Yard
  • Lucia's of Avenue X
  • Totonno's
  • Lo Duca
  • Dyker Heights Christmas Lights
  • Shore Road Promenade
  • Owl's Head Park
  • The Q train from Church Avenue to Coney Island (no really, it's a great train ride)
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tootsie404 t1_is81oxa wrote

Marine Park Salt Marsh kinda wack unless you tryna get Tetanus. Marine Park itself is great then get cookies at Kings Plaza

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korpus01 t1_is825h6 wrote

I disagree, it's a really cool place. Has abandoned burned cars and is quite for BBQ and just chilling in the summer.

Plenty of clean clear spaces, you just gotta look.

Be safe, best of luck!

PS: It's better to go at low tied, you'll have more choice of places to set up bonfires and such

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powerpointwarrior t1_is7zmel wrote

Totonno’s has been closed for about two years now. Last I heard, they were trying to go the frozen pizza route vs reopening in full. Lucia’s is good, replaced Delmar as my favorite in sheepshead.

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is61j7d wrote

if the post seems generic, well, thats because the generic posts really only cover northern brooklyn, there’s a reason for me posting this i swear!

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OliveGardenInTimesSq t1_is63y9a wrote

The Olive Garden in Bensonhurst

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is652yn wrote

that shopping center gives me weird vibes man…

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Meteorboy t1_is76kk7 wrote

Why does it give you weird vibes other than being a retail graveyard?

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is77ybk wrote

thats pretty much it, any time i pass by it looks very empty, generally looks out of place

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scream4cheese t1_is81112 wrote

It’s quite the opposite of empty. The Target that opened in place of Toy R Us is huge. Lots of shoppers there and at Best Buy. For someone such as yourself who didn’t grow up in South Brooklyn, many of us have been there and experienced the shore road on the side that takes you all the way to bay ridge.

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is86yn8 wrote

ive been looking for a real target like you find in the suburbs, these little city targets dont cut it.

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scream4cheese t1_is8b24n wrote

Your best bet are the ones at Ceasar’s bay, Triangle Junction, Atlantic Terminal Mall and at Gateway. Those are the big targets that I know of in Brooklyn.

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Malfunctioned t1_isi3t9x wrote

I've noticed that a number if items I periodically buy from other large Target are not carried at the The Caesar's Bay store, which is surprising as the store is not small. It was the least busy of all the large Targets I've been to , though I primarily shop on weekday afternoons. The shelves are better stocked and neater than many others, which may indicate that they have more workers, or fewer shoppers.

I've been to large Targets (Atlantic, BK Junction, Gateway, Marble Hill, Queens Place, Flushing, College Point, Valley Stream) and small format ones (Bensonhurst, Tribeca, Forest Hill).

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scream4cheese t1_isi45zx wrote

I’ve been to it multiple times during different days of the week and there’s a reasonable amount of people there. Always lines to check out

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Coyote_FIVEOH t1_is7pngn wrote

That shopping center has been there a very long time. The only thing weird about it is that it really doesn’t belong in NYC. The parking lot is more sq Ft than the stores. It’s not a bad shopping center though. Just frustrating to imagine how much of that parking could be something beautiful

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strangefoot t1_is69pj4 wrote

Mirage Diner. If you're in a classic diner mood.

Kachapuri on Ave P.. don't remember the exact spot but remember it being so dang good.

Floyd Bennet field is sorta interesting.. if you like airstrips..

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DirtySkell t1_is6i4wt wrote

> Mirage Diner. If you're in a classic diner mood.

The Mirage is a shithole bro. Go to the Parkview or the Bridgeview diner. Those are classic spots that don't make you question what kind of animal your burger is made of.

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strangefoot t1_is80en3 wrote

Oh shiiit.. I never knew about Parkview but after looking it up, I wanna go! Ty

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analog_x700 t1_is6du2d wrote

Kachapuri has really great Georgian food for cheap prices. That entire area in Midwood feels like you’re in a different country in general. South Brooklyn is slept on big time. A lot of transplants couldn’t care less about it. Oh well, more cheap food for the rest of us that give a shit.

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AccumulationCurve t1_is90m6w wrote

Funny thing, OP uses the term "southern brooklyn" which is correct to me, but a lot of people in this thread are using the term "south brooklyn" which to me has always been Carroll Gardens/Park Slope area. I know definitions change, but I'll always think of it that way.

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sidewaysflower t1_is7nmj7 wrote

I love Kingsborough Community College. It's one of the nicest campuses in NYC! Glad I went there for my associates degree

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Soraflair t1_is7umnh wrote

Kings Highway has plenty of great shops and restaurants.

Sheepshead bay is awesome to go day drinking in.

Definitely check out bay ridge, I used to love to swing by the diners out there, I think there's a water taxi dock now too that makes it even easier.

I would say sunset park but now you're moving into mid Brooklyn, and you specified south Brooklyn.

Floyd Bennett field is also great, there's always someone out there with model airplanes flying around which is cool to check out.

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Vast_Patient_5927 t1_is819za wrote

Bay ridge in best way possible has the best old man and dives and regular pubs . Shout-out bean post for best wings too .

I also think bay ridge in all of nyc has best overall places to eat, any damn kind of food you can want it has top of the top all within couple blocks of each other.

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Scarlet_Night t1_is80qxu wrote

Unfortunately a lot of what I loved disappeared with time (whatcha gonna do?), but some of my fav places are still:

  • The walking path between Caesar’s Bay and the Verrazano. I used to walk up and down that with friends. But also nice to go when it’s foggy out since you can hear the fog horns in the distance.
  • Draft Barn (rip Sheepshead), but there’s still one over on ave x I think. It has a nice outdoor space and a pretty fantastic beer list.
  • The strip of beach between Coney Island and Seagate because the sand and water are so much clearer.
  • Istanbul Restaurant on Bay Pkwy and 86th is delicious
  • The baked goods at Rimini Bakery on Bay Pkwy are also delicious
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sourmilkface t1_is8kdv0 wrote

Pastosa in Bensonhurst for frozen ravioli and prepared food.

Varenichnaya in Brighton Beach for Vereniki and Pelmini - they sell huge bags frozen for dirt cheap. They relocated in the past year or so and I almost had a mental breakdown when I thought they’d closed.

Paneantico in Bay Ridge for hot and cold Italian sandwiches and pastries.

Cropsey Bagels for bagels, obviously.

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is8l14d wrote

i went to varenichnaya a month or so ago, you couldn’t go inside and they had a table out front where all they were really selling were these giant dumplings, looked like enormous fried pierogis, dont know what they were called. not sure what was goin on but i gotta go back and try the regular menu. also, cropsey bagels is awesome 👏

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astoria_story t1_is7h4t9 wrote

Yes, stop blowing up my spot. Ssshhhh!

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americawanted t1_is7s1z7 wrote

Ok, so as someone who lived in South Brooklyn for about 5 years (Sheepshead Bay) I’ll provide you with some pros and cons that are specific to that area.

Pros: -Housing is cheap, you can still find a 1bd for $1,600-1,700 even though it’s becoming a rarity now. -Grocery is cheap. There are million of stores around that have fresh and quality produce. -Close to the beach and Coney Island. Even thought Brighton and Manhattan beaches are not the cleanest one, they’re still better than commuting for an hour. -Reliable and relatively fast commute. B train is running like a clockwork for most of the time and the ride itself from Sheepshead Bay to Midtown takes only 35 minutes. But it only runs on weekdays, so weekend commute on Q is long, but still reliable. -Plenty of restaurants around you offering different cuisines.

Cons: -Dominated by Russian-speaking people who tend to be morose and lack manners. -Area is dirty, there is a lack of trash cans and people contribute heavily to this problem. -Could be closer to the city. -Area became sketchy with some businesses closing and homeless/mentally ill population increasing.

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LarrehHoovah t1_is7yj7q wrote

L&B Spumoni Gardens #1 in South Brooklyn

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joyousRock t1_is92i3y wrote

I’ve only lived in New Jersey and Manhattan but have a lot of love for Brooklyn and south bk in particular. Such great neighborhoods to bike through and see what you might run into

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aimglitchz t1_is93wn6 wrote

Mad Chinese people in sunset Park and bensonhurst

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LongIsland1995 t1_is9au5u wrote

Flatbush is considered Southern Brooklyn? I've always thought of it as being the Heart of Brooklyn more or less

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Easy_Potential2882 OP t1_is9zlhn wrote

i guess people think “central brooklyn” is its own thing, in which case im not sure where the cutoff is, cuz kensington is at the same latitude and people seem to think kensington is more southern brooklyn

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Bungabunga10 t1_is7xd2x wrote

Sheepshead Bay is way under rated. Close to Q and B train. Waterfront promenade and quick hop across the pedestrian bridge to Manhattan Beach.

Liman restaurant has great Turkish food. Avenue U nearby has great Chinese food. Close to JFK and also to NJ thru Staten Island.

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Vast_Patient_5927 t1_is810z8 wrote

Liman my favorite place to eat in all 5 boros (maybe Michaels more I think of it but nah I’ll say liman) fish is dumbbb.

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